Island Profiles

The cuisine of Malta shows heavy influence from Sicilian and English cuisine, as well as Spanish, French, North African and Arabic cuisines. Malta’s strategic location and history have contributed to the forming of a multi-faceted and delicious array of interesting dishes. It was as a reaction to a hunting ban by the Knights of St. John, that rabbit became so popular, and likewise, the predominance of pork in the cuisine was a reaction to the non Christian powers that ruled…

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With 7,000 years of history, the most perfect climate and highest number of sunny days in Europe, English as one of the official languages and incredible cities, towns, beaches and nightlife, it is no wonder that Malta is a popular tourist destination.  UNESCO’s world heritage website calls the capital city Valletta – the smallest in Europe, by the way – “one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world”. Valletta Lets do a quick tour and start with Valletta….

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Between the years 1530 and 1598, Malta was under the governance of the Roman Catholic Order of St. John.  This order, which has been called by many names as a result of the many changes and developments in its history, came into existence all the way back in the 11th century. The original purpose of the Order was to tend to sick pilgrims visiting the holy city of Jerusalem. On February 15th, 1113, the Order was officially named the Hopitallers…

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Malta has such a fascinating history. It seems that nearly everybody in Europe either controlled or tried to control this strategic archipelago in the Mediterranean.  Part of the fascination of this place is experiencing the numerous influences in the language, the architecture, customs and culture. The story of Malta goes way, way back. Remains of pottery from the stone age indicate that the Sicani, the oldest inhabitants of Sicily made their way to the islands around 5200 BC. By 3500…

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  This month I am so excited to explore the fascinating island of Malta. The Republic of Malta is actually an archipelago in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea and includes three populated islands, Malta, Gozo and Comino. These islands have a long and intriguing history dating back to around 5,000 BC. The Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Moors, Knights of St. John, Sicilians, Spanish, French and British, among others (!) have ruled or invaded these small islands. Malta is an island…

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