Is she a bird? Is she a plane? No, it’s my mother, and apparently she’s got superpowers too. Her powers include running marathons, and defiantly crossing oceans on the Clipper RTW Yacht Race, among other things. Meet Joan Clancy. She answers to ‘Mum’, ‘Gran’, and even ‘Doctor’, in her capacity to make Accident & Emergency staff across the North of England tremble at just the mention of an impending visit.…

A post from Gozo, the smaller cousin of Malta.
Just after Christmas Day of 2011, I spent ten days on the charming island of Gozo, until early in the new year.  Malta and Gozo are very  different places, materially and culturally. The Maltese are very proud of their heritage and customs, as are the Gozitans, but other than the shared language they have little in common.…