Marsaskala and it's magic fishing boats

When going to Malta, it is not extremely important where you stay as everything is very close by. The reasons why we decided to chose Marsaskala for our accommodation were: one of the few locations that has also a sport of sandy beach, it's proximity to Valletta and the cute traditional fishing boats that can be found in the area 

Here what we discovered in this little place during the hot summer days. 

Accommodation

As in most of the times when we travel in group we always aim from an apartment. Whether it is Airbnb or via booking or recommendation, we prefer to stick together and not to stay in boring hotel rooms. This time we stayed at Julie's place which we found via Airbnb. Unfortunately the apartment seems to longer be available :( 

Travelling around 

We did a combination of taxi and buses based on the time of the day and distance we needed to cover. Our host recommended to use ecabs and it is a very cool service as you book your taxi online for whenever you want. 

What to do/see

The village place is small, so there are not a lot of things to do, but mainly beach and food, ah and yes the boats....nice! right?

One of the places where you can find a bit of sand is called St Thomas Bay. It has 2 beach bars which is quite convenient if you want to have a drink or snack something, though very crowded of course. On the way to the bay you have the best (as our host said) fish restaurant called Tal-Familja.

The other place where you can still enjoy the sun are the former salt flats. Although not a beach as such, I preferred coming over here as there were far less people. I must admit it is quite interesting to see these salt pans, they are man made and their aim is to collect salt from the sea by simply letting the waves dry and leave the salt behind them.

and yes, the view is amazing 

Maltese Boats 

These colorful boats are known as the Maltese luzzu, and they date back to the time of the ancient Phoenicians.​

"There is quite a lot of superstition surrounding the luzzu, the most prominent of them all being the painted or engraved pair of eyes on the front of the boat. These eyes are believed to be a modern survival of an old Phoenician tradition, and are normally referred to as the Eye of Orisis, or the Eye of Horus - the Phoenicians' god of protection from evil. They are a symbol of protection and good health, and are believed to protect the fishermen from any harm while they are out at sea. In addition to this, luzzus are normally inherited from a person's father and grandfather. However, although the exact colours of each luzzu vary from one another, the colours of each luzzu are normally kept exactly the same due to superstitious belief. Therefore, when the old paint is completely stripped off the boat every five years, in order for the fisherman to closely inspect his boat for anything that needs to be replaced, the boat is then re-painted in exactly the same colours that the person’s father and grandfather had used. (Source)

Food

You should definitely try the fresh fish and the gozo cheese as it is the most traditional things you can try. 

One of the funny things, that I am not used to, was that when you were asking what is the catch of the day, they were coming with the whole plate and explaining you how the different fish would taste and with what it is best to eat it. I absolutely love this approach, maybe someday I will get to differentiate between the different fish. 

Pastizzi is probably the most popular snack on the entire island. The traditional ricotta cheesecake is sold for a really cheap price in all the Pastizzerias across Malta and Gozo and is always warm as the high demand requires to bake them continuously during the day. The most common pastizzi are made with ricotta, but there are also two other varieties: one made with peas and onions and the other with anchovies.

Bigilla is a traditional Maltese dish, made of mashed beans. Tic beans, known in Malta as "ful ta' Ä irba" (Djerba beans), are used. These are similar to but smaller than broad beans, with a darker and harder skin.
Galletti are water crackers great for dipping and side dishes

Day Trips 

as said, the village is very small, but extremely cute, we went from here to Valleta passing through the 3 cities and then another trip to Golden Bay and finishing off the night at Cafe del Mar, so stay posted for more info on how to enjoy a long weekend in Malta.