It was a choice between visiting the fishing village of Marsaxlokk or the Hagar Qim temple complex.

We checked the bus time tables and found that the bus to Marsaxlokk would arrive earliest so we decided that we would go there for the day. Then Mr C noticed a bus that was heading to the temples which caused him to change his mind. It was only when we were on our way that he realised the journey wasn’t direct and we would have to change.

We changed at Zurrieq, a quaint Moorish town with picturesque narrow streets. There were lots of buses returning to Valletta but we had to wait for half an hour one that went to the temples.

Before entering the temple complex, we had a traditional Maltese tuna ftira. The sandwich was so large we shared it between us.

The Hagar Qim complex consists of a main temple and three additional megalithic structures beside it. The main temple was built between 3600 and 3200 BC but other structures on the site are even older. Hagar Qim is quite different to other megalithic sites that I have seen.

We viewed one temple then, instead of taking the direct route to the second temple, we took the route of the nature walk. The ground was rugged and rough under our feet. Thankfully I had put my walking shoes on but, even so, when Mr C decided to walk along the cliff edge I headed uphill, keeping to the pathway.

Arriving at the second temple we found it to be a lot smaller in footprint than the first one. Like megalithic structures elsewhere, there are sun and moon alignments to the solstice and equinox. There is even a theory that one of the stones has markings that align it to the Pleiades constellation.

Both temples have a canvas canopy over them to protect them from the harsh elements that would erode the soft limestone rock.

Back at the bus stop we found out that, counter-intuitively, we needed to catch the bus back to Valletta on the same side of the road as we had alighted. We waited for quite some time (other people joining us) and no bus appeared in either direction. After a while we suspected that one of the scheduled buses had been cancelled and we were now waiting for the next one which arrived eventually.

Back in Valletta, we decided to relax with a cup of the tea on our balcony before setting off for our evening meal. We settled on the restaurant That’s Amore where we didn’t have the best of experiences. They were extremely slow to take our order and when the bottle of wine arrived the glasses were filled unevenly. Mr C’s empty plate was taken away whilst I was still eating and he was advised that he could order desserts and coffee later! My plate was left in front of me for a long time after I had finished eating. The lovely local rose wine we had chosen was the saving grace of the experience.

Back at the hotel, the bar staff tried to fob me off with a small bottle of inferior wine because they had run out of the normal wine and needed to go to the cellar for some more. I sent it back to be replaced with the higher quality wine that I had ordered on other occasions.

Our 3.30 am alarm call allowed us to get to the airport at 5am in time for our 7.05am flight. We encountered a slight hiccup when the in-car SatNav directed us to a blocked road which, too late we remembered had happened last time we flew from Manchester airport. It was four years ago so we can forgive ourselves for repeating the same mistake.

Once at the airport, we booked into the meet and greet parking leaving the car keys before making our way to check in where we found we had to weigh our own bags and print the labels before we could check in through ‘fast track’ which we had pre-booked. Our hand luggage passed through the scanner with no problems but for some reason I set off the personal scan alarm which meant I had to go through the electronic body scanner station. This was an odd experience. After a few questions about what might have set off the alarm I had to stand in a particular way as indicated by a silhouette on the wall facing me whilst the machine scanned my body.

After passing this test we had breakfast which for me was pain au chocolate and fruit juice. By the time we had finished eating, the boarding gate had opened and on checking in we found that we were sharing our flight with a large group of English and Welsh pool players on their way to an international tournament.

We left rainy, cold and dark Manchester on time arriving in Malta 3.5 hours later in glorious 80-degree sunshine. We had booked a private transfer which meant we would arrive at our hotel sooner than if we had waited for a bus. As our driver took us to our hotel, he pointed out various things on our journey and when we arrived in Valletta, he gave us several tips on how to get around.

As we checked into the hotel, we were greeted by the concierge who gave us a refreshing drink. Our room was ready but needed to be checked off by house keeping before we could get the keys. This allowed us to enjoy our refreshing drink looking at the view of the hotel pool and the harbour beyond.

Our room was fantastic with a sea view and balcony looking out over a small harbour and in the bathroom, there was a small vase with a carnation. We left our bags in our room and walked up the 88 steps towards the city gate to Valletta. It was time for lunch so we purchased a snack from one of the kiosks near to the city gate before heading into the city.

Photo taken by Mr C

Photo taken by Mr C

We walked around the city taking in some of the lovely coastal views whilst orientating ourselves for future excursions. I spent a while sitting, cooling off enjoying Lower Barrakka Gardens whilst Mr C went exploring. I was treated to the sound of birdsong and lizards peeping out from the undergrowth.

Photo taken by Mr C

Explorations, complete we headed back to the hotel where we had a drink in the bar before heading to our room to unpack and freshen up before dining in the hotel. In the dining room there was a bit of miscommunication, we had intended dine from the Al a Carte menu but we ended up sampling the Indian Style buffet instead. After dining, we finished our drinks in the hotel bar before retiring for the evening.

As we finish our Christmas celebrations and start to focus on New Year celebrations I am reminded of my holiday plans for the coming year.

We hope to visit Lincoln at Easter so that we can partake in the Easter morning communion service and we are planning to continue our travels in Italy from where we left off last year.

With Italian travels and the upcoming New Years Eve celebrations in mind, I share Prosecco on the balcony