I had booked a tour through Cecilia Wigley. We met our group leader at 8.15am and shortly after set off and disembarked.

We had to wait until our tour guide Anna appeared and led us to our bus. A smaller bus, as there were only eleven of us.

First we drove to Naxxar and visited the Palazzo Parisio. I was particularly struck by an extremely detailed nativity scene. It had been planned that we would drink tea there, but preparations were underway for a large event, so no catering could take place.

We went to Mdina, a fortified city on the highest point of the island. There I finally found Maltese falcons.

Unfortunately, photography was not permitted in the Palazzo Falson. Instead, we had lunch in a café on the roof of the Palazzo. A wide selection of delicious sweet and savory baked goods awaited us.

Once we were full, we returned to Valletta and visited the Casa Rocca Piccola, which looked as if it had only just been abandoned. In addition to paintings, statues, a sedan chair and other antiques, the house also contains a library with books from this century.

Afterwards we walked through Valletta and saw, among other things, government buildings, the modern theater and a huge fountain.

At the bus stop, a supposedly vintage car was waiting for a bride and groom. The car was a Beauford. Never heard of it. A search on the Internet revealed that it was a contemporary vehicle with a vintage look. Nice!

In the evening, two gentlemen from Italy and two from Spain provided us with musical entertainment as the group "FourEver".

Hello dear fellow humans,

Adria with Croatia 

July 24 - July 31, 2022

Valetta on Arrival Day

Today we are starting another cruise in Valetta. Since our flight was early and it will take some time until we can access our cabin, I would like to share a few impressions of this city with you. 

From the cruise terminal, which is one of the most beautiful, we will walk along the city wall above the sea this time. Passing by the Greek Catholic Church of Our Lady of Damascus and the buildings featuring the characteristic Maltese wooden balconies known as 'Gallariji'. We take the underpass of the Lascaris Battery. From the waterfront, there are repeated views of Fort St. Angelo and the city of Valletta.

We reach the Siege Bell Memorial bell. It was inaugurated in 1992 to commemorate the siege of Malta during World War II. 

From there you have a view of Valetta's coastline and the old fortifications. 

Now we turn towards the city in the direction of Lower Barrakka Gardens.  A public park in Valetta. Here is the monument for Sir Alexander Ball and the statue of Aeneas (Enea) by Ugo Attardi. 

Through the streets of the historic old town, we arrive at St. George's Square, a central square in Valetta with the Grand Master's Palace. In the meantime, the streets have become a bit livelier. We walk towards the waterfront, passing the monument of Jean de Valette, the founder and namesake of this city, and the Our Lady of Victory Church (Maria-vom-Siege-Kirche). It was the first building constructed by the Knights of Malta after the founding of the city. The monument to Paul Boffa, the 5th Prime Minister, is located in close proximity to the church. 

On the way to our final destination, the Upper Barrakka Gardens, we pass the Auberge de Castille, the residence of the Prime Minister. 

The Upper Barrakka Gardens are public gardens at the highest point of the city fortifications and offer a spectacular view of the Grand Harbour and the 'Three Cities'. Here you have the opportunity to relax and enjoy a coffee or other drinks. 

From the Upper Barrakka Gardens, you can take the Barrakka Lift down to the lower city at the waterfront.  Of course, you can also go from the lower city to the upper city. However, this lift is subject to a fee. Since we are fit to walk, we choose the stairs and roads to the lower city. Last glimpses before returning to the cruise terminal. 

Valletta also offers a few interesting sights even for a short stay. 

20.07.2019

AIDA westliches Mittelmeer

Auf unserem Schiff wurde das Einlaufen in den Hafen Valettas morgens um 6:00 Uhr mit Musik und warmen Getränken nahezu zelebriert. Nicht ohne Grund. Die Stadt schimmerte von weitem schon (kitschig) golden und es ist wirklich einer der schönsten Häfen, die wir bisher erleben durften. Da bekommt man durch die Musik vom Andreas Bocelli während dieses Anblickes schon sentimentale Gefühle. Aufstehen hat sich gelohnt. 

