Nadeau's Malta

NEWSWEEK's Barbie Nadeau reviews her favorite sites in Malta which she visited this summer:

Park safely out of the way of the quarry trucks and walk (very slowly) down the narrow headroad along the Dingli cliffs midway between the towns of Siggiewi and Dingli. Buy a peeled prickly pear from the roadside stand and gaze out at the perfect view..

While the Blue Lagoon on the island of Comino is easily the best place to swim, the beaches are too crowded and rocky to spend any time out of the water. For serious sunbathing, head over to the red sands of Ramla Bay (Ir-Ramla on the map) on Gozo and bask in the true Mediterranean glory of sand and turquoise sea--not to mention Gozo's famous statue of the Virgin Mary..

Feel like James Bond. Both Sean Connery in “Never Say Never Again” and Roger Moore in “The Spy Who Loved Me” filmed nuke submarine scenes off the rock cliffs of Gozo. Take your snorkel or whatever Bond-like gadget you may have and explore the clear waters off Xlendi and the Azure Window, Blue Hole and Fungus Rock along the coast of Dwejra...