Malta is a tiny Mediterranean island nation located about 60 miles south of Sicily, and not much further than that from Tunisia. Now an independent country and a member of the EU, it was previously colonized for literally thousands of years--first by the Phoenicians starting c800 B.C., then on to the Romans, Arabs, Normans, French, and English among others. It is from the Phoenicians that the Maltese gained the custom of painting the watchful eye of Osiris on their boats.
A traditional Maltese luzzo
Kajjiks and luzzos in Marsaxlokk
Sunset in Marsaxlokk
And from the English, Malta got its crazy collection of mismatched yellow left-hand-drive buses.
We based ourselves in Valetta, Malta's tiny capital, and set off from there in our trusty Diahatsu for our daily adventures.
A picturesque vegetable stand in Valetta.
A tiny street in Valetta, looking towards the harbor
Valetta at sunset, as seen from across the harbor in Vittorioso
One such adventure was Carnival! A staunchly Catholic country, Malta does Carnival well. We were there for four days and there were festivities each day and night of our visit, including parades, floats, costumes, dancers, music, and street parties.
Dancers parade up Triq ir-Repubblika (Republic Street) in Valetta
Carnival is a national holiday, so the capital was packed!
Crazily-costumed dancers in Freedom Square, Valetta
Giant floats in Floriana.
A big part of any trip of ours is FOOD, and this was no exception. The seafood in Malta was great, as might be expected from a place so intimately tied to the sea.
Xxlukkjk Restaurant in Marsaxlokk
The mezze platter at Del Borgo, a fun enoteca in Vittorioso
Troy enjoying a lovely Rosso de Montepulciano
Malta suffered terribly during World War II. Subjected to 154 straight days of bombing (more than the famed 'blitz' in London), the island also endured untold privations and near-starvation. So sad to contemplate.
The bombed National Opera stands in a ruined state in the middle of Valetta.
Though the war left a permanent scar on the island, it also had a less-somber impact by creating a strong enthusiasm for aviation history. Our friend Matt in Brussels actually clued us into the existence of the Malta Aviation Museum, a quirky little volunteer-run outfit housed in an old aerodrome.
A very nice volunteer let me sit in the cockpit of a Fiat fighter jet.
Troy standing in front of a recently restored Hawker Hurricane pulled from the seabed.
Though much of peninsula surrounding Grand Harbor was destroyed in the bombing, a few historic buildings managed to escape destruction. One of these is the Cathedral of St. John, a baroque jewel of a church that the Knights of St. John built in the 1570s. Living in Europe, we see lots of churches, but this one stood out not just for its rich beauty, but also by how immaculate and well-maintained it is.
Cross of the Knights of St. John (aka Knights of Malta)
A relatively staid exterior hides a treasure trove inside.
The high altar. Note the golden cross of the Knights everywhere.
The floor entombs hundreds of Knights and the marble features lots of battle-decked skeletons.
So, sunshine, sea, Carnival, food and wine, airplanes, palm trees, and Knights. That would be enough for a memorable trip anywhere. But, we haven't even gotten to the best, most unique part yet: Temples! It seems that the first permanent human inhabitants of Malta were emigrant farmers from Sicily, who arrived something like 7000 years ago. (Seriously!!!!) Around c3600 B.C. the ancient Maltese started building temples--sophisticated, well-constructed, freestanding megalithic structures that are still standing despite millennia of existence in a seismic zone.
Troy on the path to the Mnajdra Temple
Ħagar Qim Temple
The temple buildings have HUGE boulders, dragged across the plains to very specific sites and apparently hoisted into place using a sophisticated system of ropes or pulleys.
Rope holes at Hagar Qim
Interior door/window at Hagar Qim
The temple builders obviously understood astronomy quite well and were accomplished engineers. Many of the temples are sited precisely such that the light falls a certain way on each of the yearly solstices. And, they did all this Without. Metal. Tools.
Precisely aligned doorways at Mnajdra
The most interesting site of all was the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, a site so rare and delicate that we could not take photographs at all. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, only 80 visitors per day are allowed inside, and we had to make reservations two weeks in advance to obtain a ticket! In use from c3600 - 2400 B.C. the site is an incredible underground necropolis, carved into the stone as an underground temple for the dead that replicates the temples for the living built on the surface. Unbelievable.
This plain suburban street stands over the only prehistoric underground temple in the world!
Phew! That's a lot to pack into four days and really that's not all--we went to Gozo too! But, that's for another post. So, we'll say sahha (goodbye) for now.
Malta Photo Album - Click Here
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