We said good-bye to our wonderful ship, Artemis, and its fantastic crew. Our noses were a little out of joint at the idea that someone else would be occupying our cozy staterooms later that day. We took the bus to Rabat, a combination of a modern city with tiny streets from years past. Our guide knocked on a door of a well-kept house and a man came to the door to show us religious articles he had made using plaster of paris. He offered one to each of us and also showed us his pets (birds and cat). Our guide said he had limited abilities but, as an artist, he did amazingly well. It was certainly kind of him to welcome us and to offer us gifts.
We then walked to the walled city of Mdina and entered through a gate above a grassy area that was previously the moat (never filled with water!). We spotted a group of young people gathered on the steps to a church. They were dancers from all over the world getting ready for a filming. We then walked on top of the city walls for another spectacular view. Even though we were in the middle of the country, one could see the sea. What a tiny country! In 2020 Malta’s population was a little over 525,000.
We ate at a local restaurant and then headed for our hotel in Sliema. Francine took us on a quick neighborhood walking tour. We all wanted to find quaint delicious restaurants for our last dinner on our own. Francine said we would probably end up eating in that hotel. As usual she was right. We did eat at that restaurant and had a wonderful dinner. We then took the elevator to the top of the hotel and enjoyed the night city skyline.
