

Malta
Mdina & Valletta
Valletta was very nearly a big hit with me.
As I wandered home at dusk along one of its lofty avenues, a substantial piece of 16th century palazzo smashed to the ground a couple of feet behind me, emitting a billowing cloud of plaster and a head-turning crash.

Swathes of galleriji
Much as I like to amble, just one step slower and it’s my head that would’ve been spinning.
I can’t verify that the fragment in question was in fact 16th century, but my palazzo just around the corner was 17th century and marginally less crumbly, so it’s a reasonable guess.
Especially as most of Valletta was constructed in fifteen years following the Great Siege of 1565. Great Knight, Jean de la Valette, after whom the city is named, commissioned this prolific building spree partly to celebrate Valletta’s successful defence against the Ottomans, and partly to protect against further assaults.
That’s the trouble with having a natural harbour strategically positioned at the heart of the Mediterranean, equidistant from Europe and Africa.
The impressive fortifications have done their job admirably. Valletta’s Baroque splendour has survived the onslaught of time and further confrontations. Well, with the exception of that one particular plaster fragment.
As it turns out, of Valletta's many confrontations, the so-called Great Siege was a walk in the park compared to WWII. Relentlessly blockaded for two years, Valletta once again heroically pulled through, earning the entire city the George Cross for bravery. Today, wherever you go, the place sports symbols of fortitude, magnitude and gratitude.
I’m no war buff, but it’s hard not to swallow hard when you see the site of it all for yourself.
On a brighter note, Valletta enjoys the triple bill of being Europe’s southernmost, smallest and sunniest capital. Its grid layout squashes onto a peninsula barely five minutes’ walk across. The avenues undulate sharply with the terrain, running down to Fort St Elmo at the point.
Towering palazzos, soaring churches and grand public buildings jostle for space, with over 300 buildings of architectural note sharing just half a square kilometre.

The British Empire lives on
The result is a kind of scaled-down Renaissance Manhattan, with perhaps a hint of San Francisco. Strolling around gives you neck ache from looking up and sore calves from walking down. But it’s worth it.

Not San Fran
In deepest October, sunshine saturated the upper cornices and spires, hitting street level in sharp slivers. The limestone glowed honey gold or sulked in shady browns and greys, depending on whether or not it was receiving its daily hit of vitamin D.
Complementing the crumbling stone are painted doors, in scale with their noble buildings, with a touch of time-worn flakiness. Together, this offers plenty of prime patina for fans of the ‘immaculately imperfect’ genre (like me) to admire.
Into this recipe, Valletta throws its own unique ingredient; gallarija. These ornate, enclosed, wooden balconies are seemingly thrown onto any and every building with aspirations of grandeur. Regarded as traditional Maltese, they were in fact borrowed from Islamic muxrabija, and began being added to Valletta’s palazzos as an afterthought from the end of the 17th century.
The original function of these embellishments is much disputed. They afforded the resident the luxury of being outside, yet hidden from the sun and, perhaps more importantly, the street below. You can just imagine the speculation.
Colour matched to their front doors and lining the long avenues, swathes of gallariji congregate to create a harmony of percussion, sharp hits of colour against the honeyed limestone.
Mostly what they created for me though was a headache, artistically speaking. All those fiddly details and perspectives to capture and line up.
Don’t get me wrong, headaches like these are what I travel for. And I was often to be seen on street corners doing that thing that makes artists look really pretentious; holding up a paintbrush to measure, calibrate and orientate.
Perspective is certainly vital to get the best views of Valletta. Despite (or more accurately because of) the sheer density of impressive architecture crammed onto the peninsula, some of Valletta’s best perspectives aren’t actually in Valletta. The views of it, from across the harbour show off Valletta at its most majestic, aesthetic and panoramic.
So, unusually for me, I actually recommend briefly leaving the centre and crossing the harbour to take it all in.

Where the crowds aren't is where the charm is
In any case, the centre of Valletta’s grid is disappointingly city centre-ish. There’s a Rolex boutique. Enough said.
There’s more joy to be had exploring the grid’s outer avenues. Where the crowds and shops aren’t is where the charm is.

St. Pauls pokes into most views
Either way, you should head to central Valletta to eat. Talk about swallowing hard, this place certainly makes you swallow happy. Nowhere on Earth have I encountered such density of Michelin listed and starred eateries. So much so, I suspect Michelin may operate a different modus operandi on Malta, compared to the rest of the planet. I've marked your card below. Suffice to say I rarely chose my own supper, relying instead on spoily sit-back-and-savour tasting menus.
Outside of Michelin world, Maltese cuisine tends towards hearty, with lots of stews, soups, pies and rabbit, alongside abundant seafood. Think Tuscan with, bizarrely, the odd Egyptian spice or North African embellishment.
That, by the way, is exactly how the language sounds. Mostly familiar intonation, but with the odd guttural inflection thrown in, to catch you off guard. Fret not, English is widely spoken. Italian, notably, not so much. There's a lot about politics and cultural identity lurking in that observation. (Not least, Italy's role in WWII).
I’ve already hinted at a few slight catches with Valletta. On its own, it would just about make my list, but its place in my select two dozen is secure thanks to nearby gem, Mdina.

