Rain in August???

Rain in August???
Being British I feel compelled to comment on yesterday’s weather. Every day I check the Times weather forecast (even though for last 3 months the weather has been virtually the same every day, old habits die hard) but there was no mention of rain yesterday. Was it a day in May the last time it rained in Malta? I don’t remember. After endless days of sun filled skies, unbearable humidity and happy days at the beach, rain is locked somewhere in the doldrums of my mind.
Yesterday I planned the perfect morning in Sliema. It had been a while since the Pagun and I had been. I thought a morning of window shopping, drinking ice tea in a cafe at Ferries and feeling Sliemaish in my new green pumps was the perfect way to pass the morning. By the time Simpatici had finished, the laptop was closed and I had picked a t shirt to wear that hid my summer of non-stop eating, the perfect morning however, had turned into the perfect afternoon. But nobody was clock watching.
Amazingly enough parking was a piece of cake, close to Burger King. Incidentally I noticed outside Burger King there is a parking space reserved for the Archbishop (is he so keen on the fries there?). I think we had taken a maximum of two steps when we felt the first drop of rain. What followed was a moment of mixed emotions; confusion, joy, disbelief and shit I am wearing my new pumps!!
We stopped to enjoy this free spectacle from the comfort of Giorgio’s where we each downed a soft drink and a pie. We smiled as we watched tourists running in their bikinis and flip flops. I saw the minds of the British tourists ticking, I imagined their phone calls back home that evening to their families (that is once they have worked out how to correctly insert the phone card and dial the correct number) “It rained, It rained, yeah it did, it rained”.
During a brief break, we quickly darted in the direction of some commercial outlets. After the Pagun had made some life changing decisions, like deciding whether to buy a pair jeans for €16 from Topman or not (in the end they were purchased), we were ready to leave. What greeted us when we reached the doorway of Topman could have easily have been a scene from a Reuters news video. The water was flowing faster than Niagara Falls and in equal volumes, asphalt was being torn from the road, cars were swimming in the deluge along with oxen and precious belongings were being carried on the heads of the population of Sliema who were making a desperate attempt to salvage anything they could.
Okay I exaggerate but it was bad! Thinking I was Rambo I dashed to the car, after a few acts of bravery I arrived close to the car. There it was, about 4 inches deep in water. I stood there for a split second, realising my new green pumps were on the verge of ruin, then off my pumps and socks came and I dashed across to the car bare footed (this bit is true). Then the car door was closed and I realised I had made it and off I went to collect the Pagun who was waiting in the comfortable shelter of Topman.
When I returned home, I had to check the Times website. Yep! ..... I was right, they had reported the rainfall. It seems my obsession with the weather is not so British after all.