As “civvies” living in Malta in the 1960s, we frequently travelled by public transport – old noisy buses belching out diesel fumes. Whilst not the most comfortable or speedy way to travel round the island, it gave us so many opportunities to engage in the life of the islanders.
What fascinated me was the faldetta: ladies wearing this traditional black headdress were still a common sight. We were standing at a bus stop one day as one of them passed by. The combined headdress and shawl covered her head but not her face, and fell down to her calves where she gathered the material in her right hand and draped it to one side.
Nic was also fascinated and (rudely) stared at her as she went past. My husband Charlie remarked “the sail catches any breeze inside her hood, and she’ll be much cooler than we are!”
Fulwood Books 
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