Anschließend ein schnelles Frühstück und bei den Ersten, die von Bord gehen, denn wir haben heute doppeltes Programm. Zunächst fuhren wir mit dem ersten Hop on Hop off Bus vom Hafenausgang direkt nach Mdina (siehe Reisebeschreibung). Gegen 12:00 Uhr kehrten wir zurück und stiegen direkt am Tritonenbrunnen aus, ein Springbrunnen unweit des Stadtores (City Gate) am Eintrittstor der historischen Innenstadt und setzten zu Fuß unser Sightseeing fort.

Von hier aus traten wir unseren Rückweg an, der zunächst nach unten führte. Mit dem Lift geht es bequem in die Tiefe. Von dort erreichten wir  in kurzer Zeit unser Schiff.

Fazit:

Bei einem Aufenthalt von 8:00 bis 16:00 Uhr war es  gut möglich die Stadt zu Fuß zu erkunden. Wir haben etwa drei Stunden in der Stadt verbracht. Am Morgen besuchten wir Mdina. Da der Weg  zum Hafen nicht weit ist, kann man die Zeit gut ausnutzen, ohne Angst zu haben, das Schiff zu verpassen. 

20.07.2019

Ein Tag auf Malta ist zu kurz. Dies sei schonmal vorweg gesagt. Bei unseren Vorüberlegungen fiel uns die Entscheidung schwer, uns zwischen einem Ausflug nach Mdina und einem Rundgang durch Valetta zu entscheiden. Als wir am Morgen unser Schiff verließen, fiel dann spontan das Los auf einen Hop on Hop off Bus, mit dem Ziel Mdina. Die richtige Entscheidung. Der Bus brachte uns mit etwa 45 Min. Fahrzeit über Mosta nach Mdina.

In Mosta beeindruckte uns die Kathedrale mit ihrer freitragenden Kuppel, mit ihrem Durchmesser von 35,97 Meter, die drittgrößte weltweit.

Aus Zeitgründen passierten wir Mosta und fuhren direkt nach Mdina weiter. Schon auf dem Weg sahen wir die Stadt majestätisch auf einer Anhöhe liegen. 

Vor den Stadtmauern und dem Eingangsportal durfte nicht die obligatorische Aufnahme fehlen, die Game of Thrones Fans in wahre Aufregung versetzt. Drehort der Kultserie und wir auf ihren Spuren.

Früh am Morgen zeigen sich die schmalen  Gassen mit ihren aus sandfarbenen Kalkstein errichteten Gebäuden noch relativ menschenleer. Die Zeit schien angehalten zu sein. 

Malta definitely stands out in my memory for its ancient yet remarkably beautiful and unique architecture. There is no shortage of cliffs and fortresses. Additionally, we were lucky that our hotel was right by the sea, nestled among palm trees and numerous historic buildings.

I was there in 2018 for about a week, and even though it was quite some time ago, I thankfully rediscovered all my pictures and can recall quite a bit. I have to admit that the cover photo this time came from the internet, as I unfortunately no longer had a nice picture of the Karmeliter-Kirche, which is essentially Malta's landmark, and I didn't want to keep it from anyone.

Even when flying over the island nation, this church is the first thing you see from the air. We arrived in Malta relatively late, so it was already dark, and the most striking feature from above was the illuminated Karmeliter-Kirche. It is located in Valletta, the capital of Malta, and in my opinion, it's a beautiful destination, a must-see when you’re there. One thing to keep in mind if you wish to enter the churches is to avoid wearing 'revealing' or too short clothing; otherwise, you’ll be given small sheets to cover yourself or won’t be allowed in. Malta is quite strict about this, which I found completely acceptable and understandable.

The church Rotunde von Mosta, or the Church of the Assumption, is also a sight to behold. Here, the 'Miracle of Mosta' occurred in 1942, as I learned there.

Apart from the many churches and buildings, there are plenty of cliffs and stunning views of the sea all around the coasts. Since Malta is only about 28km long and around 13km wide, it doesn't take long to see a lot of the coastlines. We drove along it with a tour bus and had a constant view of the sea, which was truly lovely.

On one day, we visited the Upper Barraka Gardens, located in a park in Valletta. This park also overlooks the coast and is a beautiful spot for photos. Furthermore, the park is located by the Auberge de Castille, a historic landmark in the capital that we explored afterward.

