Valetta at night

Even though I’ve only been back from Malta for about three months, there’s no place that I miss more than this superbissima, or most proud city. My favorite place on this beautiful earth used to be Greece. Greece was bumped to the status of second place favorite after I landed in Valetta, Malta one day last January. This sunny city has more history and culture packed into in one place than I’ve seen anywhere else. Instead of going straight to my hotel room, I immediately went down in to the old part of Valetta. The sights, the sounds, the smells, the filigree silver hanging in stores overwhelmed my senses. I immediately knew that I wanted to see, taste, and buy it all!

Malta has some of the oldest megalithic temples in the world. The most amazing place in all of Malta is the Hal Safliei Hypogeum. Where else in the world can you wander a five-thousand year old chamber decorated with red ochre cave art and acoustically tuned so that the resonance of the right voice can induce a trance.

The city though, can provoke as much astonishment as that ancient chamber in the Hypogeum. Waiting around every corner of the old city is an ancient wall, a unique store, or an tiny family restaurant tucked away in the most unlikely place. Everything that I experienced in Malta is unique. Even after a day of sightseeing, excitement won out over fatigue and I went out to wander the city at night. I stumbled upon the view above quite by accident. I was actually looking for a cathedral but ended up at the waterfront after making a wrong turn. One look out across the bay and I never wanted to leave that most proud city in Malta.