Sailing with Moondance : Leaving Siracusa and arriving in Malta

Having found a suitable resting place for Moondance in a yacht yard near the canal - Ortiga Siracusa, we had a few days in the nearby marina (prompted by two days of bad weather) we moved from the town quay to the marina. The bad weather that was predicted happened. We were safely in a floating marina with waves crashing only a few metres from us.
Arrangements to haul Moondance were delayed by a critical two days and I was up at 6am on the day of haul out. Everything went well and it was over by 9.15. Tight scheduling as we had to get the bus to Catania at 11.00am to catch our flight to Malta. Consequently some of the winterising was left to the yard - putting on the cover and running freshwater through the engine.

The 30minute flight to Malta was uneventful Ryanair performed above expectations as we had arranged priority book in. Then came the bus trip from hell. One hour to travel a few kilometres from the airport to St Julians "bus terminus" The bus was overcrowded from the airport. We were separated from our bags and the bus picked up passengers during the journey. In the process I lost two jackets that I had as hand luggage to save weight. That decision obviously proved fatal. Still, not that big a deal but there is no lost property system in Malta. We were fortunate to have got off at the correct bus stop and were only 150m from the apartment. Not having clear instructions we engaged a taxi driver who had no idea where the address was and 20Euro and a few kilometres later we were dropped off near the apartment. What a circus.

Peter and Nikki were waiting for us, we had dinner and called it a day.

Since then we have been tourists in Malta. The public transport bus system requires intellect of Einstein proportions to understand. Most buses (but not all) go to Valletta transfer station where you get the bus to the required destination. Knowing the difficulty, the Malta Public Bus Company issues tickets valid for two hours. This is almost exactly the time needed to catch a bus and transfer to the required destination.

With Peters help we got a guided tour of the surrounding area and also accompanied to Mdina, the craft markets and the Mosta dome. All interesting tourist destinations. A lunchtime piano recital in St Francis of Assisi Church yesterday was part of our cultural visit to Malta.

Malta is a rock strategically in the middle of the Mediterranean sea. It has no other reason for existence that I am aware of. About 90 square miles, with each family owning an average of 3 cars = congestion. The locals do not favour motorcycles. Malta was a British strategic stronghold during WW2 and has many relics of that era. Driving on the left is strange when surrounded by a continent that drives on the right. There are many English and Irish style pubs. Everywhere is a building site with the skyline dotted with cranes. Apartments are being built and renovated everywhere. Lookout Auckland, or you could emulate Malta. Apartment city - seaviews are expensive. Developers own the air above the apartment, so can add on and up blocking views.
Malta is very Catholic, with 365 churches for a population of 425,000, so our visit here has been peppered with tours of Basilicas, Cathedrals, Churches and other religious sites. As you may be aware, Raewyn is a devout Catholic and I have no objection to viewing what really are amazing art works.

Tomorrow will see more touristy journeys starting back to Valetta to view St Pauls shipwreck museum among others. Apparently St Paul was shipwrecked here while being taken from Ephesus to stand trial in Rome.