Abandoned Hotel

What is it about abandoned buildings that’s so alluring? What causes us to be fascinated by the forgotten ruins of structures that once teemed with life? There is something so intriguing and mysterious and beautiful about abandoned and decaying old buildings. It may have something to do with the original purpose of those buildings. Homes and towns where families once lived are fascinating, but there’s something tragic and amazing about hospitals, churches, hotels and castles. These places were often the setting of life-changing experiences. When they’re abandoned and left to return to dust, we can’t help but imagine what used to take place within those walls.

The destruction of the inside makes the building strangely peaceful while reminding us that, without human intervention, our man-made structures are quickly taken down by nature and by time. The ex-Corynthia Jerma Palace Hotel in Marsascala is one such example. This four-star Hotel used to be Malta's most prestigious hotel in the south. It closed down in March 2007 after 25 years in operation, owned by Libyan Arab Foreign Investment Company, which also owned the land, and operated by the Corinthia Group.

The forces of erosion have dilapidated the building. The hotel was built on a peninsula facing the raging Majjistral and Scirocco winds and the sea, the wind and nature reduced this once splendid hotel into a heap of ruins inhabited by a massive colony of rats, mice and other infected insects. Other areas have been burnt down.

Palm trees, yucca and bougainvillea plants still thrive despairingly in this once-desirable place. The empty pools echo the happy cries of children of ages gone by. Stray cats roam the abondoned verandah in search of some shade from the relentless sun. Teenagers lurk in the darkest corners. Lovers hide in discreet places. Drug users leave their syringes lying about and now it seems that illegal immigrants are squatting on the site. This is what's left of the only hotel in the Southern part of our island. Such a pity...

Results

Last week I posted a game where you had to guess what the close up shots of the objects were. I thought it was going to be easy and that somehow someone would manage to guess all of them. Only one of you managed to guess almost all of them. DPC - You came closest. Well Done!!

Ok. So here are the results ..(I sound like a Eurovision Song representative)
Starting from left side
First picture: cross section of banana, Second Picture on the right: the dried remains of a prickly pear leaf (that was difficult!)
Second row: watermelon, Second picture: the skin of a pineapple
Third row: passion fruit which hasn't yet ripened, second picture: the head of garlic in a net
Fourth row: the skin of a melon, Second picture: the skin of a ripe banana.

Close up shots

In my previous post I mentioned that my husband has taken over my new camera. Well, in this post I'm attaching some pictures that he took in macro-mode (with the exception of the white thing ). They may not be the best shots but they're not that bad either. These are photos of everyday stuff - all of them natural stuff. Can you guess what they are?

Sunset

(Sunset over the island of Gozo)
( The back of Paradise Hotel at Cirkewwa)

These photos were taken two Sundays ago, after a one and a half hour trip driving with my husband towards the North searching for the best location to capture sunset. (Sadly, I haven't yet had much opportunity to experiment with my new camera. I get tired easily and breathless doing simple tasks. Walking long distances in search of capturing interesting photos is also temporarily out of the question. Husband, seems to have taken over my camera - photography has become his latest fad. )

At last, we stopped over the top of the cliffs overlooking Paradise Bay and waited for the sun to go down. However at one point I got this sudden urge to go the loo. (Ah!! pregnancy has made me befriend the loo more than I want to. Doctor insists that I drink a lot of water and having baby squashing my bladder doesn't help the situation. Now whenever I go out to run some errands I either have to abstain from drinking or else make sure of not taking long in running errands. At times I feel like an old lady on diuretics.) Anyway, I was telling you about this sudden urge - well, we were far away from any public restrooms so I had two options - either outside (which would have never been my option) or start looking for any restrooms at nearby hotel or the bar near the Cirkewwa harbour. Husband was too far away for me to call him so I had no choice but to leave him there and go in search of the closest loo.

All of a sudden I turned into F1 driver Mark Webber and sped down the bumpy road (making it all the worse for me) and headed for the bar. I pulled in the first parking place I found but forgot that I can no longer squeeze through narrow places...aaagh reversed and found another place..but again it was also a narrow slot...I was going to leave the car sitting in the middle of the parking area when I found this yellow slot exactly in front of the bar's door, at that point I was past caring for any lurking wardens and simply pulled in front of its drive way. Had the door been wider I think I would have driven it inside. I simply needed a loo. Luckily, I made it in time and boy never did I feel so relieved! I had gone inside the bar like a crazy whale and went out like a fresh watermelon on sticks.

When I returned back to the photosession location I took the opportunity to take three sunset photos (two of which are above).

St Thomas Bay in Marsascala

In the outskirts of Marsascala, one finds a large, natural inlet with small sandy banks and shallow water suitable for bathing. This is St Thomas Bay, known as 'Ir-Ramla' to the locals. St.Thomas Bay is on the outskirts of Marsascala. In fact it's very close to the village of Zejtun.

The bay is very large; however it only has a small sandy beach. Cliffs surround the majority of the bay. Its shallow waters and small sandy banks make the bay suitable for bathing especially for children. It is also popular with local holidaymakers. The bay is ideal for windsurfing. Now with the official opening of the new bypass Marsascala has become more accessible to all.

There are some cafes and snack-bars beside the bay. The bay is used also by many Maltese fishermen.