malta: malta: valletta

Valletta is the capital of both the country of Malta and the island of Malta. According to the official boundaries, Valletta is the smallest capital city of Europe at only .8 square miles and 6500 residents. That being said, when anyone says Valletta, they are referring to the metro area, which includes the suburbs. When including the suburbs, the number of residents goes up to almost 400,000.

Valletta has been associated with the Order of St John, the French Republic, the Protectorate of Malta, the Crown Colony of Malta, the State of Malta, and the Republic of Malta. 

Because Malta is a set of islands in the Mediterranean Sea, it has been fought on and over many times throughout its history. From what I've learned, many of the cities around the country were founded as forts, and many of those forts are still standing in some form.

Valletta is one of those cities. There are several fortifications around the city, protecting the harbour in particular. I stayed in one of the suburbs, and to get into the city proper it was a long walk or a bus ride, both of which went around a small marina.

When I first looked at my phone to figure out how to get to the city center it said I could take one of the small ferries that leave just as often as buses come by. When I got to the spot from which the ferry was supposed to leave I found a sign saying the ferries were closed for the day due to wind. I looked out at the water and saw small waves, but it didn't seem that bad, but since I'm not the one driving the ferry I don't get to decide. I didn't see the ferries sailing at any time during my four days in the area, I have no clue how smooth everything needs to be for them to sail. 

I took the bus instead, getting off when I saw something interesting. The interesting thing seemed to be an abandoned fort of some kind, I'm a sucker for anything that looks abandoned. I walked around and took a few photos, then kept walking in the direction in which the bus had gone.

Next up was a giant church. By this point I'd figured out that pretty much every church in the country was huge, regardless of whether it was a cathedral, or 'just' a regular church. St Publius had an open door, so I walked in. 

I was going in as a couple was coming out, and about a minute later I realized the priest had shut the door behind them. It turned out the church wasn't really open for the public to be wandering around, but since I'd walked in through an open door it was okay for me to finish up.

St Publius was a lovely church. A great ceiling, a beautiful altar, a tall vaulted ceiling, and stained glass windows. The best part: I had it all to myself. If only I could get lucky like that all the time.

From there I continued toward the city center, to see the sights listed as worth seeing. I finally found the major cathedral, only to find out that there was a steep entrance fee: 10 euro!! Call me crazy, but that's ridiculous, especially when I saw how many people were queued up to go inside. At least you get a brochure with a lot of information about the church.

Even with the queue and and ridiculous price, I paid to go inside St John's co Cathedral. It was just as big as other churches I'd already seen, and just as fancy. Unlike the other churches I'd seen, I was not allowed to wander all over. 

Most of the sanctuary was blocked off by ropes, so I wasn't able to stand under the center of the ceiling.

Another difference was that this cathedral had a whole lot of side chapels. None of them were super amazing, but with how much I'd paid, I took the time to look at every single one. Toward the back of the sanctuary was a set of steps, which I followed up to get to a balcony at the back of the sanctuary. I felt as if I was looking out and down over the rest of the world, which was fun.

The cathedral with crowded, it is not a place I'd go to again.

Much of the central area is a pedestrian zone, which I loved. All my wandering took me past a number of traditional Maltese balconies, which are mostly covered, and painted. When you have a building full of these balconies it catches the eye of every photographer.

Another thing that caught my eye was a reserved parking spot. It was held for members of a convent, with a simple chair.

My self guided tour kept going by heading toward the grand harbour, a sight on many postcards of the city. This is where cruise boats pull in, it's huge. It is better seen from the other side of the water, but you can still appreciate the size when your in the middle of the whole thing.

From there I walked until I found a bus stop where I could catch a bus back to my neighborhood. Earlier in the day I'd noticed an Indian restaurant very close to my accomodation, and it turned out to be an excellent choice for dinner :)

The next morning I got going quite a bit earlier in the day, and started with a long walk. Over two hours I think, to get to my first sight of the day. It was warm and sunny, I wanted to enjoy that as much as possible.

I passed a few churches, walked over a bridge, saw a LOT of sandstone coloured buildings, and small shops along the way.

Finally I got to a proper sight: a set of old temples, a UNESCO designated spot. The Tarxien temples are dated all the way back to 3150 BC.

The temples were 'discovered' in 1914 by a farmer tilling his fields. From what I've been able to find, archaeologists aren't completely sure about the use of these temples either, though they think animal sacrifices might've happened here.

Archaeologists also learned a bit of how these types of temples were constructed because those who did the constructing this time left stone rollers outside. The skills of engineers back in the day were just as good as they are now, and they didn't have computers.

The ruins are now under a giant tarp of sorts, to help protect the stones from the elements. Since I'm not good at imagining how things could've been, all I saw was a bunch of big stones and rocks. (Then again, this is pretty typical of lots of ruins I've seen, though I can always appreciate seeing history, and its value.)

From the temples I walked down toward the water, through the suburb of Birgu. I wanted to get all the way to the edge so I could look across at the Grand Harbour. To get there I passed under one of the old city gates, which stretches across the whole road. Quite impressive.

By this point I was in dire need of shade, which was not anywhere to be found. Am I a horrible person for getting tired of the direct sun and heat by that point? Hee hee. While searching for shade I walked past a marina, which was quite photogenic with all the sailboats lined up. I also saw outside the walls of a fort, which to be honest looked the same as every other fort I'd already seen in Malta.

Finally I found a small tree, which provided a wee bit of shade. I stood there for ten minutes, then found a nearby bus stop and started making my way back to my neighborhood. 

As I'd enjoyed the Indian restaurant so much the night before, I went back for more. After the main course I walked down the street to have dessert: gelato and mini pastries from a gelateria. YUM.

After a day trip the next day I went back to the Indian restaurant and gelateria. And again after the next day trip as well. Why fix something that isn't broken?

I don't know that I feel the need to come back to Valletta in particular, but there is good transport around the island, so if I come back to Malta, this is where I'd start.