A Travel Tale from Malta

The small archipelago consists of three islands and nestles around 90 miles south of Sicily – a cultural bridge between Europe and North Africa . The main island of Malta is encircled by sandy beaches and rocky shores and is guarded in the East by the beautifully preserved 16 th Century fortress Capital of Valletta. Near Valletta , stylish Sliema provides a playground for shoppers and pub-goers. A little inland the Citadel of Mdina stands sentinel over the island as one of the finest remaining examples of a Medieval Walled City in Europe .

A short ferry ride West brings you to the Island of Gozo , where a far more traditional, agrarian landscape awaits. The two main islands are serviced by a charming fleet of yellow buses, and all areas are easily accessible.

Saint Paul himself brought the Maltese their religion while shipwrecked there in 60AD. The Arabs brought them their language. And the British brought them their government and their phone boxes. This means you can buy mushy peas with your pizzas and just when you think things couldn't get any more Mediterranean, boys will be playing cricket in the street. Malta remains a member of the Commonwealth and was the only English speaking addition in the recent European Union expansion.

Malta lays claim to having twice saved Western Civilisation - first when a handful of the Knights of the Order of St John held out against Suleiman the Magnificent's massive Turkish invasion fleet, bent on the conquest of Italy; and again when the Islanders refused to surrender to massive bombardment by the Italians and Nazis during World War Two - so saving the supply route to the Allies in North Africa and the Mediterranean. So great was the Islanders' sacrifice that the King bestowed the George Cross on the entire population for their role in surviving the Siege.

They even say the Cold War ended at a Summit in Malta in 1989. “ Europe must breath with both its lungs”, implored the Pope at a pre-Summit meeting with Gorbachev. The Soviet President then met with George Bush to sign an end to hostilities and set the stage for the collapse of the Berlin Wall.

So rich a history in so small and sun-drenched a space allows for a remarkably diverse holiday: meandering in the sun, singing at the pub, visiting beaches, cathedrals, saints' cells, pirate palaces and gallant Knight citadels. The little island nation that three times breathed the kiss of life into the European Continent will still today breathe a breath of fresh air into the lungs of the modern European Explorer.

Air Malta and British Airways are the main carriers for the three-hour flight to Malta from Britain . Malta can also serve as a pleasant staging post for journeys further south, with easy access to Libya and Tunisia . Accommodation is plentiful and relatively inexpensive, particularly in the off-season.