When my sister Shirley suggested we spend six days in Malta, I thought Yes! Great idea! But then I thought – what a lot of airfare for such a short trip. Perhaps I should stretch it out a bit… you know, reduce the airfare per day. Always looking to be economical, ha ha!

I looked for a tour with Road Scholar, my go-to tour company, and found an interesting sounding whirlwind tour of Switzerland. It didn’t quite match up with the end of the Malta leg, so I am filling in the time with a few days in Salzburg, Austria. I’ve never been to Malta, Austria or Switzerland. I’m looking very forward to this trip.

Malta is 60 miles from Sicily and just over 300 miles from North Africa, a little speck in the vast Mediterranean Sea. It has a long history of being conquered by various peoples and was in fact the most bombed country in World War II because of its strategic location amid maritime supply lanes. I read a compelling book by James Holland about Malta’s World War II experience and watched a very good historical video on YouTube if you’re interested.

I also found a four-part series called “Malta: Jewel of the Mediterranean” on Amazon Prime. The videography is stunning.

I hope you’ll travel along with me as I take 11 trains, 5 flights and 4 boat rides, stay in 8 hotels with 3 different electrical sockets, use 2 currencies and spend one delightful Maltese week with one cherished sister.

Narawkom wara minn Malta!