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Tourist Guide and Information about Malta

 

 

 

 

Malta (Republic of Malta; Repubblika ta' Malta) is a Parliamentary republic, situated in the middle of the Mediterranean, with the largest inhabited island, Malta, lying 93 km south of Sicily and 290 km from North Africa. Gozo and Comino are the only other inhabited islands. Malta became a member of the European Union, on May 1, 2004. The Maltese archipelago is formed from limestone sedimentary rocks formations, with high rocky cliffs, interrupted, from deep inlets. The interior is rather flat, the maximum elevation is the Nadur Tower, 239 meters. The land is dry and rich of karst phenomena, it lack practically of water courses. 

Climate: Malta’s climate is strongly influenced by the sea and is typical Mediterranean. Warm most of the year. Summers are hot, dry and very sunny, the hottest months are between July and September, but the heat is tempered by cooling sea breezes. Temperatures varies between 9,5°C in winter and 30,6°C in summer. Rain falls for very short periods, mainly in the cooler winter months. Annual rainfall is low, averaging 568 mm a year.

  

Tourist attractions: Malta boasts 7000 history years, the archipelago is a true open air museum, the natural beauties and the monuments of historical-artistic interest (the interesting prehistoric remains, the fortifications of the Knights of Malta, the churches and the palaces of the Valletta) attracts many tourists. 

Unesco has inscribed 3 Malta site in the World Heritage List: City of Valletta (1980), Hal Saflieni Hypogeum (1980), Megalithic Temples of Malta (1980). Between the properties submitted on the Tentative List are: Coastal Cliffs (1998), Qawra/Dwejra (1998), Cittadella (Victoria - Gozo) (1998), Knights' Fortifications around the Harbours of Malta (1998), Mdina (Citta' Vecchia) (1998), Maltese Catacomb Complexes (1998), Victoria Lines Fortifications (1998).

Travel Documents: Foreign nationals require a valid passport or other identification document to enter Malta. Citizens of certain countries require a visa to enter Malta.

Health: Visitors from EU member states should make sure that they have a European Health Insurance card. It is advisable that all visitors, irrespective of their nationality, take out a personal medical insurance policy. Malta has reciprocal health agreements with Australia and the United Kingdom. Nationals of these countries, visiting the Islands for no longer than one month, are entitled to free medical and hospital care in both Malta and Gozo. Medical care is available through public and private hospitals. The quality of medical care in Malta is excellent. Private hospitals generally offer a higher standard of service than the public hospitals, and the majority of the best doctors practice in private medical facilities. Chemists are found throughout the Islands and are open during normal shopping hours. On Sundays, chemists open on a roster from 09.00 until 12.30 in Malta and from 07.30 until 11.00 in Gozo.  

Shopping hours: Normal shopping hours for most shops in Malta: 9,00 a.m. to 1,00 p.m. and 4,00 p.m. to 7,00 p.m.

Electricity: The electrical supply is 230 volts +/- 10%. The frequency of the supply is 50 hertz. The three-pin rectangular plug system is used, as in Britain.

Cuisine: The maltese cuisine is an interesting mix between the sicialian, Italian, African, English and Mediterranean cuisine. Between the specialties more appreciated are pastizzi (puff pastry filled with cheese), the timpana (timballi of maccheroni, cheese and egg) and fenek (rabbit, generally fried or cooked in frying pan), the Aljotta (soup of fish), the Bragjoli (involtini of meat cooked in red wine), the Kannoli (sweet with annealed, chocolate pieces and candied fruits), the Kapunata (maltese version of the Ratatouille or the sicialian caponata), the Figolla (biscuits fillings with almonds), Gbejniet (cheese littles ball in order to accompany the aperitifs), Helwa tat-Tork (sweet mix made up of entire almonds and minced, served after supper with coffee), Kusksu (soup of fresch beans), Qarabali (stuffed zucchini), Minestra (soup with pig meat). MALTESE CUISINE RECIPES.

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Sea Travel: Virtu Ferries operates a hydrofoil with car transportation with departures from Catania and Pozzallo/Ragusa for Malta. MA.RE.SI. Shipping connects with a ferry Malta with Catania and Reggio Calabria. Grimaldi Ferries connects Salerno with Malta. Great Fast Ships connect Genoa (Via Tunisi) with Malta. A regular ferry service carries passengers and cars between Malta and Gozo. 

Airports and Flights: Malta International Airport is located between the villages of Luqa and Gudja, 10 kms from Valletta.

Area: 316 sqkm

Population: 400,000

State Capital: La Valletta

Language: The official languages are Maltese and English. Italian is also widely spoken.

Religion: Roman Catholic.

Currency: Euro.

Time: Central European time.

 

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