Additionally, we took a boat tour, which allowed us to see some parts of Valletta and the island nation again from the sea, truly taking in the history. Unfortunately, I don't remember exactly where the tour went. At the Port of Valletta, several large yachts docked, which looked really sleek ;).

We also didn’t have any real language issues in Malta. Since Italian and English are the customary languages here, communication with the people, who were also very friendly, was generally easy. My conclusion: A trip to Malta is worthwhile!

Once again, it's the end of a vacation. After our very eventful week in Malta, we didn't want to go very far from our accommodation today and planned to relax on the rocky beach in St. Thomas Bay. However, the sea had other plans for us. Despite the good weather (windy but warm), the sea was very rough and the rocks were completely submerged, so we couldn't lay there. In the end, we decided to go back to St. Peters Pool, where we went at the beginning of our trip. It was sheltered there and the rocks were high enough that the water couldn't reach them.

When we arrived there, we were not alone, but we expected that. After all, today was a beautiful, warm day, despite the rough sea. It was warm enough to sunbathe in a bikini, by the way! But in the sun and without wind, it got really hot. Our already damaged skin didn't handle the sun well either. After a while, we decided to go to the city beach in St. Thomas Bay. We found a bench by the water where we could dip our feet into the cool water despite the strong waves. The water was still icy cold, but some particularly brave people were swimming in it. Despite the cold and the rough waves. The coolness was really refreshing in the heat!

After a nice last day, we made our way back to the accommodation. We had a pleasant last evening on the rooftop terrace. With the wind and without the sun, it got a bit chilly quickly though. The next day, we left for Germany around noon.

We were only there for a week, but we pretty much saw the whole island - it's not that big! :D And that was actually the great thing about it: You could reach everything easily from one spot in a short amount of time. We had fun in Malta. Even though the weather wasn't ideal and we also had some rain, we still had an interesting and beautiful time there. A week was enough for us, it didn't need to be longer. We were a bit disappointed with the food. It mainly consisted of pizza, burgers, pasta...the options were not very diverse. We expected something different from Maltese cuisine, but eating out here is also not cheap. Actually, I would recommend renting a car to anyone who wants to see a bit of Malta and be mobile. However, you should think twice about it with the left-hand traffic. Luke is a good and safe driver and quickly adapted to it. But I wouldn't have gotten into a car here myself. I advise anyone who is even a little unsure about driving to refrain from it. The bus connections are supposedly good here (we didn't try it ourselves), but they don't reach more remote areas, which I find particularly exciting on vacation. Malta is also less suitable for a beach vacation. But if you're into sightseeing and don't just want to lounge on the beach but also enjoy the occasional beautiful bay, I can only recommend this island. There is a lot to discover and the neighboring island Gozo is worth a visit. I don't think we will visit Malta again anytime soon, but who knows, maybe we will be drawn back there in a few years :)

We drove to the other end of the island today. But this time not to take the ferry to Gozo, but to spend the day in Mellieha and the surrounding beaches and sights.

First, we drove to a beach called 'Paradise Bay'. It is hidden between the rocks and cannot be seen from the outside. Small but beautiful is the motto here, the water here is naturally beautiful again and the whole beach is very pretty. There is a restaurant where you can refresh yourself, toilets and also a sunbed rental. Today the weather is beautiful and really warm, just like yesterday. This gave us a severe sunburn but that's alright. If you want to relax, you can easily spend the whole day here. So far, this is probably the most beautiful sandy beach we have visited in Malta, but there are not too many sandy beaches here either. But when the beach gets too crowded after a while, we continue driving. Or at least we try.

Actually, we wanted to visit Mellieha Beach, the longest sandy beach in Malta. However, we are already standing in a really long line of cars after a short time. The reason for this is that this is the only road that leads away from the beach and crosses the road to the ferry below. It seems to be heavily frequented today, which is why there is no way forward or backward for us now. A total catastrophe, because it looks as if we have to spend the rest of the day in the line for the ferry. But some drivers apparently found it too annoying to stand here forever, so a few people simply continued driving on the other side of the road (against the traffic!). After a while, some others joined in and people simply drove past the line on the other lane. It got funny when oncoming traffic came. But apparently nobody was interested in that and so we eventually did the same as the others, as we also didn't feel like spending the rest of our vacation day here. It was pure chaos! At the intersection, a policeman tried to regulate the traffic, but he was visibly overwhelmed. We were afraid of getting into trouble because of our action, but the policeman didn't care. He just waved us on and seemed rather glad that the problem solved itself.

