The secret of Tapie's

So Ted FORGOT about me! Grrr. I got up early and left the apartment so he could clean it and came back to nada! I ran into him yesterday afternoon and he said “oh I forgot about you!” He apologized and said he’d do it today instead. So here I sit again, booted from my apartment so he can clean. He’d better do it this time or I’ll be shaking my fist at him for real!

I’m at the Duke because it is raining this morning and it’s one of the indoor places. Oddly, there’s a man that usually goes to Tapie’s here drinking a cuppa. I was talking to Kilena yesterday and she explained the deal with Tapie’s and why it’s more visited by males than most of the other cafes. (well, the café scene in general is “male space” but why Tapie’s is even more so.) I guess it’s one of the oldest cafes in Victoria. From her shop, you look out onto St. Francis square and a fountain/rotary/roundabout. I guess until about 20 years ago there was another block of shops and houses there where Tapie’s used to be and had been for a very long time. The government decided to tear the block down to make the square and widen the roadway and Tapie’s moved to the store it’s in now – basically in the same spot just different building. But it’s on the corner of the square in a prime location and it’s still operated by the same family that it’s always been operated by, currently being run by the three brothers of the family. She said that women never went to cafes and even today you’ll only see “one, maybe two, three is too much.” This makes sense in terms of the history of Gozo and the concept of male space. If Tapie's is one of the oldest cafe establishments in Victoria then it would follow that their crowd continues to abide by the old standards as well. It was nice to hear a local confirm my assertion that the only women that really go there are tourists.

She also gave me some sweets while I was there, which was uncanny because I had planned on stopping at the confectionary on my way home to try some. She gave me a big almond cookie, the kind that looks like it’s being held in a muffin cup (not sure how else to describe it) and two smaller cookies that she said are her favorite. Unfortunately I asked what they were and she said she usually just points to them in the case and says “give me the pastini’s” (little cookies). She then gave me another one that had pink swirled icing on it and explained that it’s a traditional Maltese cookie that goes back at least about 70 years and is called “Pasti ta la rusa” or cookies of the bride. They are a traditional wedding cookie and would’ve been given out at wedding receptions. She said back then weddings were early in the morning – maybe 5am owing to the fact that most people still needed to go and farm for the day. Ugh. So my review….all of them tasted the same. They all seemed to be almond cookies to me, just with different shapes. But very similar textures and tastes. And they aren’t really that sweet, though it’s not surprising. About the only chocolate items you find in their confectionaries are either chocolate covered donuts that look just like the ones at Dunkin’ Donuts, or maybe a snickers pie with a chocolate top. Well, I guess some have chocolate croissants as well. But really it’s just rows of pastry in various forms. I’m definitely looking forward to Belgium and indulging in Belgian chocolate! Now, that’s not to say that you can’t get chocolate here – their stores have candy bars and all sorts of standard chocolate stuff…I’m just talking about the local confections. And speaking of Maltese food, for any of you foodies that are interested, here’s a pretty decent link to some Maltese recipes….
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~mccv/food/recipes.htm

I successfully got rid of the flies in my apartment and now there are 2 buzzing around me here at the Duke. At first I started swatting at them with the abandon I do in my apartment rather than just a casual wave of my hand. And then I realized I’m in a café and people are looking at me. Oops.

I asked Kilena what a typical gift is for a confirmation present, thinking I might pick one up while I’m here. She (and Maria from the Cherished Gifts store) told me…I’m not sure yet if I’ll buy one or not and I don’t want to say here in case my cousin Stephen is reading these (though I doubt it). BUT Kilena said that nowadays people will give anything (much like in the US) and that sometimes the gifts can be pretty extravagant. She knew one man who gave his son a trip on a cruise for his confirmation! When I told her I didn’t believe her, she said she had an even better story. A friend of hers was asked to be a confirmation sponsor for her nephew and she said yes – of course. The woman’s daughter then called her a couple of months later and said, “my husband says that if you want to be the confirmation sponsor you need to give him a gift of land.” LAND! The woman couldn’t believe it – she’s got 3 children of her own – why would she give her NEPHEW some of her land! Suffice it to say, as Stephen’s confirmation sponsor I will not be getting him a cruise OR land!