Coffee Culture and Commerce!

Time to venture further north on this amazing island. We took the 8.30am ferry to Valletta

Up in the lift (the steel and glass tower in picture below) from the ferry to barracca gardens in Valletta

And went in search of the monument commemorating all the commonwealth airmen who never made it back from fighting in the Mediterranean in the 2nd world war. New Zealanders included.

Just outside the gates of Valletta – their names are engraved forever – surrounded by beautiful gardens

The old bus terminal at the entrance to the Valletta gate has moved further out and in its place is a new statue with fountainand pedestrian area.

We had then arranged to meet our Maltese friend, Charles, at the Barracca gardens cafe at 10am for our morning coffee and tri annual catch up. Great coffee and cool green gardens

After which a day exploring Valletta was planned – so at midday we set off and found the market place – then food. Trudi and Russell opting for the traditional ftira sandwich of tuna and salad (this being half the size of a large pizza and about 3 inches high) Trudi gasped at the sight of her enormous lunch and the waiter looked perturbed until Sue explained she was shocked at the size only! A short time later another guest (rather large chap) who was leaving, stopped at our table and said to Trudi ‘You not only get a suntan in Malta, you get FAT!” It was at this point, when all were sated that Russell decided to leave the girls, as he realised the rest of the day was going to be dedicated to retail therapy!!!

The main street of Valletta was awash with tourists off the cruise ship – walking in snake lines behind their guides and extremely busy the further down we got

Choosing the path less travelled Trudi and Sue found many interesting shops on the side streets (the odd purchase here and there) until reaching almost the bottom, footsore and very hot, and rested in the shade of the Palace of the grand Masters

Then proceeded to battle the throngs up the Main Street narrowly avoiding being coerced into a beauty shop who promised to sort out Sues wrinkles! Seriously too late!

The evening nearing and in desperate need of a cool drink, with half an hour to kill before the next ferry from Valletta to Bormla, what better to do than sit at the top of the barracca lift and enjoy a nice cold beer!

Catching the 4.45pm boat we arranged to meet Russell in Senglea for a drink and bite to eat before heading home.

Beautiful (and huge) Caesar salads all round

Thursday night is housie night on the waterfront and all the women were out to play ! This fabulous little truck arrived stacked with lollies to snack on for the housie players, who could resist…actually we did but loved the truck!

Housie WAS on the agenda for us today but, as we hadn’t been back home for 12 hours, a shower and quiet time was looking pretty inviting.

Today we have delved into history, caught up with old friends, shopped till we dropped and enjoyed a great meal that we didn’t have to cook! Goodnight Kiwis!