Monday 26 February 2024

Malta

Back in September, fortuitously before the war started, Mister Handmade in Israel and I had a week long holiday in Malta. Since Gadi died we have done very little and Mister Handmade in Israel's holiday days were accumulating. It was time for us to take a short break. But where? I had no interest or energy to plan too much and indeed did not know how much I would even want to do when we reached our destination. Fortunately my good friend Jane jumped in and suggested we book a trip to Malta. She and her husband had been there the year before, so I could just book the same airline and hotel as them. Even her itinerary was pretty much copied too!
Malta turned out to be the perfect choice for us. A small island country, it is located in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of Sicily and north of Libya. The country consists of five islands - Malta, Gozo and Comino, which are inhabited, and the uninhabited islands of Cominotto and Filfla. The capital and chief port is Valletta, which is located on the main island of Malta. 
Valletta was founded in 1566 by the Knight of the Order of St. John who was called Jean Parisot de la Valette. The city has lovely narrow streets and historic buildings dating back to the 16th century, as well as quaint gardens, parks and artfully decorated churches. At just 0.61 square kilometres, it is the European Union's smallest capital city and therefore very walkable. We spent our days exploring the streets and museums of the city, returning towards the end of each day to our gorgeous hotel, The Embassy Valletta Hotel, situated right in the heart of Valletta, for a swim in their rooftop pool, top photos. It had the most incredible views!
We visited the St. Elmo National War Museum which charts Malta's history from early civilization through the Knights period and the victory over the Ottomans, the first and Second World Wars and onto independence. The museum is within the actual fort of St. Elmo and enjoys great views of the harbours from every direction.
The Lascaris War Rooms, above, housed the war headquarters from where the defence of Malta was conducted during the Second World War. The rooms are now open to the public as a museum.
The one day that required us to get up early and get moving was when we took a ferry over to the island of Gozo. We booked tickets for the hop on hop off bus and spent a long day (we took the very last bus of the day back to the harbour!) stopping at all the island's major attractions. My favourite stop was at Dwejra Bay, a rugged island bay featuring beautiful rock formations which we saw on a short boat ride to the Blue Grotto, above. The water was an unreal shade of cobalt blue, and the coral and algae made beautiful purple-green stripes on the rocks.
The Ġgantija temples, above, are the earliest of the megalithic temples of Malta and are older than the pyramids of Egypt. The name Ġgantija derives from the word 'ġgant', Maltese for giant, as Gozitans used to believe the temples were built by a race of giants. Not so surprising when you see the size of the limestone blocks from which they are constructed. Some of these megaliths exceed five metres in length and weigh over fifty tonnes.
We took a traditional Maltese water taxi called a dgħajsa across the harbour, to explore Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua, known as the Three Cities of Malta. These types of boats have navigated the Grand Harbour since the 17th century and continue to serve as the main way to travel back-and-forth.
The Three Cities sit directly across the Grand Harbour from Valletta. Although they are three cities, they are relatively small and clustered together, making it very easy to sight-see in just a few hours. The area was picturesque and full of history, though I regretted not joining a walking tour for our visit.
The Gardjola Gardens, above, a small park at the end of the Senglea peninsula, provided us with a spot to relax in the shade while enjoying the impressive views over the harbour and the city of Valletta.
Mdina is a fortified town located on a large hill in the centre of Malta. It served as the island's capital until the medieval period. The town is still built within its walls and has a population of just under 300. With its narrow streets, few inhabitants and incredible views overlooking large parts of Malta, Mdina is extraordinary in its mix of medieval and baroque architecture. It was also one of the filming locations for Game of Thrones!
The Co-Cathedral of St. John was one of the last places we visited but was certainly worth the wait! It is a Roman Catholic co-cathedral (Malta's population is 98% Catholic) in Valletta, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. It was built by the Order of St. John between 1572 and 1577. In the 17th century the interior was redecorated in the Baroque style and today it is considered to be one of the finest examples of high Baroque architecture in Europe. Incredibly, the cathedral survived the heavy bombing of Malta during the Second World War.
The cathedral also houses one of Europe's most impressive and famous artworks - Caravaggio's Beheading of St. John the Baptist -  widely considered to be one of the ten greatest works of art of all time. It was definitely a highlight of our week-long trip to Malta.

