Valletta Malta

Valletta is the capital of Malta. It is a town built of limestone, a lovely pale stone that reflects the strong sunlight and so helps keep the buildings a bit cool. 

The streets are narrow, but straight, so it is easy to find your way around. We walk everywhere in the town, and twice we have caught the bus to the beach for a swim. The bus takes more than an hour.

We are with other swimmers now, also staying in our hotel, and they have just discovered a place to swim off some rocks very near here. 

We have visited the War Museum and the underground offices where war operations were controlled for the region. Eisenhower, Montgomery and Patton all worked there, preparing for the invasion of Sicily. Apparently Montgomery and Patton did not get on.

I can see why Malta remained so significant for my father all his life. It is small, beautiful, with a relaxed, slightly old- fashioned, way of life. It is an independent country, but has remained about as British as Australia. I imagine him in Valletta during time off, observing life here. I wish I had brought him back here to see how the country has recovered and rebuilt. He would have been amazed, but pleased.

Today we have visited a hypogea, or catacombs, underground caves where people who died 4-5000 years ago were buried. It was cool and dark, with rooms and cavities gouged out of the rock. We also visited a temple of that era.

Here are some photos of Valletta, and the suburb we visited. You can see how quiet it is at lunchtime. There is also a photo of a statue of big fat Queen Victoria. I include this because I have seen another photo of her surrounded by bomb damage to within a meter, and she sat stolidly on!