| Page Views: 54 Last Visit to Malta: - | Malta by pure1942 - last update: May 10, 2009 |
?????Love It or Hate It????? I’ve heard and read mixed reviews about Malta from friends and other travellers. Some return time and again, year in, year out, while others don’t warm to the islands at all. I have to say that I enjoyed my short time in Malta and Gozo and the unique geographical and historical experiences offered by this tiny but culturally rich group of islands.
Malta itself is such a small and compact island that visitors can really cover most of what the island has to offer in a few days. With its good bus connections (especially from Valletta) visitors can reasonably expect to see all the highlights as well as a few surprising ‘off the beaten track’ locations in 3-4 days.
The capital Valletta is understandably one of the country’s biggest draws and offers a great introduction to Malta and it’s interesting historical past. We based ourselves in Valletta for the duration of our stay mainly due to its convenient bus connections around the island, but also due to the fact that most other accommodation options are centred around the more tourist orientated resorts such as St. Julian’s, Bugibba and Mellieha, which didn’t appeal to us at all. These areas are better suited to families and visitors looking more for a beach/sun holiday with convenient access to restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
Valletta is more geared towards every-day business, shopping and day visitors as come nightfall, the city really does shut down with only a splattering of bars remaining open late into the evening, especially during the week. Having said that, we preferred this sleepy atmosphere and when we did want a more upbeat scene, a short bus/taxi ride could take us to any of the more ‘lively’ areas without surrounding ourselves constantly with the more modern and high rise architecture of the Valletta suburb ‘cities’. |
|  | Valletta The walled city of Valletta was one of Europe’s first ‘planned’ cities and was laid out in a grid pattern after the great siege 1565, when the Knights of St. John succeeded in defeating the invading Turkish Ottomans. The knights were granted huge sums of money from Europe’s grateful Christian monarchs, nobility and ruler’s who hailed the knights as saviours and heroes of Europe. The result of this influx of money was the huge walled city fortress of Valletta which was built up along the tip of the previously uninhabited Sceberras Peninsula.
A walk through Valletta is like walking through an open air museum. The whole city is designated as a Unesco World Heritage Site and this is understandable as a stroll through the city throws up a huge variety of architecturally beautiful buildings and streets. The highlights of the city include St. John’s Co-Cathedral and other various churches, the Barracka gardens, Bastions and Fort St. Elmo, Auberge de Castille, Grand Master’s Palace and Armoury as well as a huge number of beautiful squares and quaint alleys and laneways.
However, the main island of Malta also throws up a great variety of other side-trips from Valletta. The most notable attrations include, the ancient megalithic temples, for which Malta is famous. The best are to be witness at Tarxien and the nearby, underground Hypogeum as well as the Hagar Qim temples on the western coast. Around Valletta are the historically important cities of Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua, collectively known as ‘Three Cities’ or ‘The Cottonera’. Visits to Mdina and Mostar are other worthwhile trips for history, culture and architecture, whereas excursions to Dingli and the Blue Grotto show off Malta’s geographical beauty. Marsaxlokk fishing village in the south is the best place to see Malta’s famous, multi coloured fishing boats or Luzzu as they are known locally. |
| | Gozo and Comino Of course Malta as a country includes the two other main islands of Comino and Gozo. Tiny and mostly uninhabited Comino, is a nice place to visit for scenic coastal walks, swimming and sunbathing and posses one of Malta’s most beautiful (but over-crowded) swimming locations at the aptly named Blue Lagoon. However, it was Gozo that really won me over, with it’s more relaxed, laid back atmosphere and stunning coastal landscape. To base impressions of Malta only on the main island of Malta is to do an injustice to the country as Gozo gives you more of an insight into traditional Maltese life and culture and is a compact snapshot into Malta’s past. Highlights for me were the stunning Ta’ Cenc Cliffs and coast around Dwejra. |
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 Comments for pure1942 about Malta | | | | |
Maurizioago Wed Aug 19, 2009 11:17 UTC
Good page. I'm going to re visit Malta soon. Ciao! | leics Thu Jun 11, 2009 18:16 UTC
One lot of tombs have recently been better-presented...which is good.....but the others are still just as hidden. Even my Maltese friend did not know about them. Mellieha was indeed much nicer than I expected! Lots of hidden history on Malta, imo.......J | hunterV Sun May 10, 2009 21:48 UTC
Hello, Brian! Great page, thanks a lot! ~ |
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