Malta part 2

We are still in Malta, and we didn't get blown away by the storm. The wind has been fantastic, and we have some great 'wave' pictures which will go up on myspace as soon as we get home.

Meanwhile, I just finished schooling Ryan in a game of 2 person Eucre. Ok, so maybe schooling isn't quite the word, but I did win in a 10-9 victory, even after he tried to cheat and stack the deck while I was otherwise occupied getting us cappaccinos (and cookies, but he thinks that was only cause I am cute...)

We spent today in Valetta (the capital) doing a Lonely Planet version of a walking tour. Oh, Bruce, Ryan wanted to say a big "THANK YOU" for recommending the Lonely Planet books. We picked up the Malta and Gozo one right before we came, and it has been awesome. They have really great advice and stuff, as well as just the straight cut goods about what is worth seeing and what is not.

Actually getting to Valetta seemed to prove more difficult than first expected. Maybe it's because when I look at a map I expect the scale to be bigger...like, 1 inch = 1 kilometre or something rather than only a few hundred feet. We drove for literally 5 minutes and found out we were halfway across the map! I thought we wouldn't have travelled nearly that far. Long story short, one wrong turn means being VERY VERY lost!! Lucky for us, the island isn't that big, so we were able to get back on track quite easily.

Once we were there (and I must say that the whole experience has made Ryan quite proficient at the left hand driving and round-abouts) we couldn't even find the city gates. We were officially pathetic tourists!! We couldn't find a parking spot, we couldn't find the beginning of our tour, we couldn't find much!! We did find most of the spots of interest, and the city as a whole was beautiful. Very ancient and historic and crammed into a very small space. The buildings were beautiful, made of limestone and towering above the street to maximize space. The streets were very narrow and sloped. Ryan turned down one street and we were shocked. There will be a picture up later, and you'll know exactly what I am talking about! It felt like the street went straight down! Cars lined one side, and there wasn't much room for manouvering!

It didn't take long to walk the entire perimeter of the city. We had lunch at a cute little bistro and then headed back to the car. We got back to the hotel with only minor incidents of lost-ness. The country is really really beautiful. Steph, I have your wedding all planned and I think you should come to Malta to get married!! The pictures alone would be worth it. (not to mention getting married...but let's focus on what's important!!)

We have arranged to have our first scuba lesson tomorrow morning at 9am. We'll have to let you know how it goes. We're both very excited, although I am not sure if I will be very warm!! No one mentioned that we were coming here during the coldest part of the year!! I was expecting it to be much warmer, although 17 degrees is better than -17, right? Bring on the sunshine and hot(ter) weather!