A Day exploring Valletta, Malta
We are in Malta for a couple of weeks and staying in a Valletta Suite at the Phoenicia Hotel in Valletta. My power walk this morning was similar to yesterday’s in that I traced the outskirts of walled city of the Knights. It was invigorating, pleasant and wonderfully care-free.
Power walk outside Valletta’s Fortifications
For this morning’s power walk I went outside perimeter of Valletta city. I started out from the hotel and took the Great Siege Road. Along the way I passed the Excelsior Hotel, Marsamxett Harbour, Fort Elmo, National War Museum, The Malta Experience, Lower Barrakka Gardens, War Siege Memorial, up the Lascaris War Rooms steps, into the Triton Fountain area and back to the hotel. It took me about an hour. It was a wonderfully exploring walk as I traced the foreshores below the fortifications and being the only one about, I imagined the valiant Maltese and Knights fighting so courageously during the Great Siege.
Malta Immigration Office
After breakfast, we went to Valletta’s Post Office to post the first of many post cards that Nanna will send to the grandkids (on this trip anyway) and naturally, she chatted with the clerk, who in turn asked many questions about Australia. Task completed, we went looking for “Malta Immigration Office” so as to get a copy of George’s original passport and on finding it, were told that we’d have to go to the archives at Mdina (George is/was Nanna’s dad). Perhaps a task for when we return in May. Along the way we espied the King of Carnival, so we hastened away, giving him a wide berth as we’re on a schedule today!
St Ursula Street, Valletta
So, we decided to explore St Ursula Street…. What a gem. In parts, the street is pedestrian only and is beautifully and cleverly decorated for Easter. We saw many little bushes and small trees with Easter eggs dangling from the branches…. This is something we could incorporate back home! Later along this street we came to the British Hotel and attached to the hotel is the Panorama Restaurant. The view looked very enticing from the street so we ventured inside and were presented with a 180-degree vista of Grand Harbour that simply blew our minds away!!! So, with lunch being only 3 hours away😊, we booked a lunch table and hoped we’d be seated somewhere to the front and overlooking the Harbour…. WOW
Bibliotheca, Valletta
From the British Hotel we moved to the Bibliotheca (also known as the National Library of Malta). Whilst it is imposing and grand (for Malta), it was disappointing as there were hardly any English translations and for the most part, the establishment is geared towards researchers. It certainly doesn’t cater for the tourist…. Perhaps that’s why entry is free!! This library was founded by Grand Master Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc in 1776 out of the collections of the Knight Louis Guérin de Tencin. It has been a legal deposit library since 1925, and it has the largest collection of Melitensia along with that of the University of Malta. The library also contains the archives of the Order of St. John (Knights of Malta)
Republic Street, Valletta
Exiting the library, we went looking for an optometrist to repair my reading glasses. Nanna knows that there’s one in Republic Street but not sure where, so we asked this elderly, well-dressed gentleman who was shuffling along using a walking stick, for guidance…. and he was wearing glasses too! His face lit up and quickened his pace to help us first by asking two shop assistants where the optometrist was and then sadly, he forgot what he was asking for!!😊
We did manage to discover that it was in the opposite direction and so we turned around and having walked no more than 5 meters, this other gentleman sidles up to us, introduced himself as the owner of the adjacent jewellery shop and told us that he couldn’t help overhearing that we were looking for the optometrist and promptly gave us clear directions where to go…. and he was right😊…. After all these years of coming to Malta, I still don’t know if the Maltese are nosy and always minding other people’s business or they are genuinely helpful or a combination of both…. irrespective, it was simply lovely😊…. and got my glasses fixed for 2 euros!
Panorama Restaurant, Valletta
Time for lunch and to drink in the views from the Panorama Restaurant (no website but on Facebook). It’s a magnificent spring sunny day. We ordered a seafood lunch (perfectly prepared and presented) with an exceptional local chardonnay (Meridiana Isis) and wiled the next 2-3 hours away in complete bliss. The view of the Grand Harbour, the colour of the sea, the slowly moving traffic on the water and the people enjoying the day in the street below us, Nanna by my side and we’re holding hands…. it was almost overwhelming and, in my mind, I dared to think that “heaven has just been reinvented!”
Our waiter Michael (elderly, jovial and clearly, a refined gentleman) was incredibly accommodating, a fountain of information around the restaurant’s wines & food and the surrounding vista, discrete when the occasion called for it and importantly, he placed us on a table with unobstructed views of the Grand Harbour. This restaurant has to be one of the best eating places we’ve ever been to and is a MUST to visit whenever one is in Valletta….for sure we will be revisiting anytime we’re in Valletta for a stay….
Giannini Ristorante, Valletta
This evening we were dinner guests of Joseph Grioli: a long-time and dear friend as well as a well-known Maltese business identity renowned not only for his business acumen and many successful business enterprises but equally for his direct involvement in a number of redevelopments which ensured restoration of Maltese heritage. Anyway, Joseph took us to Giannini Ristorante (no website but on Facebook) located on a rooftop overlooking Marsamxett Harbour. Fantastic uninterrupted view of this part of the harbour. We had a Sea Bass dinner which was superb and whilst I had some doubts as to whether we could eat more seafood after our earlier lunch, those doubts were quickly dispelled.
Over dinner we all got caught up on each other’s life over the past couple of years. Joseph is truly one of the “white hats” with an amazing life story. Nanna and I always look forward to catching up with him whenever we’re in Malta (unless he’s away to other parts of the world). Towards the end of the evening, Chef and owner of the ristorante, Aaron DiGiorgio came across and spent nearly an hour with us and we got to know him pretty well. He also has a remarkable story and he’s so passionate about his food journeys.
Sadly, the day came to an end but what memories we created…. What a wonderful and enjoyable day this has been! 😊…..RECOMMEND
