We don’t seem to be much in the mood for being tourists at the moment. We’ll certainly be more interested in doing things in Catania, Florence, and Venice. Right now we’re resting up and just enjoying being in our flat and gazing out at St. Julian’s Bay. That being said, I wanted to go into Valletta and wander around a bit. Valletta was designated a European Capital of Culture for 2018 and there were several improvement projects over the past 2 years in preparation for this. European Capital of Culture is a designation bestowed by the European Union and the locations plan lots of cultural events to attract tourists. I had been reading in the Times of Malta that many of the art installations around the city have been panned and not well-received. But one of the fantastic projects was the restoration of the Triton Fountain located just outside the city gate, and I wanted to see it.
We got on the bus and used our tallinja cards, which we had purchased in 2016. Before leaving the airport we had topped up our cards, meaning loading more funds into each. All you have to do is tap your card on a reader on the bus and you’ve paid your fare. And as ever, the bus was crowded. At each stop, the driver yells “move back please” and more people jam in. Eventually, riders are packed in like sardines and the bus doesn’t make anymore stops, much to the raised fists angst of the people waiting at the bus stops.
The whole area around the Triton Fountain, which was the bus terminus, had been cleaned up and improved. The fountain itself is really beautiful. It wasn’t a fountain in 2016, just rusting statuary with garbage collected in its pool. The fountain isn’t that old, and is identified as one of Malta’s most important Modernist works. It was created in the 1950s. The 3 Triton figures are bronze and the base and lower fountain are covered in travertine slabs. It was really glistening in the sun.

I don’t think we’ll see the fountain at night this week, but apparently it is illuminated in blue lights. Maybe when we return to Sliema in late October we’ll go into Valletta at night to see the fountain.
Valletta was filled with tourists, as usual. There was one cruise ship in port today. The entrance gate area had been refurbished and a new shopping area and outdoor food court area (not surprisingly, Burger King) was just inside the gate. The building above the newer part at street level had been refurbished. I love Maltese balconies!
When you see a Maltese balcony that is rounded around a corner, those are the oldest and probably were constructed when the Knights of Malta ruled.
On our way over to Barrakka Gardens we noted that the Church of Our Lady of Victories was open. This was the original church of the Knights, the first building built in Valletta after the Great Siege fought in 1565, and was used until St. John’s Co-Cathedral was built, so this little church was constructed in 1566.
Walking by the Auberge de Castille, where the prime minister and his administration works, I noted the pride flag flying. Always nice to see this on government buildings.

I think I mentioned that it has been hot in Malta, unseasonably so. We’re finding it difficult to be out walking in the heat. Once we got to Barrakka Gardens, naturally we found that all the benches in the shade were taken. And other than a few shade trees around a fountain, at a drink kiosk, and on the shady side of the archway, everything else is in full sun.
Although hot, I just had to take in the view over the Grand Harbor and the Three Cities, Cospicua, Senglea, and Vittoriosa. The view is truly magnificent!

We strolled over to the Kantina restaurant for a bite of lunch, however, they weren’t serving their full menu because of a computer failure. That was disappointing, but we managed to find something to our liking. Mostly we just wanted to sit in the shade and have a cold beverage.
The other thing I wanted to see in Valletta was the makeshift memorial to Daphne Caruana-Galizia, the Maltese journalist who was murdered in a car bombing last October. The government is taking a lot of heat for her murder. The memorial goes up, then the government removes it and later the same day, it goes up again. I have followed this case in the Times of Malta. Her death made world news. Her journalistic forte was exposing corruption, especially in government. Her husband, Peter, is the lawyer who manages Christine’s family’s properties in Malta, so we have a connection to all of this.

We then wandered our way down to the ferry for the short ride back to Sliema. The streets are so interesting, often steep, with very narrow sidewalks.
The Sliema ferry is a 10-minute ride across Marsamxett Harbor, but it offers some very spectacular views of Valletta, Fort Manoel, and Sliema.

Again, a sit down and a cool drink were in order once back in Sliema so we went to the cafe in Marks and Spencer. Unfortunately, not cool at all in the cafe, but from their outside balcony there is a wonderful view across Marsamxett Harbor.
Once revived by a little repast and beverage, our next task was to visit Christine’s mother’s cousin who we visited in 2016. By chance, we arrived on her 94th birthday in 2016. At that time, Mary Caruana was quite full of pep, although very, very hard of hearing. Shortly before we came to Malta this trip, Christine had communicated with a couple who we met in 2016. Doris is rather like a daughter to Mary and visits regularly. We learned from Doris and her husband Joe that Mary was still alive. She had been moved from the Mount Carmel hospital geriatric unit to a nursing home in Sliema, Casa Marija. We located the facility and then went in to see Mary. Unfortunately, Mary is essentially deaf and not able to see very well. We were unable to communicate with her and she could not see any of the photos we had brought or the note Christine had written about who she was. A caregiver attempted to help us communicate with her, but Mary was not able to understand. Doris had said that Mary has good days and bad days as the dementia takes over. We were really disappointed to not be able to connect with Mary and it was sad to see her in a deteriorating condition. We’re hoping that when we’re back next month that we can ask Doris to go with us to try again and make a connection.

We then walked back to the flat and stayed in for the evening, enjoying a light supper out on our little balcony and watching the comings and goings. It’s funny, but the street noise doesn’t bother me nearly as much as it did in 2016. It’s just nice to be able to gaze out on the bay and watch the boats and see the lights around St. Julian’s Bay.
I am so glad that you are having a good time!! Makes me want to visit Malta afterall.