Blue waters, the oldest temples and forthcoming Maltese election

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Malta is so small you can get around it in a day. Unless you are taking the bus, then make it a week. And do take a cushion.

We got up early to catch the bus to the airport so we could collect our hire car. The airport isn't so far away (nothing is in Malta as it is only 95sq miles) but the bus route took in every town, village and fart within 90sq miles (or thereabouts) and so it took an hour and twenty minutes to arrive. The seats were low and hard, so not the best journey.

Our hire car is a blue Peugeot 107 and may well be one of the crappest vehicles I have driven (although the Toyota 'no go' in Spain was strong competition). The gears are stiff, the clutch grinds and hill starts are the stuff of nightmares. However, we now had wheels and after being warned how Maltese drivers drive, we realised we better pay out for the insurance, especially as the alternative was taking €1,300 off my credit card for a week with a warning that a scratch cost around €500 to repair! But the initial hire charge had been very cheap... hmmm.

The woman in the car hire place told us about the forthcoming Maltese elections, warning us that the people were very excitable, especially this Sunday, so best try and avoid it. So now Glyn and I plan to go to the capital that day and photograph it instead - what an opportunity!

After a few attempts at getting going, we set off to the Blue Grotto which is one of a series of caves only accessible by boat. Around 8 of us boarded a traditional style Maltese wooden boat with stinky Yamaha engine and chatty boatman who kept insisting that we stand up to take photos. Knowing Glyn, I had visions of this going very pear shaped, it being a rather wobbly boat. But boringly, no one fell in. However, we did get to see incredibly clear and blue seawater that when the boatman submerged his hand under the water, it appeared to be blue.

Other caves had white sand under the water and so we could see right to the bottom. Also one of the caves was called Cat Cave but I have no idea why. There were no cats. Grrr.

Our next stop were the megalithic temples of Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra, apparently the oldest free standing stone temples in the world dating from 3200 BC. First off we were shown a blurry 4D presentation about the history of the temples, the fourth D being some rain and wind effects. After a walk through the museum, we got to the actual temples when I realised that I had been here before. However it has changed a lot in that the temples now have controversial 'high-tech' canopies to protect them from the elements as they were foolishly built on a windswept hill by the coast. These canopies gave Glyn an excuse to remove his much hated sun hat, but also made getting a decent photo nigh on impossible. Some French people spotted a large lizard poking its head out of a wall, so I got a good photo of that instead.

Today was a bit cloudier than yesterday, but by this point it was getting a bit hot, so we timed it right to be walking uphill. Trudging uphill during the hottest part of the day in full scorchio sun is a standard Wade holiday activity. If we can be carrying lots of heavy camera equipment too, that's a double whammy.

We drove past Dingli Cliffs which apparently is a lovely place to stroll but Glyn said he'd already seen some good cliffs today, so we headed on along the bumpy roads in our rickety car. In Malta they drive on the left but it feels wrong because holiday driving should be on the right. Reassuringly though, drivers rarely use indicators and often don't give way even if it is your right of way, so it still feels like driving abroad.

Now I won't say that our next destination was our crappest ever on a holiday, because I will never forget how we drove miles to find a really pathetic monolith in Portugal a few years ago. BUT Misraħ Għar il-Kbir aka Clapham Junction was rubbish. A collection of deep worn grooves, c 2000 BC, supposedly named after the busy British station as it resembled the many rail lines, definitely did not resemble multiple rail lines and we could only find two. Needless to say, we were the only people there.

Much to Glyn's surprise and slight suspicion, I suggested having a bit of relaxation, so why not head up to Golden Bay? One of the few natural sandy beaches on the island and a good place to swim. Upon arriving I decided to try a pea pistazzi, a local small delicacy of mashed peas in flaky pastry that only cost 35c and was ok. Glyn are some meat in bread. After taking some cat photos, we headed down to the sea which was about as warm as this morning's shower (we had no hot water). The sun decided now was a good time to get hiding behind the clouds and the wind picked up, so we didn't stay there for too long. But we lasted longer than Glyn predicted!

My next suggestion was Sweethaven, an entire town built for the live film 'Popeye', starring Robin Williams during the 80's. Now a small theme park full of Popeye characters with good reviews on Trip Advisor. It was closing at this point but we'd only gone to take photos. I was impressed by the amount of buildings and their quaint style.

The evening was drawing on and I'd not eaten much today let alone had an ice cream, so we stopped at Mellieha, a quiet tourist town that had retained a bit of a local feel. First off I found a whole bunch of cats in a field by the road. An old man stopped to tell me that it was worth coming back at 7pm as a lady came every day to feed around 12 of them and then I should return at 9pm as hedgehogs would arrive to eat the left over food. Fat chance that I could never talk Glyn into waiting for this :-( But at least I got some really good tiramisu ice cream and Glyn had lion bar flavour.

The sun was going to set soon so we googled best places for sunset photos and the nearby Red Tower was recommended. However we got there too early and had our fill long before the sun set so we headed to Marla Ridge - the 'wildest part of Malta' Glyn had excitedly read. It is fairly secluded, being a small lump sticking out of the northwest end of Malta. We drove to one end (Armier Bay) that had a white tower, tiny beach, a few buildings, caravan community and skip cats wandering into the road. Then to the other end (Paradise Bay) that had a ferry to Gozo and parking for divers. The sunset was a bit poor but nonetheless we set up tripods in attempts to take award winning shots until it started to get dark. We won't be winning any awards.

On the way back we stopped in Mellieja again to take night photos of light reflections on the water. I'm sure the photos will be amazing... hmmmm. We stopped at a shop where an English lady tried to explain the no handles on Maltese carrier bags issue - it makes them cheaper to make and thus should be free. So we were ripped off 15c yesterday! Oh the shade of it all!!

There are a lot of English people working and living here, we've come across quite a lot. And whilst the Maltese have their elections soon, I guess the British here are more worried about the upcoming elections back home and when they will all be sent back to Britain assuming the Tories win. I do feel for these people as Malta seems a lovely place to make your home, despite the bad driving and bumpy roads! Driving back home in the dark was not much fun though.

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Photos

Red Tower
Malta

Sunset at Armier Bay
Malta