It was only a week into January and you and the Manchester United team were in Malta for a few days as you had a game against Birkirkara.
Yesterday you won 0-10 and this afternoon the team were going on a boat trip to relax. Everyone boarded the boat, you were sat with your girlfriend and teammate, Ona Batlle.
You met Ona when you both played for the Barcelona B team until 2017 when you signed with the senior squad and Ona moved to Madrid, then to Levante.
Both of you were reunited at international camps thatโs where you caught feelings for each other but more recently when you signed for Manchester United in 2019 and she in 2020.
โAre you okay guapa?"She spoke as you sat outside sunning yourself in just a sports bra and some Man U training shorts.
๐๐ถ๐ข๐ฑ๐ข.
It was Onaโs nickname for you, she called you it ever since you and her went out for dinner one night in the Barcelona sun.
โYeah are you?โ You answered perching your sunglasses on the end of your nose.
โI am now.โ She smiled, shuffling a little closer to you,โBecause iโm with you mi corazรณn."
โOnita.โ You spoke into her neck.
You or Ona hadnโt announced your relationship to the public yet and you didnโt want to yet. So you stayed clear of peoples phones, and tried to not act affectionate in the media however, there has been some speculation with fans and the press.
Lucรญa came bounding over to ask if we were coming in the sea, โYeah weโll come now.โ
Millie was getting ready to film you and the girls jumping off the edge of the boat, โAre you ready, okay one, two, three go!โ
All five girls dived into the ocean and it was so warm. Once Ona saw that Millie stopped recording she swam over to you putting her arms around your neck, โOh hello you.โ
โHello baby.โ She smiled, kissing your cheek.
โNot there, here.โ You kissed her deeply on the lips.
Ona kissed you back, her lips were sweet but a little bit salty from the salt water, โOnita.โ
โYes baby.โ She mumbled pulling away from your lips.
โBe careful.โ
โAlways.โ Ona hummed into your neck, not really paying attention to what was around her.
You and your girlfriend just swam around in the water for a while before you decided to get out as your fingers were getting wrinkly, โGive me a hand please.โ
You smiled down at your girlfriend, hauling her back onto the boat. Your phone seemed to have blown up from the time you were sunbathing to being in the water, โJoder!โ
โWhat? Ona looked over at you with a towel around her shoulders.
โHave you seen this?โ You shoved your phone in her face.
โMadre mรญa!" Her mouth hung open.
It was a cropped video zoomed in on you and Ona kissing in the sea. You read through the comments to try and find out where the video originated from.
It was Millieโs instagram story.
๐๐ถ๐ค๐ฌ. You thought that Millie had stopped recording, โMierda, i told you to be careful!โ
โLo siento bebรฉ, i really am.โ Ona looked at you with doe eyes.
โItโs okay itโs not your fault.โ You sighed rubbing the side of her face.
โI mean we can go public if you want, put the rumours to rest.โ Your girlfriend placed her hands on your shoulders.
โOnly if your ready amor."
Ona nodded, you said to her that you would post something when you got back to the hotel for the evening.
โNothing bad so far.โ Ona spoke as she put her shoes on.
โNo but thatโs good right.โ You looked down at your petite girlfriend.
โYes they love you no matter what but i love you more.โ She smiled as you left your hotel room.
You went out for dinner in the evening at a restaurant by the sea, drinking pints of beer watching the sunset, โI must say you look beautiful.โ
โOna is that the alcohol talking?โ
โNo you do bebรฉ." A smile appeared on her lips.
โGracias, you do too.โ You replied drinking the last of your second pint.
โLetโs go for a walk on the beach.โ Ona suggested, you nodding in return.
You took your sandals off as did Ona, holding them in your left hand and holding Onaโs hand in your right. You two walked on the wet sand so when the tide came in it washed over your feet, โTe amo."
The Equality Index measures the current status of LGBT rights, laws, and freedoms as well as public attitudes towards LGBT people.
Equaldex's Equality Index is a rating from 0 to 100 (with 100 being the most equal) to help visualize the legal rights and public attitudes towards LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex...) people in each region. The Equality Index is an average of two indexes: the legal index and the public opinion Index.
The LGBT legal index measures the current legal status of 13 different issues ranging from the legal status of homosexuality, same-sex marriage, transgender rights, LGBT discrimination protections, LGBT censorship laws, and more. Each topic is weighted differently (for example, if same-sex marriage is illegal in a region, it would have a much bigger impact on the score than not allowing LGBT people to serve in the military). Each topic is assigned a "total possible score" and a "score" is assigned based the status of the law using a rating scale that ranges from 0% to 100% (for example, if homosexuality is legal, it would would receive a score of 100, but if it's illegal, it would receve a score of 0.) If the status of an issue is unknown, not applicable, or no data has not been added to Equaldex, the issue's score is completely discarded and not included in the ranking.
