Malta is a small island located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea just south of Sicily and east of Tunisia.
Malta has a rich history and strong connections with both world wars and Christianity. During The Great War, Malta earned the title of the Nurse of the Mediterranean for accommodating masses of wounded allied soldiers; whilst in World War 2, Malta was awarded the George Cross for the bravery of the Maltese people during the Second Siege of Malta.
In this blog I will share with you the various hotpots I visited during my stay.
Just off the north coast of Bugibba lays St Paul’s Island, famed for being the shipwreck of which St Paul was survived. From the shipwreck, Apostle Paul swam safely to land and had a bonfire lit for him, marked by the erecting of St Paul’s Bonfire Church. On the island itself, there is a statue of St Paul, built in 1845, to commemorate the arrival of Apostle Paul and Christianity.
Apostle Paul is believed to have first introduced Christianity to the Maltese with numerous other commemorations of him, including St Paul’s Grotto in Rabat & St Paul’s Cathedral in Mdina.
I stayed in Bugibba for the week, which is located in the North East of the island in the region of St Paul’s Bay. This area has a strong link to Christianity with the story of Apostle Paul, dating back to 60 AD, who was responsible for the changing of Malta’s religious bearing forever.
As said before, Malta is also known for its numerous old cities, namely Valletta and Mdina. Malta’s first capital city was Mdina, which is also possibly the most historic region of Malta. Now known as “the silent city”, Mdina has less than 300 people resident and very few cars in the city. However, it is a haven for any keen photographers with excellent architectural qualities in the Baroque Gateway (The Main Gateway into Mdina) and Catacombs, which were used as air raid shelters during the WW2 bombardments Malta endured. Mdina is even linked to Christianity, with St Paul’s Grotto being located here; this is where the Apostle lived for 3 months post-shipwreck and spread the word of Christianity to the Maltese people.
In 1571, following The Great Siege of 1565, the Maltese capital city transferred from Mdina to the newly-built city of Valletta. Valletta is known as the “modern” city due to the modern city planning used in its construction, by being designed on a grid system and carefully planned to accommodate water and sanitation and to allow for the circulation of air.
Valletta is also recognised as one of 3 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Malta, alongside the Megalithic Temples of Malta and the Saflieni Hypogeum. with 320 monuments within an area of 55 hectares, it is also one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world, with well renowned destinations such as St Paul’s Cathedral, built soon after the construction of the city itself.
During my stay I came across The Malta Classic Car Museum, off the beaten path and without much publicity, this became the hidden gem of my stay in Malta!
With a mere €8 admission price, I was free to explore over 100 exhibitions of history’s finest motor vehicles ranging predominantly from the 1950’s to 1970’s. Making this the Maltese equivalent of Beaulieu!
This museum was a tribute to Mr. Carol Garea’s appreciation for motor vehicles, which started off from building and customising his own cars for local hill climb racing, to eventually opening this museum. With many era-defining automobiles on show, either rebuilt to their former glory or acquired in pristine condition; such as the 1955 Jaguar C-Type, the 1956 Ford Thunderbird and with a Jaguar E-Type being restored in-house during my visit.
The Blue Lagoon can be regarded as the main tourist hotspot in Malta, with its crystal clear azure blue waters and sandy beaches. Much a rarity in a typically boulder-strewn terrain around the coast of Malta and the surrounding islands.
In order to arrive at the destination we ventured on one of the multiple cruises there that arrive everyday! Sadly though, as it was at the peak of the summer heat, the sensation of being at such a beautiful place quickly wore off with the masses of others arriving on the island. Therefore we decided to take a minibus across to the other side of Comino, to arrive at Santa Maria Bay. This was a picture perfect representation of the secluded beach we were seeking in the Blue Lagoon, with beach almost stranded and only few boats in sight.
Apart from these two destinations, if you would like to explore the island of Comino further, I would recommend searching through the Comino caves of which there are many. These are similar to the Blue Grotto, which can be found on the South-West side of Malta, and is another hot tourist destination.
Another water-themed hotspot is the Blue Grotto, similar to the Grotto Azzura in Capri (Italy), this can be found in the South West of the Island. This is also famed for its bright blue azure water and has over 100,000 visitors per year.
Before the Blue Lagoon, the main tourist hotpot for Malta used to be its natural sea arch, the Azure Window, located on the isle of Gozo. Fun fact: for any GoT fans, the Dothraki wedding was filmed by the Azure Window, and Malta was a filming spot for Game of Thrones in season 1 before it was moved to Croatia.
Sadly this sea arch collapsed back in 2015, which brought country-wide devastation. Although there is a silver lining as the Blue Hole, a collapsed underwater limestone cave, next to the remains of the sea arch is still accessible, with extraordinary views of the Maltese coast and a great spot for any snorkelers to see various marine life. There is also another sea arch found on Gozo, the Wied il-Mielah Window. This is a much lesser known sea arch to the Azure Window, but may now gain more recognition.
As I am a huge film enthusiast, I had to venture to see Popeye Village, located in Mellieha in the North West if the Island. This village was used as the set of the 1980 film Popeye, starring the late Robin Williams. For those who don’t know of Popeye, this is considered a cult classic, with Popeye himself being ranked 20th on TV Guide’s “50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time” list in 2002.
Since the filming of Popeye, the village has remained rather than being abandoned, and now operates as an open-air museum, with multiple family-oriented attractions, including themed games, mini-golf, a cinema, boat trips and much more!
Now, on to the best part; the weather! The only real reason Brits go on holiday, to vacate the gloomy British summer to a nirvana to get that oh so desired tan. Well Malta is no exception, with July and August being the warmest months both averaging over 30 degrees, and with less than 10mm of rainfall and around 12 hours of sunshine daily.
Even outside of the summer months the coldest months average the British summer of just below room temperature. So even if you are not a fan of the heat, but want to visit the various historical monuments Malta has to offer, the weather is great all year round and well suited for all types of travellers.
1 - St Paul's Island
2 - St Paul's Bonfire Church
3 - St Paul's Grotto
4 - Mdina
5 - Valletta
6 - Megalithic Temples of Malta
7 - Saflieni Hypogeum
8 - Malta Classic Car Museum
9 - Blue Lagoon
10 - Santa Maria Bay
11 - Blue Grotto
12 - Popeye Village
13 - Azure Window & Blue Hole
14 - Wied il-Mielah Window
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