Malta: Last Stop for Gelato

11 hours, 3 trains, a plane, a taxi, and 2 gelatos after leaving my AirBnB in Sorrento, I arrived in the tiny island nation of Malta. Prior to this trip, Malta really hadn’t been on my radar all that much. In case it hasn’t been on yours, either, here’s a little background on Malta: lying 50 miles south of Italy and inhabited by just under 500k people, it possesses the smallest capital by area in the EU (Valletta) and is the 10th smallest country in the world while also being the fifth most densely populated (thanks, Wikipedia). It’s a former British colony (and really, wasn’t everyone at some point?), so Maltese and English are both official languages. They also drive on the left and have the same electrical outlets as the Brits – the latter being rather annoying for me as I had to haul a separate set of adapters around with me for just these 3.5 days. #1stworldproblems

My AirBnB turned out to be really awesome. Malta has really unique balconies and most of its buildings are made of the same kind of stone (I think limestone?), so the country has a very distinctive look. To give each building its own identity, the balconies are painted in bright, vibrant colors. My apartment’s listing said it had a balcony and great views, but I have to admit I took that with a grain of salt because it didn’t feel priced at an amount you would pay if it really had those views. I was pleasantly surprised to find my host was, in fact, telling the truth about his unit’s location and view. The unit itself is also spacious and nicely decorated. The only drawback was that the woman who met me had zero interest in giving me any tips or answering any questions, which my last 3 hosts had spent a lot of time on, so I was kind of left to my own devices. I figured out what I needed to, though, and have just spent most of my spare time enjoying the view.

Malta’s location has made it an extremely important naval base, particularly during WWII. The Axis powers, especially Hitler, attempted to capture it from the British in order to use it as a refueling station and a base to launch invasions into Africa. The British had also been launching attacks on German supply vessels from Malta. Malta was bombed for over a year, with 3500+ bombs falling on this tiny country (nearly 100 a day!). Just as they were about to surrender due to a lack of food and supplies, Operation Pedestal came through with the SS Ohio bringing much-needed fuel, though there were huge losses for the Allies overall (only 5 of 14 ships made it to Malta). This allowed the Allies to resume their attacks on the German supply vessels, and eventually launch an invasion into Sicily. That victory led to the invasion of Italy and the subsequent collapse of Mussolini and the fascists, with Hitler redirecting a fifth of his army to defend Italy, leaving the Eastern front weakened. Churchill was adamant that the island be defended, even at heavy cost to the Allies.

<history lesson over, wake back up>

In case you couldn’t tell from the history lesson, I’ve developed an interest in WWII as a result of my European travels over the years. So, I spent my first day here checking out several of Malta’s WWII museums, including the Saluting Battery, the Lascaris War Rooms, and the underground tunnels that were built during the war. After that, I visited St. John’s Co-Cathedral, Malta’s most famous church (verdict: another gaudy, ostentation interior) and then got out on the water for a ferry ride and a harbor cruise to enjoy the rest of the sunny afternoon.

Friday, I headed out of Valletta to the town of Rabat and visited the walled city of Mdina, as well as some catacombs and some cliffs. I figured out how to navigate the bus system, which is basically one system for the entire island (not per town) since it’s so small. The catacombs were pretty cool – all sorts of underground tunnels and tombs for burial. They were a tight squeeze at times – definitely not built for someone my height, let alone a taller person. It was interesting to see such well-preserved tombs – some still had bones! After that, I ended my day with a view of the Mediterranean from the Dingli Cliffs on the opposite side of the island from where I’m staying.

Today, I had a great plans to get up and go to Malta’s Blue Grotto, since I missed out on Capri’s. Unfortunately for me, the weather did NOT cooperate (and my weather app totally lied to me, that bastard) so I didn’t bother heading out there. Instead, I slept in which was sooo nice. I stupidly thought I would be very rested after my month in Italy instead of exhausted from 30 days of sightseeing. It’s like I don’t even know me. Anyway, I got a later start and wandered around Valletta doing a little shopping, because I haven’t spent enough money this trip. (More lies.) Then I went across the harbor to the Three Cities and rented a Rolling Geek, which is basically a gps-enabled golf cart that I drove around town while it gave me a guided tour and directions. Driving on the left is always a bit of a challenge for the first day or so, and I haven’t driven a car in over a month, which is so weird to think about. The Rolling Geeks are limited to 20km/h though so I couldn’t do much damage. I survived and so did the Geek. I got to see and learn a lot, and part of the route took me to a nice little cliff area where I spent a relaxing 20 minutes enjoying the Mediterranean and the hazy sun.

All in all, I’ve enjoyed my time on Malta and could easily see coming back here to enjoy its other islands, especially during the summer. Tomorrow, I head up to Lithuania, which I suspect will be gelato-free and I will presumably begin to starve to death for the last two weeks of my trip. I sincerely hope the Baltic countries have some kind of dessert to get me my afternoon sugar-fix….

Picture Update: you can find Italy pics, all 1464 (!!!) of them, here. Malta and the Baltics are here. Instagram is still the same.

Gelato Update: 86 scoops
lemon – 14, mango – 1, strawberry – 2, caramel cream – 7, dark chocolate – 21, chocolate – 10, chocolate chip – 1; cherry – 6; rum – 1; cookie – 1; chocolate mousse – 1; raspberry – 16; vanilla – 1; mixed berry – 1; Oreo – 1; caramel with pecans – 1; blueberry cheesecake – 1

Since it’s so close to Italy, Malta has gelato (THANK GOD). It’s a lot more expensive, though, and not quite as good as Italy’s, but it’s good enough to get my fix. I have weaned myself down to one cone a day the last couple days (ok, the last 2 days), but I may get a second after dinner tonight because I may not have any again for A LONG TIME!!!!