Bongu! Malta is one of those European destinations that you go to for its beauty and weather. Unfortunately, the time of the year we went, it was not as warm (says someone living in Chicago, where it was 25 degrees at the time). As it turns out, it was also Carnival at the time of our visit, so it was sure to be an eventful vacay.
Tired from the travel on Thursday, we decided to pick up the trip on Friday. There were no Ubers, so we had to hail taxis, which was turning out to be a super expensive mode of transportation. It was 20 euros form the airport to the hotel, 40 euros roundtrip from the hotel to Valletta, and an estimated 75 euros roundtrip to Gozo, a neighboring island we planned to go to during our trip. By the end of the day, we decided we needed another option or we would be out hundreds on transportation alone.
Friday morning we went to Valletta, the capital city, to scope the area and enjoy the views. One striking thing about Valletta and Gozo is that all of the buildings use this beautiful stone, giving the island a very consistent look. Gozo has more of a landscaped rural feel, whereas Valletta feels like a capital city. We saw semblances of carnival gearing up, which would be in the form of a parade over the next few days. Saturday we went to Gozo and hit lots of viewpoint stops. It reminded me of the Golden Circle drive I did in Iceland. We saw the Salt Pans, Azure Window, Ramla Bay, Ta’ Ċenċ Cliffs, and Wied il-Għasri. The Salt Pans were my favorite stop – the waves were intense, and the grooves were perfectly carved. Sunday we went back to the city to see the biggest parade of the Carnival weekend. It’s safe to say that the Carnival I was expecting is not the Carnival I received. I have only been to the Caribbean festivals with colorful, extravagant, scanty but grandiose costumes, whereas Carnival here seemed to be a costume free-for-all and catered to the kids. Nevertheless, it was a good, fun time.
I have to go back to Malta when I can enjoy the weather it is known for!
All photos taken with Nikon D5100.
Jenai M. Davis 