A few of Valletta's catches
Small and just half an hour from the city, Mdina has ‘day trip’ written all over it. But its enchanting calm and sublime wanderability make it a destination worth visiting in its own right and certainly one to linger in.
The clue lies in its many names.
Mdina obviously shares its derivation with the Arabic ‘medina’, or madīnah. It’s also known as Città Vecchia or Città Notabile; ‘old’ and ‘noble’ city, as well as 'The Silent City'.
We’re talking about a fortified town with a population of just 250, on the site of an early capital established by the invading Aghlabids (Arab conquerors from around 870). No longer of strategic or political significance, it has preserved its poise and nobility, passing its palaces and grand houses down strictly through Maltese aristocratic families.
‘Silent’ is of course an overclaim, but there are no cars, bars or bazars, and a welcome lack of tack compared to Valletta. Only clopping horse hooves and a slow trickle of snap-happy visitors disturb the tranquillity.

Shadow play
As I wandered randomly around its warren of lanes, I almost expected to hear the call to prayer drift above the hush. No such luck, but you will hear bells reminding you periodically that time has not in fact stood still.

Precisely the right amount of wonky
While the late summer sun in Valletta hits the streets in extended slivers, here it pierces the shadows in narrow shards, highlighting texture, framing features and casting sharp silhouettes.
As a photographer, you may find yourself in a bit of a spin, not sure how best to capture the sparsity, serenity and stately beauty. I found myself overdosing on my favourite photographic subjects, textures and shadows.
Of course I did manage to find my trusty motif to paint; a wonky and wizened tree in front of a battered old door. You couldn’t have coaxed it to grow at a more atmospheric angle if you’d tried!
Like many dally-worthy places, the key to Mdina is to take a turn off the main thoroughfare, and follow your feelings from there. You could check the map, but you'll soon circle back to somewhere you know anyway. And where's the fun in knowing exactly where you are?
When you finally find the battlements, you’re treated to the widest of wide-angle views of virtually the whole island. Somewhat flat and featureless, but impressive all the same.
You’ll probably find you’ve ‘done’ Mdina in an afternoon, but it’s not done with you. The atmosphere comes to life as the tourist traffic dies off. As the day ends, you’ll have the place to yourself, bar the 250 residents and a few other smarty pants who’ve chosen to stay over. You experience an ethereal sense of being marooned in history, cocooned in stillness, floating between continents.
Better still, watching dawn break and slowly warm the rooftops is simply the best breakfast you’ll ever have. (That too is a small overclaim, as you’ll gather from reading some of my other pieces, notably the similarly named Modica.)
Either way, the Silent City at its most silent is truly an experience to savour.

Red shard





A Few Links and Practicalities
(Just sharing the love. I absolutely don’t get paid for these.)
Mdina
For all hardly anyone lives in Mdina, you can stay there.
Palazzo Bifora www.palazzobifora.com
Right in the thick of it, with a cool rooftop for dining, breakfasting and plunge pooling.
Blue Mdina Door (The Bastion)
www.chateaurieutort.cloudbeds.com
The blue door itself is something of a tourist photo opp. For no real reason other than its blueness. Behind it lies this terrific apartment (sleeps 5) with a pool and terrace gazing out over the rest of Malta.
The Xara Palace www.xarapalace.com.mt
Although a bit trad, some of the suites here are epic.
Busses to Mdina are super easy and cheap. They go from the bus station just outside Valletta’s gates. Bus no. 51.
Valletta
My AirBnb was great, but maybe not great enough to warrant listing here.
These are some boutique hotels that caught my eye while I was there, although I can’t vouch for them; Casa Ellul, 66 Saint Paul’s, The Saint John, Iniala Harbour House, Rosselli
Risette www.risette.com.mt
This was my stand-out meal. Upscale dining in boutiquey hotel Casa Ellul. Go for the tasting menu if you can stretch to it. If I’ve tasted better, I certainly don’t remember.
Grain street www.grain.mt
Fine dining at the Rosselli hotel. Very fine indeed. They also have a cool roof terrace cocktail bar thing going on.
Legligin www.legliginmalta.com
This place gets a lot of likes. Traditional Maltese food with a set menu setup. Sit down, start sipping and they just keep serving. Top value more than top quality.
Ion Harbour by Simon Rogan
Serious Michelin 2 star dining. Worth every cent, although it will set you back a lot of them.
Sotto Pinsa Romana Valletta
www.zeroseimalta.com/stores/sotto-pizzeria
Best pizza on the peninsula. Full disclosure, the pizzas are rectangular, in the ‘pizza al taglio’ style. They still taste all round great though.

























Don’t miss;
You used to be able to get a good view of Valletta from St. Elmo Breakwater at the tip of the peninsula, but the bridge is rusty and closed. Worth double checking though and you can, in any case, get as far as the bridge.
Otherwise, your vantage points are from Sliema (take the Valletta – Sliema ferry), or from Fort St. Angelo (take the Valletta – Cospicua ferry).
www.publictransport.com.mt/en/vallettaferry
In any case, the ferries are an easy way of getting a fresh harbour perspective.
Rabbit. Kind of hard to avoid, although there are fishy and veggie alternatives aplenty
Rabat. If you're lingering in Mdina, next door Rabat is more than worth a wander too.