Marsaxlokk, Malta - NOT amateur radio

 Today we visited the fishing “village” of Marsaxlokk in SW Malta famous for its colourful fishing boats. It was not what I would call a village!

Over the horizon optical tests

 It’s many years since I last did these tests and I remember being amazed that on a cloudless night I could clearly receive my 481THz beacon way over the horizon without any signal visible. Had my stroke not got in the way, I am sure much much further would have been possible even with my simple QRP system. The receiver I used is attached. It was also in RadCom. It is also on my main webpages.

Typical on Malta - NOT amateur radio

 It’s probably fair to say the countryside on Malta 🇲🇹 is barren. In the hot summer months it looks dry and arid. This cactus 🌵 is typical of Malta.

Original 10m WISPY TX

One of my Facebook memories today was of the original breadboard version of my WISPY WSPR TX on 10m. The date was 2012. I think the PA originally had a 2N3866 which I later replaced with several 2N3904s in parallel which was far less expensive.

2m beam?

What looked like an 8 over 8 yagi for 2m was spotted this morning on a rooftop somewhere in Malta 🇲🇹. It was on an extendable mast. I guess Italy 🇮🇹 and North Africa are in range. I am not sure what town it was.

Sunspots- Sunday September 8th

Solar flux is 222 and the SSN 179. A=7 and K=1.

Rooftop meal ( Malta) - NOT amateur radio

On Saturday evening we ate at this (very posh!) restaurant on the 11th floor of our hotel. With our inclusive deal we were able to eat here for “free”. Both food and service were excellent as was the view.

Expensive tipple - NOT amateur radio

Apparently this bottle of cognac was bottled in 1696 and sold at auction recently for a stupid price. Imagine accidentally dropping it! It probably tastes like vinegar, not that anyone would open it.

Bird wattmeters

MLS is advertising Bird wattmeters and inserts . Now, I understand dealers have to make a profit, but what incredible prices! At work we just used them and I had no idea how much they cost. There is no way I would buy one now!!

Holiday amateur radio

 One of my favourite activities on holiday when in a car or coach is counting the HF beams. This is probably a good indication of amateur radio activity, although many will use wire antennas and go unnoticed. I have also been kindly invited to an eyeball QSO with someone on Malta 🇲🇹 that I have to decline as we have so much to pack in. I must say that everyone has been so friendly and helpful.