Thursday, January 03, 2019

Becoming stranded in Valletta

So, I had got back to Valletta having retrieved my debit card, taking the ferry from Birgu and thought that it might be nice to cross Valletta and catch the ferry over to Sliema as a more interesting route to San Giljan.

That meant a ride up the lift at Barrakka, and a stroll past the old opera house and down the slope to the ferry terminal. When I arrived, I discovered that there were no ferries operating until 4 p.m., so I trudged back up the hill, thinking that I could simply catch a bus.

It was only when I reached the bus station at the gateway to Valletta that I discovered one of the quirky features of Malta. Lunch on New Year’s Day is a big thing. So big, indeed, that public transport shuts down completely for about four hours. That’s fine if you know about it, but not so great for tourists like me.

I was thus forced to get a taxi, and the local drivers had naturally concluded that supply and demand was very much in their favour. I suspect that I was lucky to get as cheap a fare as I did, merely paying a 50% mark-up on the usual fare.

So, a valuable lesson learnt, and a happy cab driver. And, should I be here for Christmas in future, apparently Christmas Eve is the same...

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