Saint Julian's Things to Do

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From Spinola Bay we walked past the Balluta Bay. Now in November we saw lots of Maltese on a Sunday as well as retired British and other nationalities that enjoyed walking along the promenade of the coastline.

Coming from the Scotsman Pub down to the Spinola Bay, you will see the Spinola Palace (photo no. 1) which was built under the order of Bishop Fra Paola Raffaele Spinola in 1688 for the knights of the order.

In the Balluta Bay you will notice the small square (picture no. 2) which is a popular meeting place for the locals. In the background there is the huge Balluta building built in edwardian art nouveau style.

In photo no. 3 you will see the church Madonna tal-Karmnu in new gothic style. It belongs to the Carmelite monastery which marks the border to Sliema.

And finally in the 4th picture you see Malta's tallest building. Well, currently (in Nov. 2010) this is still the case but an even taller building is already under construction. In the back streets of this tall building you will find a good supermarket with an excellent selection.

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A day out away from the built up Valletta area. I had planned on taking the seaplane service, but the wind was wrong for landing at Mġarr so it was cancelled. I took the “express” 645 bus (€1.16 each way) from Sliema to the ferry at Ċirkewwa at the north west corner of the island. Took about 40 minutes from St Julian’s. The ferry cost €4.65 return, and takes about 30 minutes. A bus meets it to take you to the main town – Rabat/Victoria. Takes about 15 minutes and costs €0.47.

Unfortunately, no sooner was I off the bus in Rabat than I got a call from a client, which meant I had to just grab a sandwich and head straight back to my hotel to do some urgent work. Anyway, it all looked interesting enough on the Gozo side.

Ironically, the express 645 bus was one of the ancient specimens but the driver was a total maniac and sped through the towns at top speed to make up for the time he lost crawling up the hills. A bone shuddering trip in both directions (same bus, same driver).

Spinola Palace and it's surrounding gardens were built in 1688 by Fra Paolo Raffaele Spinola, Grand Prior of Lombardy.The palace was enlarged in 1733 through the efforts of Fra Giovanni Battista Spinola. During the French occupation of these islands in 1798, French troops were stationed in the palace and wrought havoc there. In fact it is thanks to them that the Order’s emblem atop the clock on the façade was mutilated. Nowadays, the palace is not opened for public but it's architecture could be admired from the gate in front of the gardens.

People might tell you that Malta does not have beaches.. which is not true, because there are several beaches. Mellieha Bay is said to be the longest and best of them. It is situated on the north-east coast of Malta and can be reached by car or local bus. We stayed in Paceville and took bus number 645. It takes about 45 minutes to get there. Mellieha Bay is a large sandy beach with clear and lovely water. But everyone wants to go to the beach so it was packed with locals and other tourists. Sunbeds and umbrellas can be rented, LM 5 for 2 beds and 1 umbrella. A bit expensive, but you do get a madrass! There are a few kiosks and shops along the beach, but it lacked good alternatives for eating.. Also, in the end, I practically had my head between some girls legs.. it was just way too crowded and busy. That said, we went on a local holiday during August - probably the worst time of the year! But it's nice to get away from the town and relax on the beach. It was excellent for swimming! And they have watersports as well.

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Captain Morgan is a company that organizes different boattrips around the island of Malta and Gozo. There are several different types of cruises/boats to choose from. Like the Catamaran 'Spirit of Malta' (offer trip around the island, stops at Blue Lagoon, free buffet of fish and seafood, and free bar + music) Fernandes (huge wooden sailboat with buffet, free wine (to the food), takes you to the blue lagoon and gozo), pirate-adventure for kids with treasure hunt, evening cruise with food and music, Comino-cruise with or without buffet that let you stay at the blue lagoon for several hours.. Initially we wanted to go with SPirit of Malta, but it was fully booked throughout our week. Therefore we chose Fernandes instead. This was the best and most memorable day of our holiday. We were picked up at our hotel by a minivan and driven to the Sliema Ferries where we went onboard. Fernandes was a really lovely old-fashioned wooden ship and we could choose whether to sit on benches or to sit on deck on mats. They make sure not to bring too many passengers on board, so it was never crowded. It was a bit of waves and windy which made the trip a little uncomfortable at times, but we did enjoy ourselves very much. We got to see most of Malta (east side) parts of Gozo and most importantly the Blue Lagoon. We achnored at the lagoon, which is amazing..amazing clear blue water and you could see fish swimming beneath the boat. You can borrow equipment if you want to go snorkeling. And you can dive and swim from the boat. We went to the lagoon and it was good to have someplace to go back to, because the lagoon is packed, no place for your towels or to lie down. We were served a sandwich (simple, ok) after an hour or so, and when we arrived at the blue lagoon they set up a buffet with meat/fish, pasta, shrimps, vegetables, potatoes, bread..etc .
A few tips:
* book early
* check weather conditions at front.. be aware of windy conditions
* take pill/medication for seasickness at front
* bring/wear flipflops, bikini and towel

This is unfortunately something I missed out on but if I'm going back to Malta I really want to enjoy a day on the Spirit of Malta. It's a large catamaran that takes you on a trip around the island of Malta and Gozo, visiting the nicest and most beautiful places on the islands, and if the weather permits you'll also be heading for Comino and the blue Lagoon (which is fantastic!!). Music is played during the trip and you'll be served a buffet while onboard, in addition it's a free bar with all facilities, red bull, drinks, beer, sodas.. all day long. The catamaran-trip is very popular so you have to book early, preferably on the day you arrive, because if the weather is unstable they cancel the trips and you'll be booked for the next day instead. Booking can be done through several agents on the island, just look for Captain Morgan booking-signs, and preferably you should book through your travel agents, as you can save quite a few LM. The catamaran leaves from the Sliema ferries but a minivan will pik you up at your hotel and bring you back home again. I was so dissapointed when it was booked for the rest of our holiday so we didn't get to go..

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Portomaso is an apartement complex with sassy and luxurious apartements with a matching marina where you can see some fine yacths.. The area also has many restaurants, some look really stylish, such as the Korean one down by the port! Didn't visit any of them though. Next time! The place is good for just walking around and enjoying the view of the magnificient boats and the marina. It is also here that you will find the Hilton hotel.

What can I say, I am a girl I am 24 years old.. of course I recommend a bit of shopping! Saint Julian's has a shopping center known as the Baystreet Coplex (where our hotel was located as well). It is right behind St.George's Bay.. huge blue modern building, look for the Hard Rock Cafe sign. There are quite a few good shops there. Guess, FCUK, NafNaf, Mexx..for instance. And also some local shops, I'm not a big fan of mediterreanean fashion as I find it too bright-colored and too skimpy! I'll leave it to the locals who pull it off better than me:) Mark & Spencer has the best flavoured water I have ever tasted and some yummy potato chips as well. Sliema is great for shopping too. If you take the main road (the one that the buses take) you will find lots of international high street chain stores such as Accessorize, Monsoon, Dorothy Perkins, Zara, Oasis, Bershka, TopShop, Miss Selfridge..etc I guess it's not very interesting to those who have these stores at home, the prices may be the same as well.. but for us who has to go to London to visit these stores, shopping in Sliema is quite fab! Another option is Valletta, which has some of the same stores as Sliema. In the summer the shops have lots of sales as well, so it's a great time for shopping!