Valletta

We went to Valletta on Thursday. The day started with a chuckle as we walked out of our room. We were almost knocked over by a British mother who was chasing her son down the hallway. I would guess that he was approximately 18 months old and was wearing only a t-shirt, which he held up as he was running. His mother called after him, "Come here right now! And put your shirt down! No one wants to see your schmeckle!!" Unfortunately, we were not equipped with our camera at the time, so no photos of a "schmeckle" will be posted.

Valletta, the capital of Malta, is one of three fortified cities in this area. After the first great siege (an attack by the Turks in 1565), Francesco Laparelli was sent to Malta by Pope Pius IV to advise on the building of a new city because, although beaten, it was the general concurrence by all that the Turks would return. The construction started in 1566 and was completed five years later.

Today, Valletta is Malta's richest repository of art, architecture, history, and culture. At first sight of the walls around Valletta, you can practically see the ships in the bay and the cannons firing. Once inside its massive walls, the city reminded me a bit of Paris.

We spent a total of about 5 hours walking around the city and enjoying some of the sights. We started with the Museum of Archeology in which we were educated on the vast history of the island and its inhabitants. From there we went to St. John's Co-Cathedral.

The Knights of St. John combined the careers of monk and soldier and were responsible for most of Valletta's churches. The simple, sober facade of St. John's gives no hint of its lavish interior. It was built as the conventual church of the Order, and the Knights spent enormous sums of money embellishing the various chapels of their langues. Almost every last inch of the walls, vault and chapels is painted, gilded, or carved. The pavimento (floor paving) consists of numerous multi-covered marble tombstones, bearing - along with carvings of skeletons and symbols of death - the names and escutcheons of past members of the Order.

The Cathedral was built between 1572 and 1581. The interior was designed nearly a century later by the prolific Italian artist Mattia Preti who transformed the original austere interior into a glowing showpiece of Baroque art.

The most impressive work housed in the Cathedral is that of Michelangelo Merisi, who was known as Caravaggio, after the town near Milan where he was born in 1573. One of his most famous paintings, "The Beheading of John the Baptist," is housed here. To say that this painting is breathtaking would be an understatement. Caravaggio is known for his development of the use of chiaroscuro (light and shade). No photos were allowed to be taken of this painting, but if you are curious, you can see it at http://www.phespirit.info/pictures/caravaggio/p075.htm.

From the Cathedral, we went to see a show called the "Malta Experience" that basically outlined the entire 10,000 year history of this tiny island. It is absolutely incredible what it has been through.

Overall, the city was beautiful, but the day was long and hot. We took public transportation there and back, which was a bargain at LM .40c each way for the two of us. That is equivalent to about $1.25 as opposed to about $18 for a taxi each way. The buses were not bad, actually. They were similar to what we have in Seattle.