Despite the rising temperatures, not everyone has thrown out their masks.

It’s been a month now since the obligation to wear a face covering in indoor public places has been dropped everywhere except for hospitals and care homes.

Yet, on a torrid afternoon in Sliema, numerous people still had them on, even passers-by.

“I still wear it when I go shopping. This morning I wore it at the grocery store. And just now I was at Giorgio’s. I was wearing it there,” said Carmen, an elderly woman from Sliema.

'I feel relieved not to be wearing one'

“I wear it in church too. I always have it with me,” she said, pointing at the surgical mask in her handbag.

Miriam and Violet, both from Sliema, were not wearing masks as they sat on a bench at the bottom of Bisazza Street after having had their afternoon coffee.

Miriam said that she was relieved not to be wearing one but Violet said she wears it a lot.

She pulled one out of her bag and placed it over her mouth and nose.

'I'm not yet ready to remove it'

Walking down Tower Road was Angela, her face mostly covered: “I’m not yet ready to remove it,” she said.

“I feel more comfortable. I won’t be taking it off for now. It protects me and others but mainly it protects me.”

The heat did not deter Louie either and he’ll probably be keeping it on for the rest of the summer, he said.

'We wore it for two summers. It protects you'

“We wore it for two summers. It protects you... especially if you’re vulnerable”.

Annelise, who works in Sliema, said the mask gives her a sense of security when she is serving clients.

“I feel safer wearing it,” she said, adding that she puts it on inside shops but removes it when outdoors.

Also still wearing his mask was Manuele, an Italian microbiologist working in Malta.

“I know very well that it is no longer compulsory. (But) you need to explain to me the reason (why) it is no longer compulsory.”

He feels the removal of all measures was too sudden and he still wears his mask indoors in a crowd.

“It happened so quickly. A lot of people were surprised by the removal of all the limitations, in aeroplanes, big places,” Manuele said.

“I hope it is because we have serious data showing that it is not an issue anymore. But, even now, if I take a flight, I will keep my face mask on, to protect myself.

'I  feel the virus will not go away very fast'

“I totally agree we need to go back to normality but I believe [it needs to be done] step by step,” he added.

Ronak Patel, a foreign worker, said he wears a mask for his own protection.

“I feel the virus will not go away very fast. And it will still be contagious,” he said, adding he would probably keep wearing it for another six months.

An Italian woman on holiday here said she felt safer with her mask on.

“I have it on as a habit. But I’m not ready to remove it just yet. We’ve taken three COVID shots but the world has not yet recovered,” she pointed out.

Other tourists in the vicinity were also wearing masks.

The use of masks became obligatory here on May 4, 2020 and the measure got stricter, extending to outdoors or been eased depending on the number of daily cases recorded.