Legal Index = (Total Possible Score for each issue ร Factor of Status of Issue) / Sum of all Total Possible Scores
The LGBT public opinion index measures the public attitudes towards LGBT people using surveys and polls from reputable organizations. This index is scored based on averaging the results of all surveys in a given region. Generally, the value averaged is usually the most โequalโ response in the poll. For example, if a poll asked โDo you support same-sex marriage?โ and 56% of people said โyesโ, the value โ56โ would be used. In some cases, a survey may be weighted less if the survey is very specific or includes a specific group of people (such as Christians) and might not be a full representation of the overall attitudes of the region.
Note that public opinion data is not available in every region. In these cases, the Equality Index will only be a representation of the legal rights of LGBT people in the region. In some regions with no recent public opinion data, older data is used to score the region.
International demostration for the captive defenders of Mariupol - June 25th!
โผ๏ธ Post last UPDATED with new locations on June 24! More countries and locations have been added. It is alphabetized by countries, find yours!
Please pay attention that while most of the demonstrations will be held on June 25, some are on June 26 - those special cases are highlighted in the list. โผ๏ธ
Peaceful demonstrations with the motto ยซAzovstal. Free Mariupol defendersยป will take place all over Europe on Saturday, June 25th (and some, on June 26th). List of cities below. Please come if you can, and share the information.
The purpose is to save the defenders of Mariupol from torture and brutality while they are held prisoners by russia, and to help them return home as soon as possible. This is a plea of every Ukrainian, and the world must hear it.
We need to remind the world about our captive heroes, to draw the attention of international organizations to the conditions they are held in, to ensure their situation is monitored by international community.
Below is the list of cities where demonstrations will be held. If your city is on the list - please come to support Ukrainian heroes, and invite people to come with you. If not - I ask you to share the information, and possibly contact your local organizations to see if you can gather in your city too.
Australia ๐ฆ๐บ
Customs House, Sydney, NSW
26.06 (โผ๏ธ)
14:00
Austria ๐ฆ๐น
Maria-Theresien-Straรe 18, 6020 Innsbruck
17:50
Canada ๐จ๐ฆ
Yonge-Dundas Square, then walking to 200 Bay St, the office of the United Nations in Toronto
14:00
Chile ๐จ๐ฑ
Av. Amรฉrico Vespucio Norte 2127, Vitacura, Santiago de Chile
12:00
Cyprus ๐จ๐พ
Harbour Kiosk, Paphos
18:30
Czech Republic ๐จ๐ฟ
Piaristicke nรกmฤstรญ, ฤeskรฉ Budฤjovice
12:00
AND
Czech Republic ๐จ๐ฟ
Palackรฉho nรกmฤstรญ, Prague
17:00
Georgia ๐ฌ๐ช
29 Memed Abashidze Ave, Batumi
18:50
Germany ๐ฉ๐ช
Bundeskanzlerampt, Berlinย
13:00
AND
Rathausmarkt, Hamburg
15:00
AND
Hauptwache, Frankfurtย
19:30
Hungary ๐ญ๐บ
Szent Istvรกn tรฉr 1, Budapest
19:00
Ireland ๐ฎ๐ช
Statue of Richard Harris as King Arthur, Bedford Row, Limerick
18:00
Italy ๐ฎ๐น
Piazza del Duomo, 20123, Milano
18:00
Japan ๐ฏ๐ต
Shinjuku, Shinjuku Station South Exit, Tokyo
26.06 (โผ๏ธ)
16:00
Malta ๐ฒ๐น
Triton Fountain, Valletta
19:15 (โผ๏ธupdated timeโผ๏ธ)
The Netherlands ๐ณ๐ฑ
De Verwoeste Stad, 3011 EA, Rotterdam
12:00
AND
Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ, Den Haag
12:00
AND
Dam Square, Amsterdam
17:00
Norway ๐ณ๐ด
Eidsvolls plass, Oslo
12:00
Poland ๐ต๐ฑ
Pasaลผ Schillera ul. Piotrkowska 110, Lรณdลบ
16:00
AND
Rynek Gลรณwny, Pomnik Adama Mickiewicza, Krakรณw
19:20
Portugal ๐ต๐น
Praรงa de Gomes Teixeira, Porto 18:50
AND
