TRAVEL. MALTA.
Jumping Into the Blue
Between fields of blooming wildflowers and the turquoise blue of the Mediterranean Sea
It was unreal. Walking atop this steep cliff with golden shining wildflowers next to the walking trail, the turquoise blue water below us was out of this world. The bay looked too perfect to be real. A piece of paradise right here, in the Mediterranean Sea.
After spending one full day in the city of Valetta, we were ready to get out. Into the countryside. We wanted to be in nature, walk across the fields and see some spectacular coastline.
But on Sunday mornings, there is one famous fish market in Marsaxlokk, a town on the Southeastern side of the island. While we arrived too late to see the Maltese haggling for fish, we came in time for the street market selling souvenirs and traditional baked goods to the tourists.
The market is located in one of the countless bays in Malta and is known for the pretty colorful boats in the harbor. The morning was gray and it even rained a bit but that didn't stop our excitement.
I ordered one of these traditional pastries which were incredibly overpriced but if this is how they want to make business, so be it. That way I didn't come back to get more.
Some vendors were still selling fish, shrimp and octopus. We would have bought some if someone next door would have prepared the fish for us but this isn't Thailand. They just sell fish to restaurants and local families or whoever has a kitchen in town.
We wandered through the market and along the harbor in search of something to eat. We didn't eat anything before leaving our apartment in Valetta in the hopes we'd find some delicious and cheap street food on this market which wasn't the case.
It was now 11 am and we still hadn't eaten. An awkward time as the restaurants had stopped serving breakfast but weren't open for lunch yet.
Finally, we found a café in front of Santwarju tal-Madonna ta’ Pompei, the Catholic Church, and sat down at a table at the edge so we could do some great people-watching.
David went for a typical fish and chips meal while I ordered pasta with rabbit meat. A traditional Maltese dish. The sun had come out and we devoured the delicious meals not leaving a crumb behind.
We wanted to stay the night in this fishing village but the websites offered no affordable accommodation which is why we booked during lunch our stay in one of the bays a litter further up the coast.
We had planned on dropping our bags in the apartment and then going for a hike changing the plan now to hiking toward the accommodation. Along the coast.
Our bags weren't heavy weighing 15 kgs together and so we went ahead, climbing the stairs at the end of Marsaxlokk, looking one more time back onto the ancient town and its turquoise blue water. In the harbor. Yes, here in Malta the ocean is clean, clear and shiny. Even in the harbor.
Following Roman stone walls and cacti-lined dirt roads, we walked across fields with corn moving and rustling in the wind and wildflowers stretching toward the sun.
Our first stop was St. Peter’s Pool, a small bay hidden between rocks forming a natural swimming pool safe for cliff jumping. The water of the Mediterranean Sea was shining turquoise blue whenever the sun appeared from behind one of the clouds above.
But I'm not lying to you. This isn't Instagram. This is Anne's unfiltered travel blog. The blue pool wasn't ours. Despite the cloudy and rainy morning, this Sunday the locals came down to St. Peter’s Pool and flocked to the edges of the cliffs.
See below.
And while most of the time we try to avoid crowds and look for remote beaches and hidden bays, we really enjoyed this spot and spend quite some time sitting among the people. There was just so much going on.
We saw school groups, families, friends, and whatever else was down by the sea. Just look at the picture. There is so much going on. Two construction workers are hanging on the cliffs in the back assuring the limestone won't crumble into pieces. Three people are in the water. One guy is about to jump in. And another one is showing off his bouldering skills scrambling along the cliffs before making a backflip into the ice-cold Mediterranean Sea.
We watched guys take a jump into the cold sea. We watched groups of friends convince each other that the cold wouldn't be too bad. We watched girls motivate each other so they could do it too.
We watched people jump in. And climb out again. We didn't see anyone taking a swim below for any longer than they needed to reach the safe cliffs and get out of the cold again.
I swam in the Mediterranean before. Lots. And for long. But never in April.
We did have swim gear with us but weren't wearing them. We hadn't planned on it. It was a sunny but windy day in April. The temperatures were in the double digits but only protected from the wind did I take off my sweater.
And eventually, I decided to do it. I'll only ever be here once. Why waste my life regretting things I didn't do when I was there? I know it's gonna be cold. I know it's gonna take me some time before I launch off the cliff.
But I also know it's gonna be fun.
The first challenge was getting changing into my bikini in a crowd of people. Holding a towel around me, I shed layers and then stood there in swimwear.
Once I decided to do it, David didn't hesitate and joined my mindset. Let's do it. He just had to jump in first to make sure the water was safe for me. He said. There were some rocks in the water below and we had to make a decent step forward from where we were standing but where the sea was light blue, the water was several meters deep.
The jump from the cliffs was only about 3 meters high but the impact in the water was rough. Cold. Your body went into a shock for a second or two. And then you quickly swam to shore and climbed out of the cold.
But hey, it was fun after all. So you do it again, right? And we did.
Getting back into our clothes again after this quick adrenaline rush, we were now refreshed, happy and excited to move on.
We didn't know what to expect and were left speechless when this paradise-like bay opened up to our right. White cliffs of limestone were reaching high above the water and the sea had the clearest blue.
One sailing boat was docked in the bay but no people were to be seen. The path we followed was leading right on the edge of the cliffs offering these stunning views all around.
We're usually not the selfie-type of people but we had to stop right here and smile into the camera. It was too beautiful not to pose in front of this landscape. And my hair were once again not where they were supposed to be.
I blame the wind.
After getting to the other side of the bay, private property prevented us from continuing to walk along the coast and so we turned inland passing local farms, ancient ruins and fields with wildflowers.
Just to turn back to the cliffs around the next turn. Spring's lush green grass next to the turquoise blue of the ocean created this magical combination of nature's hues of soft colors.
One more smile into the camera.
Cacti, agave plants and other vegetation were lining the trail.
Then, there she was. The next inhabited bay wasn't ours yet as we had to cross the town to get to the one where our apartment was located in.
I couldn't get enough of the contrasting but bright shining colors between meadows, wildflowers and the sea and sky.
We were descending in altitude leaving the cliffs behind.
Now feeling the miles we had walked this day, we were happy about reaching the harbor where our apartment was located. Dropping the bags was a relief and we just left the place to get some Maltese snacks for dinner.
Cheese, Salami and olives on crackers with some wine. Fine dining we called it.
Read about the previous days of our trip to Malta:
Join my email list here if you would like to read more travel essays or sign up for the Medium membership to receive unlimited access to my and other writers’ stories out here (I will receive a commission fee in return).
WordPress | Shutterstock | Instagram | YouTube | Mailchimp | Amazon