The journey finally continued towards Mellieha Beach. We looked for a parking space there and walked to the beach. However, it is directly located on the main road and was covered with seaweed. Not exactly what I imagine a beautiful beach to be like. We sat down in one of the beach huts and watched the hustle and bustle for a while, but then we left shortly afterwards. The beach was really not very nice, so we didn't want to stay there any longer.

Then we drove for a short photo stop to 'Popeye Village'. The entrance fee of 20 euros per person was too expensive for us, so we just took a few photos from the outside and continued driving.

Actually, we wanted to spend the rest of the day relaxing at Golden Bay. Unfortunately, today was a public holiday and it felt like all of Malta had the same idea. When we arrived there, there was not a single parking space available anywhere. With all the hustle and bustle, the beach would probably have been too crowded anyway, but it was still annoying. Because now we had no other choice but to turn around. The problem now was: where to? We could have driven back to Paradise Bay, but it was probably already completely crowded by now too. But would it be any different at any other beach today? We shouldn't have chosen the public holidays for this. Eventually, we followed the signs to Armier Beach, not knowing what to expect there.

When we arrived there, it wasn't as crowded as in other places, so we were able to easily park our car, but the beach was far from beautiful. Quite small and quite dirty. So we preferred to sit in the beach restaurant there and enjoyed the view over the beautiful, clear sea. After eating, we found a nice, quiet spot on the cliffs. It was nice to stay there, there was nobody else except us. We enjoyed the sound of the sea for a while, until we slowly made our way back to Marsaskala. We didn't want to drive back in the dark without navigation again :D

If there is a place in Malta where you can spend a nice beach vacation, it is Mellieha with its many small sandy beaches and bays. But if you want to see more, you have to be mobile, because there is not much else to do here besides the beach.

As mentioned before, I discovered something on Google Maps. Something that looked like a nice little bay between the cliffs, very close to Marsaskala, namely St. Thomas Bay. Although I wasn't quite sure if we could actually lay down and spend time there, we decided to check it out. We parked the car in a gravel parking lot just before the cliffs and made our way to the supposed bay. The view from above was already magnificent! If we couldn't lay down in the bay, at least we had a nice walk. After about 10 minutes, our bay came into view. And it really existed! However, at first it looked like there was no way down. We took a closer look and eventually found a way down. And indeed, in the small bay with the beautifully clear shimmering water, you could actually lay down on the rocks. Not only was it beautiful here, but we also had this amazing place all to ourselves! Luckily, we had found this spot. I think this was the highlight of the vacation. A small bathing bay just for ourselves :) The water was too cold for swimming, but we could dip our feet in a little and enjoy the sun. The weather was perfect, nice and warm but not too hot, so it was great to stay in the sun. There was also a pleasant breeze. So we enjoyed our time in our own little paradise, dozed off a bit, and then slowly made our way back. On the way back, we took a short walk along the cliffs and then explored the town of St. Thomas Bay. There wasn't much to see here, though. There was a nice little city beach. Then we made our way back to Marsaskala, which was less than 5 minutes away from here.

I still dream of that beautiful little bay today! :D

Today was a really wonderful day with amazing Mediterranean weather! After enjoying a leisurely breakfast at Jacob's Brew Cafe, we went to the Blue Grotto. There, we took a boat trip to get a closer look at the blue cave. The name Blue Grotto is easy to understand from the color of the water. Since it was really warm today, the wind during the short boat tour felt really refreshing. Unfortunately, it ended too quickly. We walked along the cliffs and also stopped at a viewpoint where we could see the Blue Grotto from above. I took some photos there and then we continued to Pretty Bay.

It is located in a town near Marsaskala, so we didn't stray too far from our accommodation today. Although the beach is in the city, it is truly beautiful with its wonderful color and crystal clear water! If it weren't for the container port in the background, it could be a dream beach. However, we didn't let the appearance of the port and the wonderful sounds bother us ;) Instead, we enjoyed the view of the water. Unfortunately, the water was still too cold for swimming, even though the air temperature today allowed for it. However, the sea was only for the brave. So we simply made ourselves comfortable on the rocks and enjoyed the sun.