Sticky Mud and Belly Laughs
PoCoLo

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you for sharing! Your pictures are amazing!

Hels said...

I had long been fascinated with Malta because of two quite different reasons - a] The Hospitallers was a knightly order that had been founded in 1099 in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. They had to leave the Holy Land and ended up, eventually, in Malta. And b] Caravaggio had to escape to Malta when he killed a fighting opponent in 1606.

No wonder you had an amazing holiday. The week wasn't enough time for me, but it was very hot, tiring weather. Next time I will put two weeks aside, but at a cooler time of year.

Anne said...

It looks like such a lovely place to visit. I'm glad you had a nice holiday with your husband. The photos are wonderful and I have enjoyed taking your trip with you through your post.

Kim Carberry said...

It sounds like you had a lovely break away! Malta really is a beautiful place to visit. x

Carol @Comfort Spring Station said...

Malta looks like a nice place for a break. Lovely photos today. #MMBC

Richard said...

Great holiday

Anonymous said...

I want to go!! Thank you for this wonderful tour with you and Mister

Joanne said...

That sounds like a wonderful getaway. It is such a beautiful area to visit.

Ruth said...

That's wonderful that you and your husband were able to get away and spend some time visiting beautiful Malta. The scenery and architecture look spectacular. That was interesting to learn that Mdina was a location for Game Of Thrones. My coworker's family is from Malta, I'm going to show her your photos when I see her at work soon. Maybe that will inspire her to go back for a visit, she's scared to fly just like me!!
#mmbc

VeggieMummy said...

I'm so glad that you and Mr. HiI managed to get away for a holiday. I've never been to Malta but my sister-in-law was born there - my father-in-law used to be in the Navy and was posted there. It definitely looks well worth a visit. xx

Tom said...

...most likely I will never see Malta in person, so I thank you for taking me along to see the sights!

Rudbekia said...

WOW !!!
Very interesting.

Lydia C. Lee said...

I really liked Malta. I feel we didn't really do it properly tho...but had a good time #MCoW

magiceye said...

That was marvelous!
Thank you for taking us on a virtual trip to wonderful Malta!

Tamar SB said...

Wow - wow - wow!! That looks AMAZING!!!!

Esme Slabbert said...

What an amazing trip and thanks for the armchair travel with you through Malta.
I visited you via image-in-ing: Meet Forrest
My links: 39+40. I hope you will join us this week at Wed-Sat at #WordlessWednesday (words welcome) https:// esmesalon. com / tag / wordlesswednesday/ See you soon

Lillian "sognafaret" said...

Thank you for showing me this place

Rudbekia said...

Very interesting .

Villrose said...

A beautiful place for a much needed break.

Jayne said...

I'm so glad that you both managed to get away. It looks like you chose a beautiful place. A friend of mine has been going to Malta for years and I can see why they love it so much. Stunning pics Lisa. xxx

Esme Slabbert said...

Thank you so much for sharing our WW (Words welcome) image and for participating and sharing at #16 InLinkz #WordlessWednesday (Words also welcome). See you again next week!

Stephanie 139a said...

Malta's a great and incredibly charming place, though not sure my trip many moons ago really did it justice - loved to relive it through your photos though. Thanks for sharing with PoCoLo

italiafinlandia said...

How nice to see your photos, I have very nice memories of Malta. 🥰

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

A well-deserved holiday to a beautiful place . Your had a good friend to suggest exactly what you needed -- Malta seems like a perfect place to refresh your spirit -- and I am so glad you both were able to do this when you did.

Catherine said...

Your photos are fabulous!

I had no idea that Malta consisted of five islands, I always thought it was just the one.

#MMBC