Valletta

Malta is an archipelago in the Mediterranean. It has been ruled by Romans, Moors, Knights of St John, the French and the British. I had downloaded the Bolt ride share app and yes we had a plan. Off the ship in the port of Valletta and onto Mdina, the silent city. Well, there were 4 cruise ships in port and before we knew it, amongst all the chaos, we were on a hop on hop off bus to Mdina, not a Bolt vehicle!

The drive there reminded me of a ride through the back streets of an old Melbourne suburb. Sure the building materials were different but everything was aged and the streets were narrow and busy at times. Sandstone is the building material of choice here and probably has been for many years. I felt for the construction workers we passed as it was really hot.

Mdina is the old city and former capital. It was settled before 4000 BC. When Valletta became capital everyone moved from Mdina and hence it became known as the silent city. Certain scenes from Game of Thrones were also filmed here and the front gates were used as the gateway to Kings Landing in season 1. Now tourism has reinvigorated this city and it’s become very popular. It’s a smaller old city and can be walked around in about 1 hour. The only issue was all the other tourists decided to be there when we were there.

Throw in the horse drawn carriages and vehicles entering to make deliveries and it spells chaos. It was so busy! In fact when we left there was actual hop on hop off bus road rage!

Most of the old cities we have seen have been on the waterfront to protect that country from ocean raiders. Mdina is inland, on a rise so it has views back over the city and water. The countryside views were hot and dry.

Mdina is also famous for its beautiful glass blown items. Spectacular, pricey and how do we get it home! Ruthie settled on some small items that might make it back safely with a little care.

The bus dropped us back at the Valletta city centre and walking through the mall was hectic. All the big brand shopping names were here.

As soon as we turned off the main thoroughfare it changed. The side streets were a bit like being in San Francisco. The streets were hilly and waterways were at both ends. The residential buildings were old, some from the 16th century but well maintained. The timber doors and window frames were painted bright colours. In amongst all this were the historic churches, statues, etc. There were many laneway eateries with beautiful views.

Valletta also had the fortifications on the Grand Harbour to protect the island from invasions. Each day at 12 noon and 4pm they still fire one of the eight cannons. We did want to include this during our stay in Malta but the crowds got to us and we settled for listening to it from the ships deck.

Malta had a very important role in World War 2. Malta, positioned between Europe and North Africa, was key for controlling the Mediterranean sea routes. It served as a base for the Allied forces. For their bravery and resilience, the people of Malta were collectively awarded the George Cross by King George VI in April 1942. In fact the late Queen Elizabeth remembered fondly her days living here after WW2.

Walking back to the ship we were thinking we weren’t going to get our local beer in but right across from the port was a bar. It was called the Crew Bar and although small, it had some history. It was decorated with donated Navy peak caps mainly from the US navy. I bet this bar could tell some stories. We enjoyed a cold local Cisk draft beer.

The sail away from Valletta was great. We got to see a whole lot more of the fortifications from an on the water view. We have sailed into some stunning ports but wow Malta is up there.