After a while, we headed to St. Thomas Bay, which was just around the corner from Marsaskala, because I had discovered something on Google Maps that I wanted to take a closer look at...

Unfortunately, we had to leave behind Victoria with the beautiful Citadella. Our new destination was Xlendi. A small village known for its fjord-like bays. We wanted to check that out! The place itself was rather small and didn't have much to offer, but it was good for a walk along the 'fjord'. Unfortunately, the weather had become rough again and looked like rain. Due to time constraints, we couldn't stay here for very long. However, you could have taken a nice long walk to a nearby bay. We only walked along the fjord briefly and then returned to make our way to our last point on the list: Dwerja Inland Sea.

Until a year ago, the famous Azure Window stood here, but it collapsed during a storm in 2017. And once again, we have a 'Game of Thrones' backdrop here. In the first season, Daenerys and the Dothraki set up their camp here. Back then, the Azure Window still stood. We also visited the small lake, which is fed by seawater flowing through a cave in the rock (also called Inland Sea). It had become really windy here now! And it was time to leave. It would soon be dark, and we still had to catch the ferry and drive all the way back to Marsaskala. So, we bid farewell to Gozo, drove back to the harbor, and took the ferry back to Malta.

Since we had used Luke's phone as a navigation device all day, the battery was very weak, and we knew it wouldn't last until we reached the accommodation. So, we drove in the dark and completely clueless about where we were actually going. Following the motto: always straight until you find a sign in the right direction, we drove around. And behold, it worked. We probably took a pretty big detour, but we arrived safely in Marsaskala and were glad to be able to fall into bed.

The day was beautiful but very exhausting. Gozo is a nice little island where you can relax - if you have the time for it. In retrospect, one day for Gozo is simply too short if you want to take the time to explore everything in peace. It is better to take a few days to explore the island or choose only a few places to visit in peace. Otherwise, it becomes too stressful. Parking there, by the way, was not a problem at all. We always found a free parking space without any problems.

So, in conclusion: Gozo is really beautiful, and a visit is worthwhile, but only if you have a few days available. Or you can simply spend your entire vacation there if you prefer a more relaxed atmosphere ;)

After having a meal and enjoying the peace in Marsalforn, we headed to the island's capital, Victoria. It was a bit busier there, but no wonder, it's the largest city on the island. It's a great place to stroll around, but especially worth visiting is the Citadella. At first, it seems like you have to pay an entrance fee here, but that's only for the interior. You can visit the exterior for free, and it's really worth it! From the walls of the Citadella, you have a fantastic view of the island. The weather was getting really nice and warm up here. We spent quite a lot of time up here. Even more time than we had planned, since the Citadella turned out to be bigger than expected, and we probably haven't seen everything yet. Eventually, we had to make our way back. However, we still took some time to stroll around in Victoria and buy a few souvenirs.

We really liked Victoria, especially the Citadella with its amazing view! You can easily plan a whole day to visit both, if you have the time. Unfortunately, we didn't have that much time as the day was coming to an end, and we still had two more stops on our itinerary. So, we had to continue our journey right away...

Not far from the main island lies the small neighboring island of Gozo, which is still part of Malta. Gozo is even smaller than Malta and therefore perfect for a day trip. In our travel guide, we found a complete tour of the island that we wanted to take. Since the ferry terminal was on the other side of the island, we left quite early to catch the first ferry. However, when we arrived there, we had to wait for quite a while as the queue was longer than expected, so we ended up taking the second ferry to Gozo.

We arrived there at 10:30 am. We actually wanted to be there earlier as we had a lot planned. But now we had to make the most of the time. First, we went to Xewkija to visit the Rotunda, the church. But our actual goal was not the church itself, but the roof. According to the travel guide, you should have a magnificent view of the island from up there. We had to look for the elevator to get there, but we eventually found it and for 3 euros per person, we were allowed to go up. It turned out to be a hidden gem, as there was no one else up there and the view was truly amazing!

