Cherry Coast Adventures: Malta, Part 2

We got up very early on the Friday before Christmas to head to the Venice airport. We parked in the garage on post and hitched a ride on the military shuttle, which was quite convenient. Since we were so early, our counter at the airport wasn't open yet and we spent a few minutes just hanging out. Check-in went smoothly and we had time to grab coffee (hot chocolate for me!) and a bite to eat as well as wander around all the shops. Our flight to Rome was just under an hour, and from there it was about an hour and a half to Malta.

Once we landed, Tony's luggage came out pretty quickly but mine never appeared. After waiting in line practically forever at the baggage counter, I was told it would be delivered the next day and the lady handed me a nice overnight kit. At that point, we were about two hours later than I thought, and I was worried our fancy-pants driver would have left us, but he was still waiting out front with my name on a sign, as promised. He had gotten concerned and called our hotel to make sure we didn't find alternate transportation, but in the end all was well. We hopped in his not-so-fancy car and headed out. The weather was sunny and clear and glorious and warm, and we enjoyed the drive - on the wrong side of the road - out to our hotel. We stayed at the Radisson on the West side of the island. On the way out, we picked our driver's brain for restaurant and sightseeing suggestions, and he also pointed out some neat landmarks. I will never forget rounding a bend and seeing our hotel for the first time. The Radisson is built into a hill on a bay, overlooking a beach and some more of the coastline, as well as one of the famous watchtowers scattered throughout Malta.

I left off the last post halfway through our hop-on/hop-off tour. I had to borrow a shirt and socks from Tony, and was wearing my black boots which are both stylish and comfortable. However, the next stop on our bus tour was the Blue Grotto caves; since it was so late in the afternoon we decided not to hire a boat but instead climb out on the cliffs for a better view. This means my boots were really not appropriate footwear for hiking; we may have been better served walking up the road to a scenic overlook, but it was really gorgeous. We followed a family with a few kids over the limestone non-path; I figured if the five-year old could do it, so could I. The Blue Grotto is a series of caverns on the South side of the island, and even though it was somewhat protected, it was a bit windy and choppy, so hiking was definitely more fun for me than a boat ride would have been. The water was really gorgeous and it looked like a great spot for scuba diving.