Next up is the Republic of Malta. This archipelago is situated in the Mediterranean Sea just south of Sicily (& therefore Italy). As an island situated between Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, the influences of many different cultures have left their mark on the area. It has a fascinating history that goes back to ancient times.
Our Top Video Picks
- Geography Now! Malta: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qee_dxMvids
- The Flag of Malta by Geography Now! (along with some other neat Malta info, but only the first 3 minutes) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btNqrzqTqlg
- Sovereign Order of Malta (a separate nation named after the island of Malta but currently without a territory): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gYDjWUefI4
- History of Malta (old and slightly awkward, but with great shots of the island and some interesting historical facts): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozdEOGYaWJc
Other Videos We Watched
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCZqi0O-Q28 - good travel guide, to-the-point, but lots of info about where to get drinks
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi9o-4Jp90Y - the pacing and speaking is very slow, so we actually watched this one at 1.5 speed
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzUan1PmJcc - dos and don'ts of travel to Malta
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gzQAqss_8o - foods to try in Malta
Some Fun Fact Sites
19 Surprising Facts about Malta: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/secret-malta_n_4964709 - fun pics with interesting facts, although the Azure Window has since sadly collapsed.
18 Fun Facts about Malta: https://holidaysinmalta.net/fun-facts-about-malta/ - cute little tidbits of info about the Maltese people and culture.
For our food adventures, we checked out a few options that were highlighted in that last video of foods to try. The recipes we found for making cannoli (which is more Sicilian, anyway) and pastizzi seemed a little more involved than we felt up for at the moment. So we gave these almond cookies a try.
Our cookies spread out more than they were supposed to, but I think that was a combined factor of using home-blended raw almonds, granulated sugar, and just a touch too much lemon juice and vanilla. But despite the different looks, these were super tasty cookies! Chewy and not-to-sweet, the whole family loved them!
We also made some flatbread pizzas from scratch.