Half an hour later, we headed towards Xaghra, as there was supposedly a beautiful old town where we could enjoy a coffee among the locals, as the place was not touristy. Although such statements in a travel guide are always questionable. However, when we arrived, we found out that this must correspond to the absolute truth because everything here seemed completely deserted. Since we couldn't find a single person anywhere and there was no real old town in sight, we headed directly to our next destination: Ramla Bay.

Apparently the largest and most beautiful sandy beach on Gozo. But first, we had to find our way there, which turned out to be not so easy. At first, we wanted to follow the signs, but they eventually got lost. So, we asked Google for advice, which we promptly received. However, it turned out once again: Never fully trust Google! It may find the shortest, but not always the best way to the destination. Once again, we were driving on some terrible dirt road that didn't look like it was meant for driving. At some points, the road was so narrow that we couldn't turn the corner without reversing several times. Eventually, the terrible road led us to a concrete road that came down the mountain, and we probably could have driven the entire way here if Google hadn't led us somewhere else again. Anyway, we finally arrived at our destination. The beach was quite large and today, with the weather being windy and cool, we didn't stay there for long.

Our next destination was above the beach: the Calypso Cave. The cave there was apparently closed for safety reasons, but you were supposed to have a wonderful view of Ramla Bay from up there. At first, we considered taking the small path up the hill on foot. But due to lack of time and laziness, we ended up driving up by car. And indeed, from up there, you had a truly beautiful view of the bay!

We were getting hungry and made our way to Marsalforn to look for something to eat. According to the travel guide, there was good and affordable food at 'Otters' there. When we arrived, we found that Marsalforn was really a nice little town right by the sea. You could definitely spend a few nice days here. We strolled along the beach promenade until we found the restaurant we were looking for. We sat right by the water and enjoyed the sun. The food was good, and we spent quite a while here because it was so beautiful and peaceful. We would have loved to stay longer, but we still had a few things planned. We were behind schedule, so the tour of the island was slowly turning into a stressful experience.

Next, we wanted to go to the island's capital, Victoria...

For Luke's sake, after visiting Mdina and Rabat, we went to the nearby Aviation Museum. He's very interested in airplanes, so it was quite interesting for him. Not so much for me ;) But you could sit in the cockpit of a passenger plane there, which was quite fun! So I still had my fun.

After that, we went to the Buskett Gardens. The weather was getting really nice again. However, they are not really worth a visit. Basically, it's just a field or forest path for a walk. We didn't really have to go there specially.

Finally, we tried our luck again at the Dingli Cliffs. We had already been there this morning, but it was very cloudy, so the view wasn't very spectacular. And behold, in the late afternoon sun, it looked much better! So we walked around here for a while and enjoyed the great view of the green cliffs and the blue sea until we made our way back to Masaskala.

Today was definitely another eventful day. We visited Mdina, Rabat, and St. Paul's Catacombs, went to the Aviation Museum and the Buskett Gardens, and even went to the Dingli Cliffs twice. As everything is not very far apart, it was possible to do it all in one day.

Since we visited Mdina rather quickly, we decided to visit the St. Pauls Catacombs in Rabat. These are just a 10-minute walk away. The museum is hidden in the city center of Rabat. Here you can explore the catacombs where people used to bury their dead. It's a bit creepy! The museum mainly consists of the catacombs themselves, but in the entrance area, you can visit a short exhibition with information boards. Otherwise, there are countless underground tombs to visit, not all of them are accessible, but most of them are. The largest tombs are located near the entrance area, the rest are rather small, quite narrow, and quickly visited. You shouldn't have claustrophobia here. It's eerie to think that dead people were buried here and how pitch dark it must have been without any lighting! We visit some catacombs, but not all of them. There are actually a lot to see and somehow they all look quite similar. The museum is really interesting and definitely worth a visit! You can easily spend a few hours here if you want.

Afterwards, we went in search of something to eat. In one of the so-called party houses, we finally found affordable Maltese food! That was something we had been missing so far. The Maltese cuisine is not very common and when it is, it is simply very expensive. So we were happy to finally try some local food. Luke ordered rabbit, and I ordered a Maltese platter consisting of goat cheese (yuck!), olives, Maltese bread, a type of bruschetta, sausage, dried tomatoes, beans, and a vegetable paste. Both tasted quite good! Luckily we were just eating when it started pouring rain outside. Fortunately, it stopped quickly again and by the time we left, it had already stopped. On our way through Rabat, we bought some delicious Maltese sweets at a stand and our mood improved again ;) By the way, Rabat is also worth seeing and can be wonderfully combined with a visit to Mdina! To escape the weather, we left Rabat and headed to the Aviation Museum.

