When we were planning our post-Egypt itinerary, we chose Spain because we wanted to see more of it and because Barcelona was a good departure city for our next destination – Cape Town. The problem was, flying directly to Spain (or anywhere really) from Cairo was really expensive. But Malta… we could fly to Malta for under $100 ( total, for all 3 of us!) and then from Malta to Valencia for $36 (again, for all 3). So, that’s what we did.
Did you know?
- Malta is one of the smallest countries in the world. It would fit into the US 30,443 times!
- It’s one of the most isolated spots on the Mediterranean but has been inhabited since before 5000 BC (Take that Egypt!).
- It only recently gained independence from Great Britain but keeps its tradition of driving on the right (wrong) side of the road.
- There are no forests, mountains, lakes or rivers on any of its small islands.
- Malta’s drinking water is a combination of desalinated and aquifer water.
- Valletta, its capital, was the first ever planned city in Europe sketched out in 1565.
Here are some more interesting things about Malta.
If anyone reading this thought that Malta was part of Italy or spoke Italian (rather than Maltese), you are not alone (not naming names).
The Maltese Islands went through a golden Neolithic period, the remains of which are the mysterious temples dedicated to the goddess of fertility. Later on, the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Romans and the Byzantines, all left their traces on the Islands. In 60 A.D. St. Paul was shipwrecked on the island while on his way to Rome and brought Christianity to Malta. The Arabs conquered the islands in 870 A.D. and left an important mark on the language of the Maltese. Until 1530 Malta was an extension of Sicily: The Normans, the Aragonese and other conquerors who ruled over Sicily also governed the Maltese Islands. It was Charles V who bequeathed Malta to the Sovereign Military Order of St. John of Jerusalem who ruled over Malta from 1530 to 1798. The Knights took Malta through a new golden age, making it a key player in the cultural scene of 17th and 18th century Europe. The artistic and cultural lives of the Maltese Islands were injected with the presence of artists such as Caravaggio, Mattia Preti and Favray who were commissioned by the Knights to embellish churches, palaces and auberges. In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte took over Malta from the Knights on his way to Egypt. The French presence on the islands was short lived, as the English, who were requested by the Maltese to help them against the French, blockaded the islands in 1800. British rule in Malta lasted until 1964 when Malta became independent. The Maltese adapted the British system of administration, education and legislation. Modern Malta became a Republic in 1974 and joined the European Union in May 2004. (www.visitmalta.com)
The wind had really come up and the ride was rough. Like THAT kind of rough. We were on the upper deck in the front where we could see better while being slightly sheltered. In our general vicinity was a group of Scandinavian guys who took advantage of the cruise’s open bar immediately and were soon sloshing beer about. (Our Captain, Jean Paul, was not amused.) In front of us was a cute couple from Slovakia and across the aisle from us was a mother and her daughter. Directly across from us was a young, I think Russian man and woman. As soon as we started rocking, the man didn’t look good. And when one of the crew members came around offering emergency bags (sick sacks), he really should have taken one. Shortly after, the daughter of the mother/daughter team decided to follow her mother below-deck to be near the bathroom and right as she was walking in front of green-face guy, the boat rocked, she stumbled, caught herself, and then said to all who saw her, “Wish me luck.” It was at that most inopportune moment that green-face guy projectile vomits, hitting himself, the girl, and the surrounding areas, all of which immediately had THAT smell. Those of us who had been doing just fine, all of a sudden felt a bit queasy. With amazing speed, considering the rocking of the boat and the smell, the same crew member who’d walked around earlier with the means of preventing this disaster, soon had the area clean and smelling strongly of Lysol.
Our bus driver had his sidekick, a Yorkshire terrier named Cookie, along with him and we cracked up as he cooed and made baby talk to her on our way back to the harbor.
Malta wasn’t a place we’d thought to visit, until we did, but we feel lucky to have seen it’s blue waters and compact beauty.
