Janet Reflects - So why Little Malta?

So why Little Malta?  I was ask this question in the airport in Rome by a young mom with her husband and little girl returning home to Malta. Sometimes your body and mind just need a break to unwind and regain energy. This vacation fell together quickly, just little over a month to find a destination where we could use our timeshare and with Tom’s great planning skills, the trip happened!

 

 

 

I’m the girl behind the blog, offering suggestions for stories and pictures and providing an occasional edit here and there. Most of the magic of the blog happened late into the night, after I had closed my eyes from our day’s adventures and the internet was finally available.  

 

So why did I love Malta?

 

It was the towns with the winding streets, the magic of the walled city, with cobblestone roads, horse drawn carriages, a maze of streets lined with colorful windows and doors with unique door knockers and mail drops.

 

 

Flowers of all types line the small alleys with birds flying overhead looking for a place to build a nest.

 

It was the Dingli Cliffs, where you walk along the roadway and feel the strong winds coming up from the sea.

 

It was here where a small restaurant made a dish of homemade ravioli stuffed with fresh herbs and eatable flowers picked from the gardens just outside the door. This is where the fennel plants grew everywhere, spreading their seeds among the rocks along the cliffs. 

 

 

It was along these cliffs that the farmer walked home each afternoon with his herd of sheep and goats, and a man gave his child a ride.

Malta is a safe place. Many people travel by bus and foot, traveling from site to site. We discovered laughter has no language barrier as the couple from Poland jumped into our back seat, needing a ride to the Blue Grotto, and we went through farm roads because the GPS has taken us through yet another farm. 

 

I loved the smells of the sea, wandering through the Sunday fish market with the fish mongers displaying almost every gift from the sea. 

 

Many of the locals come to the market and buy their seafood and vegetables for the week. 

 

 

After strolling through the market, we found a café that let us design our own fruit de mar, consisting of mussels, prawns, calamari, octopus, and fish. It was a magical afternoon sitting along the sea and feeling the sun on our faces. Most cafes and restaurants offer alfresco dining.

Why Malta, it was our trip to the neighbor island of Gozo where we stopped to chat with the man along the road beside the salt flats. One quick question and he was very proud to show us the entire process of harvesting salt. 

 

 

My special treat was when he insisted I taste his latest harvest. Yes, I bought some, and yes, I packed it in my carryon bag because I anticipated each search of my bag through security. It made it safety through each time with my smile and comment, it’s just salt.

There are historic sites and museums for all. 

We chose to skip all of the large popular museums and enjoy the off finds. Tucked down under the church in Mellieha is a War World II bomb shelter. I cannot imagine an afternoon spent in those long halls, but the people of Mellieha spent days there. It was our honor to meet the old man at the door who was 7 at the time of the bombing in 1942. He still has vivid memories of being so hungry and afraid. With his descriptions, it was as if we were right back in the time of war.
 

The water is so blue! I’m a Caribbean girl, but I must admit the Mediterranean Sea is a beautiful azure blue. Water temperatures were too cold for this girl to get her swims in, but I am glad we traveled at this time of year. 

 

These beautiful beaches will be full of sun worshipers, snorkelers, and divers in just a few weeks.

My triathlete friends, this is the place for you. The bays offer beautiful areas to swim, the roads have lanes marked for bikes (although I think the wind will always be blowing), and “lines” for hiking and running between towns, forts, and castles.

So to those who ask, Why Malta?, it was the beautiful sea, the wind off the cliffs, the farms lined with rock walls, the flowers and herbs, the abundance of great food- seafood, deserts, and Maltese wine, but mostly the smiles and great conversations we enjoyed with the Maltese people.