Today was a bit different: the day started off promising weather-wise, but ended up quite wet. Today's itinerary included the former capital of Malta: Mdina. To get there, we had to drive to the center of the island. From afar, you can already see the city with its mighty city walls. Once we arrived, finding a parking spot in Rabat, which is right next to Mdina (as there is no car traffic in Mdina itself), proved to be very difficult, if not impossible. Since we couldn't find a parking spot, we decided to first drive to the Dingli Cliffs nearby. Unfortunately, it was quite cloudy and the visibility was poor, so the cliffs didn't make much of an impression. We briefly considered leaving the car here and taking the bus, which seemed to be running, but we couldn't figure out the schedule. After a while, we decided to make our way back to Mdina or Rabat, hoping to find a parking spot. At first, it seemed like we would be disappointed, and we even thought about skipping Mdina and doing something else. After a long search, we finally found a gap in a side street on the hill. Once again, we managed to find a free parking spot, and we followed the crowds of tourists towards the city gate. Incidentally, this gate served as the gate of King's Landing, through which Prince Joffrey rode in the first season of Game of Thrones. Mdina itself also served as a backdrop for some scenes. Upon closer inspection, I recognized the respective locations where we had already stood. Funny! :D Malta is full of filming locations for GOT, and we were supposed to visit another one on Gozo, but more on that another time.

Through this gate, we entered the city. Unbelievable but true: we were done after just 10 minutes. Mdina is indeed very labyrinthine with its many narrow alleys and has a great medieval atmosphere, but it's really not big. From the city walls, you have a magnificent view of the landscape. However, the city was described as 'quiet and original', which is probably true once the sun goes down and the crowds of tourists disappear, but during the day, Mdina is really just a tourist magnet, and so the small town was completely overcrowded with tourists, which was neither quiet nor original. I wonder what it must be like for the locals? Oh, and despite the fact that Mdina is supposed to be car-free, there were quite a few parked cars around here, and we often had to dodge a passing car, which is not easy in the narrow streets. Apparently, the residents are allowed to drive to Mdina. Unfortunately, it started raining at some point, and finding a place to sit in Mdina is not that easy, as there is not much choice. So our stay in Mdina was not very long. We also visited the St. Paul's Catacombs in Rabat, which were just a 10-minute walk away.

So, for those who plan to spend a whole day just visiting Mdina: it's better to combine it with other nearby sights, as you can't spend a whole day here.

After a rainy start to the day, it fortunately turned out to be nice later on, so we were able to enjoy our day in Valetta. Driving on the left side of the road in Malta is very demanding, especially around Valetta where there is a lot of traffic. Luckily, Luek quickly got used to it. We wanted to park in Floriana, where there is a parking system. However, the traffic flow there was quite confusing and by chance, we ended up in a side street with free parking spaces. So sometimes getting lost is not so bad ;) From there, we took a bus to Valetta for a small fee.

A walk through Valetta doesn't take very long, as the capital of Malta is not very big. The advantage of this is that you can take your time and stroll through the streets of Valetta at your leisure. When we arrived, there was a kind of parade going on, with soldiers walking along the street accompanied by music.

We first visited the War Museum and then walked to the Lower and Upper Baracca Gardens. From the Upper Baracca Gardens, you have a great view of Valetta! You can explore the city on foot very well, and so we walked several times along Republic Street, the shopping street, to do some window shopping. Later, we sat comfortably in a cafe to have a snack. The sun was really pleasant today. However, there was still a cool breeze, so a light jacket was necessary.

So we spent the whole day in Valetta until we took the bus back to the car. We really liked the city, especially because it is not very big and can be comfortably visited in a day. This allows you to plan a stress-free day for sightseeing.

