Malta is positively heaving with tourists during the summer months, but still a surprisingly popular travel destination in winter. The islands of the archipelago are rich in the history and unique culture of the Maltese, and it’s been a long held dream of mine to visit the islands. From Barcelona cheap flights are available to Malta with a stopover in Rome, and my visit to the Basque region of Spain provided the catalyst for this long awaited trip. Due to it’s strategic location Malta has long been attractive to foreign powers as a naval base, and the islands have seen many different rulers down through the millennia. Featuring a temperate climate, Malta can be the perfect getaway from harsh northern hemisphere winters, and I’m glad to be able to base myself in the resort town of Sliema for a week long visit to this magical country.
As mentioned, the journal left off in Barcelona where I had the privilege of seeing in the new year. Happy New Year everyone. I woke early, packed my stuff and headed out to the airport for a new years morning flight via Rome. After arriving in Malta I discovered the bus was not running regularly on New Years Day, but I rustled up a few other tourists from the bus station to share the taxi fare in to Sliema. The hostel was free of staff, but some friendly travellers helped me get sorted and I became ensconced in a travel community within minutes. I headed out for an excellent meal to celebrate the new year by the water at a fine restaurant in the heart of Sliema, and was happy returning to the hostel and the friendly travellers there in surprising numbers. To be fair it was New Years Day, but I was expecting the hostel to be far more quiet in the middle of winter. The next morning a friendly Aussie guy and a Canadian girl were off for some adventures to the Blue Lagoon, but I declined as I wanted to focus on exploring around Sliema for my first day.
I had an excellent day exploring the coast and taking photos, and chatted to the travellers at the hostel in the evening. After consulting with staff we decided to book a hire car for the duration of the visit. It was an excellent decision, and at just 15 euros a day also a cheap and convenient one. The team were up early next morning, and we headed in to the hire company to do the paperwork and take possession of our new wheels. Driving is on the left as it is in Australia, for which we were grateful as it’s difficult to navigate through the maze like streets that feature in the towns of Malta. My mate quickly proved the worth of his latest and greatest offline maps app, and I really don’t know how we could have packed in the sights without the car and extensive use of his app. On our first day we headed north to link up with the ferry, running hourly for cars and their human cargo across to Gozo island. There’s so much to see and do on Gozo, and it took a full day of exploration to pack in the attractions on the second largest island in Malta.
A highlight of the island is the Azure Window, a geological formation millions of years old and the top attraction on Gozo. We took a little known trail along the rocks to the base of the Window, and enjoyed unique views of the magnificent rock formation. Gozo island also features a citadel, churches, and sublime views from several viewpoints to enjoy during a day trip to the island. We headed back on the 6:00pm ferry, and were back in the hostel tired but happy later that evening. Considering they are small islands, it’s surprising how many attractions Malta has on offer. We maintained the vigorous pace set on the the first day for our entire visit to Malta. I’m sure visitors get around adequately on the bus, but hire cars are cheap and there’s so much to see in the country. I recommend travellers should take advantage of the hire car prices if you can.
A visit to the medieval fortified city of Mdina started the next day. It’s beautiful and full of history, and a great place to take appealing photos. The administrative city of Rabat is within walking distance from the fortified city, and we had a great morning also paying a visit to the museum while we were there. The coast of Malta is rugged and beautiful, and there always seems to be a coastal lookout nearby where you can make the most of the views. This is despite the strong winds that tend to blow through the island in winter. The following day we headed in to the capital Valletta, and were able to secure a park near the centre of the city. The views of the port from the high walls overlooking the coast are spectacular, and I paid a visit to the museum in honour of the defence of Malta by the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Malta during WWII. The base of operations was underground in Valletta and the museum is an interesting and informative attraction.
Malta also features several prehistoric temples in an island country with a civilisation stretching back thousands of years. We paid a visit to Hagar Qim and Mnajdra dated around 3600BC. The site of the temples is on a wild and desolate coast with no protection from the wind, but there must have been an important reason for the choice of location at the time that escapes me. Some other highlights of our action packed adventure included the Blue Grotto caves and St Peters pool in the south of the island. The colours are beautiful at both destinations, but in the middle of summer the water colour must be even more beautiful. I was blown away by the diversity, the beauty, and the history of these amazing islands and never thought it would be possible for so many wonderful attractions to be packed in to such a tiny destination. It seemed every day we had a mix of history and natural beauty to keep us inspired, although the wind was beginning to take on a fierce howl as the end of the trip approached.
There was still a full day of travelling to enjoy, and we headed to the north of the island to make the most of the spectacular coastal views, with a highlight the scenery from the cliff face at Coral Bay. There aren’t many people living in the north of the island, but the views are out of this world. In the company of a motivated and industrious young Aussie we managed to pack in over a week’s worth of site seeing in just five days, and it was a memorable travel experience in great company. The Maltese are friendly, relaxed, and engaging; and I had an immensely enjoyable visit to the islands. There is so much to see and do in Malta under a temperate mediterranean climate, basically all of you should be here now!
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Maya Angelou
As I continue my travels, until next time it’s signing off for now
Tom
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Tom's music blog can be found here:
http://www.tomrooneymusic.com
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