We decided to spend our last day taking the commuter ferry over to the three cities: Senglea, Vittoriosa and Cospicua.
We look directly at them from our patio.
Then we’ll work our way over to the opposite side of the bay to Sliema and St. Julians and come home from the opposite side on the other ferry.
We were going to go visit the island of Gozo, but after the long bus ride yesterday, and knowing that we then had to take a ferry AND then take other busses around that island, we thought perhaps that would be another trip.
So we had a slow morning. I took time to update my blog, Gail got photos on FaceBook, and we had a longb breakfast.
We took the Three Cities Ferry across and started exploring Vittoriosa. The harbor is filled with mere million dollar boats. The really big boats, boats that use millon dollar size boats as "fun craft" up on the back deck, are docked out at the end. One of which is named Living The Good Life.
I wonder if the owner ever uses the big boat; ever actually has time to "live the good life?"
We walked up a long staircase into narrow neighborhoods, peering through windows to glimpse richly furnished homes. We crossed over into Kalkara and back by mistake before finding the Main Gate Street past Vittoriosa Square and out to Fort St. Angelo. There is a cool Maltese Cross church tucked behind the massive St. Lawrence. It is pretty evident that Vittoriosa is dripping with euros.
We stopped down at the harbor for water and wine, before crossing over to the poorer Senglea. You enter through the wall; the whole peninsula was protected by the fortress. One Main Street leads from the gate to the Our Lady of Victories Cathedral and fortress at the tip; along the way you pass a couple churches and working squares. None of the glitz and glamour of Vittoriosa.
We caught the number one bus back to Valletta, and transferred to go to St. Julians.
We just randomly picked a place to get off in St. Julians, the Spinola bus stop where the water was boxed in a mini bay. We walked over to EAT Restaurant, where we snagged the happy hour specials: 50% off starters and drinks. Gail got white wine and Whitebait Fritters ( fried whitebait fish with coriander dressing) and I got a bottle of Blue Lable Beer with deep fried coconut prawns in sweet chili sauce.
Score!
So good I followed it up with duck pancakes, with spring onions, plum sauce and balsamic reduction drizzled on it.
I finished with chicken satay with peanut sauce, which was not as good as the others. Gail had a piña colada while she waited.
We spent the next several hours walking the waterfront from St. Julians to Sliema. Gail is happy as there is shopping along this area. There are “beaches” where people lay on the rocks, like in Croatia. We come upon a water polo game in a huge pool, built right on the side of the bay. High rise apartments line the shore, like a mini Miami.
We walked kilometer after kilometer, taking it all in, then caught the water ferry home.
After a shower, we ran right into the huge festivities and parade for Our Lady of Mount Carmel (see the post) before working our way through the crowd to split a pizza for dinner.