Despite the rainy start and not looking very promising, we had a nice day that even turned sunny later on :)

We then walked around the pool for a while and a little further around the corner. You could walk along the cliffs for quite a distance and admire the salt pans that appeared along the way. An interesting landscape! So if you're nearby and looking for a nice spot to relax and swim, St. Peter's Pool is really great :) However, it can get quite crowded during the peak season.

A little bit crushed from the restless night, we were not very excited when the day started with rain. Unfortunately, the accommodation could only be booked without breakfast, but right below there was Jacobs Brew Cafe, where we had a cozy breakfast. Then Neil drove us to our rental car, which we had already booked with his help from Germany. When we arrived there, my first thought was: oh dear! And here we are supposed to get our rental car? It was a small, pretty shabby looking shop in the middle of the city. We probably wouldn't have rented a car here on our own, but it was probably the car rental place he trusted, so it couldn't be too bad, right? At least we hoped so. We got an ancient Kia, a real clunker. The car didn't look very trustworthy, but it turned out to be very reliable throughout the week and took us safely around the whole island.

And so our adventure in driving on the left side of the road began. Well, actually Luke's adventure, I stayed out of it and didn't drive ;) To get a little bit accustomed to it, we didn't drive too far and visited the fishing village of Marsaxlokk (pronounced: Marsaschlokk), which was just 15 minutes away. But that was far enough for now, driving on the left side of the road is really not to be underestimated, and on top of that, the Maltese driving behavior is chaotic and the gear shift is on the 'wrong' side. It required full concentration and we had to drive on a completely unfamiliar road. By the way, that road was quite bumpy (yes, it seems like we always end up on bumpy roads). But it was still manageable, I just remember Balos in Crete!

When we arrived in Marsaxlokk, we had to find a parking spot, which was not that easy. In the end, we parked somewhere in a residential area and had to walk a little bit to the waterfront promenade. But no problem. We strolled around the market there, where we found all sorts of food, textiles, and souvenirs. We settled for some Maltese sweets. Next time, we'll buy them at the supermarket, where you can get the exact same thing for much cheaper ;) By the way, the weather had improved, but there were still occasional dark clouds passing by, bringing a few rain showers here and there, but luckily nothing too bad. After spending some time in the very picturesque little town, we continued towards St. Peter's Pool.

To escape the cold weather in Germany for a short time, we decided to fly to Malta for a week in March. Despite the fact that it was already spring, there were still below freezing temperatures! It was time to change that.

We left from Frankfurt at 10 o'clock. Finally a humane time, but we were silly enough to plan our vacation during the Easter holidays, so apparently everyone in Germany wanted to fly away on that day. We arrived at the airport nearly 2.5 hours before departure and still almost missed our flight because we had to wait for over two hours in the security checkpoint line. By the time we finally made it through, boarding had already started according to our boarding pass and we had to run. We have flown many times before, but we had never seen Frankfurt Airport so crowded. Terrible! We were relieved when we were on the plane. After just two hours of flight, we already landed on the small island.

At the airport, we were picked up by our nice host, Neil, who runs the Akwador Guest House in Marsaskala, which we had booked for the entire week. The drive there only took 15 minutes, but it was quite adventurous due to driving on the left side of the road! The driving style of the Maltese people didn't really help either. We were really looking forward to getting our rental car tomorrow ;) Once we arrived safely at the accommodation, we were able to directly check into our cozy room. The Akwador Guest House is located right on the bay with a view of the water. Really beautiful! The whole property is wonderfully clean, small, and family-run.

Everything is within walking distance here, so we set off to explore Marsaskala right away. The town isn't very big, but it has everything you need. Several restaurants, shops for shopping, bars, and of course, the sea. It's not very warm though, only about 15 degrees Celsius and a quite fresh wind. It's still warmer than at home, but somehow not quite what we had imagined. We hoped it would improve a bit.

In the evening, we fell into bed quite tired, but we couldn't fall asleep right away because of the noise outside. It was Saturday night and people were out. Unfortunately, the house wasn't very soundproof, so even with the windows closed, we could hear people outside as if they were having a party on our balcony. Tomorrow, we would pick up our rental car, hopefully we would be fit enough for driving on the left side of the road!

Meanwhile, we are already sitting at the airport in Helsinki, waiting for our connecting flight to Bangkok and then to Yangon.