{"id":8248,"date":"2019-07-01T09:00:40","date_gmt":"2019-07-01T16:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/?p=8248"},"modified":"2019-07-01T06:02:11","modified_gmt":"2019-07-01T13:02:11","slug":"malta-greece-montenegro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/?p=8248","title":{"rendered":"Malta, Greece & Ohhhh Montenegro"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Bob Sparrow<\/p>\n

Malta<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Malta – looks interesting . . . it’s not!<\/p><\/div>\n

Malta\u2019s<\/strong> history dates back to around 5900 B.C. \u2013 don\u2019t worry we\u2019re not going to start there. Because of its location, in the middle of the Mediterranean<\/strong>, it was a strategic island to have control of and was thus taken over in turn by the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Normans, Aragoneze, French<\/strong> and British<\/strong>. During World War II the Germans <\/strong>wanted to add their name to the list, but despite the Luftwaffe<\/strong> leveling some of the oldest buildings in the world, they were turned back by Allied forces and now Malta remains as an independent country.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

In Malta – just shoot me!<\/p><\/div>\n

I think the day our ship arrived in Malta\u2019s port city of Valletta<\/strong>, all of the above-mentioned nationalities were represented there, plus tourists from four cruise ships<\/strong> \u2013 it was wall-to-wall in this walled city. So a 10-minute walk to the \u2018lift\u2019 that took us up the walled city\u2019s fa\u00e7ade and a walk down the crowded main street filled with tee shirt and trinket shops was all the Malta we wanted to see. I\u2019ll admit that I felt a bit like a shallow tourist, not really appreciating the history or the present culture of this historic country, but it was crowded and hot. I didn\u2019t even stop to have a local beer!<\/p>\n

Katakolon, Greece<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Katakolon – yes, that’s it – really!<\/p><\/div>\n

If you were looking to visit a Greek island and have imagined those stark white building stacked along a pristine coastline over azure waters; or if you were looking to stroll amongst the antiquities of ancient Greece\u2019s structures like the Acropolis<\/strong> or Parthenon<\/strong>, don\u2019t go to Katakolon. Its claim to fame is that it was the location of the very first Olympic games<\/strong>. We did not take the 30-minute drive to the original Olympic site, as we assumed most of the athletes had already gone back home. We did wander the main street of town (there was only one), which was about three short blocks long, and were subjected to old Greek men sitting outside their store like carnival barkers, trying to get us to walk in and buy something. The tour of the town was quick and uneventful, but Jack and I did stay long enough to enjoyed a famous Greek Gyro<\/strong> sandwich and a Mythos<\/strong> beer at a beachside caf\u00e9, which was quite good.\u00a0 But I’m not checking Greece off my bucket list based on this visit.<\/p>\n

A Day at Seas<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what I discovered during our \u2018Day at Sea\u2019<\/p>\n