Praรงa do Comรฉrcio, Lisbon โผ๏ธ26.06 โผ๏ธ19:30
Romania ๐ท๐ด
Piaศa Sfatului, Braลov
11:30
Slovakia ๐ธ๐ฐ
Podchod Hodลพovo nรกmestie 2978 811 06 Bratislava
13:00
Spain ๐ช๐ธ
Josefina De La Torre Municipal Library, Gran Canaria
11:30
AND
Plaรงa de la Verge, 4, 46001, Valรจncia
26.06 (โผ๏ธ)
13:30
Sweden ๐ธ๐ช
Norrmalmstorg, Stockholm
12:00
Switzerland ๐จ๐ญ
Place des Nations, Genรจve
12:00
AND
Rathausbrรผcke, Zรผrich
16:00
Turkey ๐น๐ท
Odakule Business Center, Istanbul
14:50
United Kingdom ๐ฌ๐ง
Greyโs Monument, Newcastle upon Tyne
12:00
AND
Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester
14:00
AND
Cardiff Central Library CF10 1FL, Cardiff
14:00
AND
10 Downing St SW1A 2AB, Londonย
15:50
United States of America ๐บ๐ธ
50 W Washington St, Chicago, IL 60602
14:00
Mottos of the demonstrations:
- Azovstal. Free Mariupol Defenders
- Be brave like Azovstal
- Freedom for Mariupol heroes
- Freedom for Azovstal defenders
- Respect the Geneva Convention
- Protect the rights of prisoners of war
- Give access to the Red Cross
- We are waiting for our heroes
Source: Families of Azovstal Defenders Association https://www.facebook.com/AzovstalFamilies/posts/pfbid02dpMN84hFJLK3hUEf7x4ugwAi49VLnjStJ2ssqJ8vGajkmMgoB7W8DDRBs8HpD26Yl
My advice for the participating countries of Eurovision 2023 in 2024 (that no one asked for)
For NQ countries :
Azerbaijan ๐ฆ๐ฟ : keep sending songs written by Azeri songwriters and include lyrics in Azerbaijani.
Ireland ๐ฎ๐ช : RTร CHANGE THE ENTIRE DELEGATION TEAM AND GO INTERNAL!
Latvia ๐ฑ๐ป : go for a televoting bait song.
Malta ๐ฒ๐น : don't give up and take risks.
Netherlands ๐ณ๐ฑ : try a national final maybe?
Denmark ๐ฉ๐ฐ : DR, you should change the entire system for DMGP.
Georgia ๐ฌ๐ช : don't give up and keep going, it will pay off.
Greece ๐ฌ๐ท : ERT/EPT, be more transparent for the internal selection.
Iceland ๐ฎ๐ธ : improve the staging.
Romania ๐ท๐ด : TVR, if you come back next year, change the entire delegation team.
San Marino ๐ธ๐ฒ : send a good song.
For finalists countries :
Austria ๐ฆ๐น : keep being creative and crazy. However... ORF, promote more your next representative so they will get more attention. Also, improve the staging.
Portugal ๐ต๐น : keep going, you are becoming a powerhouse, but next time try a radio-friendly song in Portuguese so you will get attention. Or perhaps try a good fado song.
Switzerland ๐จ๐ญ : stop sending male ballads. Just because it worked with Gjon's Tears doesn't mean it will work with other male ballads. Send something else.
Poland ๐ต๐ฑ : TVP go internal (so you won't steal money from Polish people and you will save money for a better staging) and send someone who has good vocals.
Serbia ๐ท๐ธ : idk, being avant-garde worked for Konstrakta but not that much for Luke Black. Perhaps try to send something that will make everyone agree in Europe. But keep being creative and unique.
France ๐ซ๐ท : I just want to ask this question to Europe. What the hell do you want from France in Eurovision ? No Europe, we can't dig up Edith Piaf from her grave, Barbara Pravi won't come back in the contest and Indila will never dare to represent my country in Eurovision, move on. Anyway, FTV keep ARA, the current french HoD, for JESC at least. I think it's time that we send a rap song in ESC, it's part of the French music scene and you shouldn't deny it any longer.
Cyprus ๐จ๐พ : avoid, if possible, to buy a song from Swedish composers, try to send a song made by Cypriots (or Greeks) songwriters.
Spain ๐ช๐ธ : keep going, one year it will pay off and you will finally win the contest for the 3rd time. Also, for the noisy minority of Spanish eurofans, try to support your representative without harassing others contestants, especially the French ones.
