This is one kinda crazy place but I like it. I've always wanted to travel to Malta, not that I knew much about the place. I imagined one chunky island, partially or completely fortified with a big, high wall blocking marauding invaders. It always seemed a bit mysterious: an island nation that held a vitally strategic position in the middle of the Med. I have never ever met anyone from Malta and yet it is a fairly prosperous place that's been a part of the EU since 2004.Well, the main town, Valletta, is fortified and is surrounded by a seriously chunky wall. The history here is unbelievable. Being very close to Sicily, Tunisia and Turkey, everyone has had a shot a colonizing the place. The Phoenicians (Carthaginians) were here in 800BC and then, in AD60, St. Paul was shipwrecked here and tried to convert everyone to Christianity. The Arabs then pitched up. Then the Normans. In 1530, the Emperor of Spain gave the islands (there are two) to the Knights of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem after the Knights got turfed off of the island of Rhodes (1522). This Order consisted of junior nobility who weren't going to inherit any family land so they signed up to protect, shelter and care for Christian pilgrims. They wore the big Maltese cross on their armor and somehow became synonymous with "hospitallers". In 1536, the Ottoman (Turks) lay siege to Malta and three months of ferocious battles followed; the 700 knights and 8000 Maltese won. The Knights were proclaimed the saviours of Europe for stopping the Ottoman advance (into Sicily), got a little lazy and reverted to piracy in the Med. A bit later, Napoleon took over to counter the Brits until the Brits actually showed up. Malta became part of the British Empire in 1814, got bombed to bits by the Italians and Germans during WWII and finally gained independence in 1964 and became a republic in 1974.
Interestingly, and not to bore you to death with history here, Malta became one of the most bombed places ever. Both Italian and German aerial and naval attacks flattened a lot of Valletta. The nation was actually awarded the George Cross in 1942 for its part in resisting attack; the Cross is stitched into the top left corner of the Maltese flag. Other things tied to Malta during the war: George "Screwball" Beurling was a Canadian fighter pilot ace who flew from here; LCdr Malcolm Wanklyn was a Royal Navy submariner who won the Victoria Cross near Malta; and, HMS NEPTUNE sank after hitting mines near Libya - only one sailor out of 767 survived. Finally, Malta was used as a staging point for the Allied campaign in North Africa and for the invasion of Sicily in 1943.
Today, the main island is packed with European tourists, seeking a sun destination. The Brits go to Spain; the Spanish go to Malta. The main industries are tourism, English language schools and the construction of tourist resorts and English language schools. My first night was a roller coaster: all the Valletta hotels were full (despair) so I finally found the youth hostel in a nearby suburb (relief). But then the reception was closed so I planned to sleep on the rooftop patio (despair), but then I finally got a bed (relief) but then my noisy roommates kept waking me up (despair). Such is life. I spent a week exploring the island - always sunny and hot - but I never got to Gozo, the other island. Not exactly the most dignified name for an island. Swimming in the Med was fantastic, so was running on the seawall for miles and miles, and checking out the museums, old fort and some late night music festivals. The Maltese are an interesting bunch; they have their own language plus English but they're about as bilingual as your average Albertan. The guys are seriously machismo-ish (ala Italy). The national food is rabbit and the islands are as arid, dry and tree-less as your average desert. Fun, fun.
