While planning our trip to Tunisia last year, we also got an invitation to stay at an apartment that our friends had just acquired in Malta. Since Malta is just a one hour flight from Tunis and we had never been, it was an easy decision to make Malta our next destination.
Malta is a tiny island nation with an incredibly long and rich history. It is located right smack in the middle of all the Mediterranean’s most important trade routes. Because of this, it has basically been under siege from one empire or another ever since the Phoenicians first set sail across the Mediterranean over 3000 years ago. The earliest settlers arrived over 5000 years ago, followed by the Romans, Moors, Knights of Saint John, French and finally, the British.
Even the local language, Maltese, reflects this centuries-old polyglot. It started as a dialect of Arabic. Then, with successive waves of rulers, new words were introduced from other languages. Today, it’s an odd mix of Arabic and Latin and sounds very strange to anyone hearing it for the first time. Thankfully, English remains a second official language, surviving the country’s independence from the British in 1964.
The country is littered with historical sites from every period of its history. If archaeology and ruins get you excited, you should add Malta to your must-see list. Beyond that, there are many charming walled villages and and towns, numerous gothic cathedrals, lots of shoreline coves, caves and cliffs to explore, and all the usual fun in the sun activities, given its southern Mediterranean climate.
The capital city of Valletta is your typical medieval walled fortress. Built by the Knights of St. John in the 1500s, it is situated at the tip of a long, narrow peninsula. It looks like it was built to withstand any kind of attack, and through the centuries, that’s exactly what it has done.
Almost everything in Malta was originally built from the same honey-colored rock. To add some color and interest to their architecture, the Maltese have developed a unique way of decorating the bay windows of their houses. You can see these colorful facades throughout all the old towns.
gail
Fascinating – thanks so mch
Beyhan Cagri Trock
Holy cow! Get me to Malta, please! I love the scale of this place and the history is fascinating. I’m wondering if there is a Sephardic presence from the time of the Spanish Inquisition. Thanks for posting this, the photos are glorious. .
Sami
Interesting question, so I did a little research. It seems there was a significant Jewish community there in 1492. Since Malta was under Aragonese rule at the time, the Edict of Expulsion applied to Malta as well and they were all forced to leave. Post 1800, many Jewish immigrants went to Malta from England, North Africa and Turkey and the Jewish community was largely left alone under French and British rule. Today, there are about 150 Jews in Malta (out of a population of 400,000). Oddly, Judaism, along with Hinduism, is recognized as a cult, but not a religion in Malta.
Michael
What an excellent travel bog!!
Michelle
Adding to my wish list. What’s the range of time needed to experience it?
Sami
It’s a pretty small place. You can see just about everything in 3 or 4 days. But if you want to do a deep dive, there’s also plenty to keep you interested for much longer.
Paul
Excellent post Sami! I learned a lot even though we live there part time.