Malta is a small country (three islands) that was once a British Colony, after the British were asked to come in and help the people defend themselves against the French. Hundreds of years prior to that, the Knights of St John (again!) had been granted access to the island after they lost Rhodes, and wasted no time re-establishing themselves here. They had another huge battle against the Turks, but this time the Knights survived after reinforcements arrived. After the Gallipoli campaign this is where many New Zealand soldiers were sent to be treated for their injuries. It was apparently the most bombed place on earth during World War 2, because of its strategic location.
We had a late breakfast and headed off the ship at 9:20 am. We had a long walk to get out of the port, and with a spur of the moment decision, we purchased tickets for one of the 'hop on hop off' bus lines. We did this well before we reached the bus, and were disturbed to see the big queue when we finally made it to the bus stop. After a 20 minute wait in line, we actually made it onto the double-decker open-top blue line bus of City Sightseeing Malta when it arrived, and then it left 10 minutes late because it was so full.
We sat down below and enjoyed the scenery as the bus gradually made its way out of the city and through some countryside towards the town of Mdina. It was interesting to note the relatively barren countryside and the use of stone walls everywhere. Buildings were all the same yellowy-coloured plaster and stone. The craft village we passed through was based in old aircraft hangar buildings, left over from the British airbase from the war.
During the drive we noticed that the cars were driving on the 'correct' side of the road. Then we noticed the British influence everywhere. The legal system, and education are British-based. More than 90% of the people speak English as one of their languages.
We didn't get off at any of the stops, eg the craft village etc along the way, but moved to the top level of the bus at Mdina when a lot of people got off. We were lucky that the rain held off as the bus headed back to Valletta, where we got off at the Castille stop. It had been good to get a look beyond the immediate city and the area where the ship was docked. It took a while to get our bearings and then we walked into the old, narrow streets of the town.
The atmosphere was quite different than the other countries and towns we have visited. It definitely felt more familiar, and 'comfortable'. Mind you, on some of our subsequent walks around the city fortifications we noticed how filthy it was with cigarette butts, litter, and the most doggy-do we've ever had to mind our steps with.... But in the main streets within the town, there were a lot of familiar shops, without the usual harassment to buy that seems to get worse the further east you go in the Mediterranean.
The first shop we went into was my favourite shoe store - Clarks! We found a lovely pair of shoes for David, and the somewhat disinterested young saleswoman went to see if she had his size. We never saw her again, until I noticed her talking to another salesperson down the back. Eventually she came back our way, and realised she'd completely forgotten all about us! And no, they didn't have the size.... Charming!
Next we paid to go into St John's Co-Cathedral and Museum, built with money from the Knights of St John. It was amazing - very highly decorated with golden ornamentation and quite beautiful. We do still wonder about the amount of money poured into churches and cathedrals over history...
After the Cathedral, we walked all the way from the top end to the bottom of the old town, then around the streets lining the inside of the fortifications.
Then we saw the 5D Malta Experience (one of those 'rides' where they move the seats, puff air and spray water at you while you view a huge screen with 3D glasses. It was a great 20 minute show that gave an excellent overview of the history and background of the country, as well as its beautiful scenery.
By 2 pm we started to head back towards the ship, missing the elevator down the cliff that we were looking for, and walking down steps and a road. When we were near the ship we came across the tall elevator back up the cliff to some gardens and great viewpoints at the top. I convinced David that it was worth the E1 to go up and look around, and it certainly was. We saw where 8 cannons were set up for gun salutes, and some lovely memorial gardens with tributes to people like Winston Churchill, Einstein, and Marconi, amongst others. After a good look around and more photos of the views, we headed back to the ship for a very late lunch after 3 pm.
Sail-away was impressive just after 6 pm, with music from a band onshore, dressed in traditional clothing. And then an 8 gun salute from the cliff-top saluting gallery we'd seen earlier. I managed to get it on video. Then we sailed away at sunset - magic!
We enjoyed dinner with the Barrows later than our usual 6 pm time, at 7:30 pm, and looked forward to a day at sea as we travelled towards Livorno.
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