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As we start preparing our music for the tour this summer, we also look forward to the experience of making new friends in another part of the world— but how much do you actually know about the places that we’ll visit? This post will hopefully leave you with at least a small bit of information about the country of Malta. Later, we’ll get a little more familiar with Sicily.
Malta has a rich history, due especially to its location along important trade routes. Its history includes such inhabitants as its first settlers more than 7000 years ago from Sicily, ancient Greeks and Romans, Arabs, Normans, Knights of Malta, French and British.
The climate of Malta consists of mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. While we’re there, temperatures will range from the low 70s to the upper 80s.
There are more than 360 churches in Malta, Gozo, and Comino, with Roman Catholicism as the state religion. Local villages conduct ‘festas’, which mark the feast day of the patron saint of each parish with marching bands, religious processions, special Masses, fireworks, and other festivities.
English and Maltese are the official languages of Malta, replacing Italian in 1934.
While in Malta, we’ll have some wonderful opportunities, including visiting the capital city of Valletta, making friends with students in the village of Marsaxlokk, seeing some of the world’s heaviest megaliths at the Hagar Qim Temple, visiting medieval Mdina, and enjoying some time on the beach.
Ready to go?
Malta itself is about twice the size and population of the city of Akron. It’s actually a group of islands about 58 miles south of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea. Only the three largest islands- Malta Island, Gozo, and Comino are inhabited.
Malta has a rich history, due especially to its location along important trade routes. Its history includes such inhabitants as its first settlers more than 7000 years ago from Sicily, ancient Greeks and Romans, Arabs, Normans, Knights of Malta, French and British.
The climate of Malta consists of mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. While we’re there, temperatures will range from the low 70s to the upper 80s.
There are more than 360 churches in Malta, Gozo, and Comino, with Roman Catholicism as the state religion. Local villages conduct ‘festas’, which mark the feast day of the patron saint of each parish with marching bands, religious processions, special Masses, fireworks, and other festivities.
English and Maltese are the official languages of Malta, replacing Italian in 1934.
While in Malta, we’ll have some wonderful opportunities, including visiting the capital city of Valletta, making friends with students in the village of Marsaxlokk, seeing some of the world’s heaviest megaliths at the Hagar Qim Temple, visiting medieval Mdina, and enjoying some time on the beach.
Ready to go?
