On an Island

The first signs of approaching land were a few more ships in the deep blue sea. I vaguely caught land or clouds in the distance, which I imagined could be Sicily, but maximum zoom on my camera could still not answer my wonder. At 1pm, the first part of the Island of Malta to appear was around Marsaskala, followed by Marsaxlokk, with it's harbour. In no time we had arrived at Luqa Airport.

Three facts quickly immediately become clear. The first is that Malta truly is smaller than can ever be imagined, with 316 km², compared to, say, 3167 km² for the Queensland electorate of Forde, in which I live. The second is that Malta is a world of limestone, giving most buildings an appearance completely at odds with the bricks, concrete, wood and board constructions of Australia. The third is that Luqa airport is sure in no hurry to get people out of it.

A handful of my father's cousins and second cousins unexpectedly greeted us on the way out of the airport. We were already being embraced by the vibrant, energetic warmth that would typify our interactions with friends and family. I half freaked out, as I was wearing a "Brett Raguse - The Local Bloke" Australian Labor Party shirt and had no idea yet on how politics was played out in Malta. We were messy, tired and needed showers, but were still welcomed. I was stunned to be already meeting my father's relatives, until now names on paper occasionally mentioned by my Aunt.

Our transport to the Sliema unit was an old Mercedes Benz cab. Despite having been held up for some time due to the passport delays and unexpected reunion, the cabbie was not bothered. In Australia, this sort of delay would have not only been charged, but left your cabbie furious. We soon learned about Maltese driving.

A large sign on a roundabout in Sliema declares "Please Observe Roundabout Rules." This pleading to adhere to basic road rules is symbolic of Maltese driving. Line markings are vague and road rules flexible, with small friendly horn beeps used to let people know you are nearby. Still, drivers often let you into traffic, even when you do not have right of way at an intersection, and drivers expect the unexpected from pedestrians and other cars. Bizarrely, drivers will usually sit behind a vehicle randomly blocking traffic for a couple of minutes without bother.

There must be a lot of low speed accidents, but in it's strange way, Maltese driving works. The driving style is far less rule based but friendlier and more relaxed than can be found in Australia. There are a lot of situations involving intersections and pedestrians that occur without incident in Malta but would result in serious accidents in Australia. My Aunt was deeply troubled by Maltese driving.

There is no rail in Malta, with transport generally occurring by car, bus or boat. The buses tend to be older ones from the 1960's or 1970's. Strangely, one bus had "Pendle Hill N.S.W." on the back, which is actually a place in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The older Maltese buses appear to be an odd form of tourist attraction.

The cab ride gave my first view of Maltese homes, which tend to be conventional looking units or these peculiar Maltese houses. I knew that people had to live close together, but the thin, long, tall limestone house structures, all joined together, were a novelty. These living arrangements are the only way people probably could have their own bit of concrete covered dirt. Are the small backyards the key to why Grandma had it in for trees, including that poor Poinciana?

The Maltese way of living appears to have many advantages and disadvantages. There are severe practical limitations on pets, noise levels and leisure activities. Then again, they have to be advantages for communities, families and services like public transport. Not that the Maltese have much of a choice in living arrangements, with a population of 402,000.

On the balcony of the Sliema unit