Sweden ๐ธ๐ช :
Bring back Petra Made as a host. Would be also happy if Mรฅns Zelmerlรถw is chosen as a host too.
Take a risk for once, like send a rock song or a track in Swedish, don't play safe and don't be lazy.
ESC 2024 should take place in Stockholm.
Albania ๐ฆ๐ฑ : don't ditch the televoting in FiK, keep sending songs in Albanian and perhaps send a male artist.
Italy ๐ฎ๐น : I trust you in terms of quality but please RAI send a female artist next year.
Estonia ๐ช๐ช : next year in Eesti Laul, I want the same quality than in the previous edition. This is why you did well this year. Keep going.
Finland ๐ซ๐ฎ : keep going, you are doing amazing !
Czechia ๐จ๐ฟ : same than Finland
Australia ๐ฆ๐บ : idk if you will come back next year, but if you do, keep going.
Belgium ๐ง๐ช : next year, it will be RTBF's turn to choose its representative. Avoid sending someone who only has The Voice of Belgium as a singing experience. Send someone who is in the Belgian musical industry for at least 2 years.
Armenia ๐ฆ๐ฒ : just keep going.
Moldova ๐ฒ๐ฉ : keep sending songs in Romanian but try to send someone who has never participated in Eurovision.
Ukraine ๐บ๐ฆ : keep going I guess ? I mean, Ukraine has been a powerhouse since its debut in ESC.
Norway ๐ณ๐ด : ditch the vocoder in MGP. That's it.
Germany ๐ฉ๐ช : Europe, what the hell do you want from Germany in Eurovision ? Anyway, NDR should change the entire delegation team because clearly Europe doesn't believe in the country in the contest anymore.
Lithuania ๐ฑ๐น : the televoting should be the tie-breaker in PiN. Otherwise, keep going Lithuania, one day you will win this.
Israel ๐ฎ๐ฑ : KAN, before you announced the name of your representative, ask them if they want to go to Eurovision. Consent is key. Anyway, stay with the internal selection, it works better for you.
Slovenia ๐ธ๐ฎ : keep going, you have nothing to regret.
Croatia ๐ญ๐ท : HRT rethink on your selection method for next year. And support your next representative the same way you did for Let 3, it did pay off.
United Kingdom ๐ฌ๐ง : don't give up, just keep the same approach you have since last year.
Bonus: My advice for EBU in 2024 (that no one asked for)
Don't remove the juries. Instead, update the juries system asap because this year it showed more than usual that the juries always vote for the same countries to the point it killed the suspense. You can start by increasing the number of the juries per country, like 10 by exemple. The juries should be more diverse in terms of age, careers related to music and music backgrounds.
Bring back the juries in the semi-finals.
Keep the vote of the rest of the world, so eurofans outside of Europe and fans from non participating countries can vote for their favourite songs.
Can you bring back the way the televoting points were announced from 2016 to 2018? It was better then imo.
Open the press center from the first day of the rehearsals until the day of the grand final, not only during the ESC week, some delegations complained about that this year.
Hello from the Old City Walls of Valletta, Malta! ๐ฒ๐น
Valletta is the capital of Malta and this historic city was built in the 1500s by the Knights Hospitaller, the political group of Malta during the time. For the next two hundred years, Malta went through its Golden Age and flourished in the arts and architecture, thus improving society. From the scale of these walls, I could feel the evolution of the era.
So I actually tried to take a photo in front of the Valletta City Gate entrance, but it was closed it off by security and I couldnโt roll my bike up to it. Makes sense, itโs the grand entrance with hundreds of tourists ๐น And this right here? Well, itโs just the back parking area for visitors. Wild, right? I think this is absolutely beautiful and itโs just a parking lot.
The security guards even told me I was very lucky. I asked why, and they said usually the parking lot is fully of cars and service vehicles. Lucky me
Thanks Malta, itโs time to go alllll the way back up Italy ๐ฎ๐น๐ซ
Onze laatste dag in Malta ๐ฒ๐น. We hadden de laatste groepsfotoโs gemaakt en daarna hebben de leerkrachten ons getrakteerd op een ijsje en je mag zoveel smaken kiezen. Daarna hadden ons laastst rondje in Valletta gemaakt.
Coming back to Belgium was an easy task nothing like passport was asked which made me so happy ๐.
# Back to school #Hope our last moment in school become one of our best times ๐
norway ๐ณ๐ด : do you prefer wearing trousers or skirts? skirts!!!!
portugal ๐ต๐น : your sexuality? iโmย a lesbian!!
poland ๐ต๐ฑ: do you have any pets? i have 2 kitty cats
romania ๐ท๐ด: morning or evening? evening for sure
cyprus ๐จ๐พ : if you could kill one person without any risk of being caught for it, would it be someone related to you? this is very............ specific.....ย ๐๐
belgium ๐ง๐ช: favourite colour? green!
slovenia ๐ธ๐ฎ: what colour is your hair at the moment? green w/ brown roots
ireland ๐ฎ๐ช : favourite tv show? m*a*s*h :)
austria ๐ฆ๐น: do you like chocolate? oh heck yeah
malta ๐ฒ๐น : have you ever been on a cruise? 3 days in greece! lovely experience
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romania ๐ท๐ด: morning or evening? > evening, 100%. I'm not at all a morning person and I'd stay up all night if I could. Tried it for a bit. Not profitable in a world in which everybody's a morning person.
iceland ๐ฎ๐ธ : if you could chose one thing to be in your future, what would you choose? > I guess I only want to be peaceful. I'd love to stop being anxious and depressed all the time but most of all I'd wish for my best friend to be nearer where I live...
malta ๐ฒ๐น : have you ever been on a cruise? > never, and tbh it's not something I'm really looking forward to. I used to sail to Sardinia every summer so I really see it as a transportation instead of a holiday itself.
๐ฒ๐นPope Francis urges EU leaders to help refugees stranded off Malta | Al Jazeera English by Al Jazeera English Pope Francis has asked European leaders to address the plight of 49 refugees and migrants stranded off the coast of Malta. The migrants and refugees have been living aboard two NGO rescue ships after they were saved from their unsafe boats. Both Italy and Malta have closed their ports to rescue ships, following the hard line set by many EU countries on immigration. Al Jazeera's Paul Chaderjian reports. - Subscribe to our channel: http://bit.ly/291RaQr - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1iHo6G4 - Check our website: http://bit.ly/2lOp4tL
I had the privilege to play badminton in Malta at Evolve Badminton Academy! ๐ฒ๐น๐ธ๐บ๐ช
So I havenโt played since Paris, France and before that, actually consistently since Ireland. And if you donโt play for a while, youโre a bit rusty on your agility, speed, precision, timing, etc. Basically what Iโm saying is I got school by young kids half my age with their braces in. But itโs okay, I still had fun. The thing about young kids is theyโre super goofy, so itโs really fun to play with them
I had been craving interactions with locals from Malta and the Universe granted my request. These coaches, Matt & Mel, were super welcoming to me and invited me to their gym. Matt kept asking if I was okay. On the outside, yes. But on the inside, my lungs couldnโt keep up with the young ones and probably deflated a few times ๐น
So wild, I got to play badminton in Malta ๐ฅบ What a strange life
I am SO happy to be here, but it has honestly taken a lot out of me to get to this point. Itโs been go go go the last two months ever since I left Ireland and my brain and body are wrecked.
I didnโt know Sicily wasnโt geographically connected to the South of Italy, so I had to maneuver where the ferry office was to buy a ticket. Luckily there are machines near the port you can buy them yourself, but a local saw I wasnโt from the area and tried to take advantage of me and help me buy a ticket from the machine. I kept saying no, but he wouldnโt leave. He asked for money for โhelpingโ me, but I refused as I said I didnโt need help from the start. I can confidentially say I am a seasoned traveler at this point. You canโt scam me. I have nothing except smelly clothes, badminton racquets and almost empty skincare products ๐น
I spent a day in Sicily and then needed to maneuver where the ferry port to Malta was and buy a ticket. I rode to the office, but it was closed, so I scoured online and got the last ferry to Malta. Luckily I found a ticket and the ferry ride was short, a little under two hours.
It feels like I am pushing my little heart to its maximum capacity with the nonstop moving. Some nights I need to meditate to slow my heart rate down, it feels like itโs going to explode. And if youโre wondering why Iโm moving so fast, itโs because Americans only get 90 days within the Schengen region in Europe and then we need to exit out for 90 days. Iโve already used up almost two months and still have a few more countries to go.
Iโll poke around Malta for a few days and then head all the way back up Italy. Honestly Iโm not looking forward to that ride. Iโm literally just grinding it out. Italy is SO LONG.
Initial thoughts on Malta? OMG Why are we driving on the left side of the road again? My brain had to rewire itself and adapt really quickly. It feels very colonial, but island vibes
Itโs been a bit rough. Iโm happy, but a tired, haggard motohobo