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Malta day 3: Blue Grotto, Hagar Qim and Mnajdra temples (Piotr)

Itinerary: Santa Venera  @ Triq Guze Pace ➜ Blue Grotto ➜ Hagar Qim and Mnajdra ➜ Valletta  ➜ @ Triq Guze Pace.

Very slow going day, alltogether we spent 3 hours just waiting for different buses, had to use local taxi to save time. Decided to go to Valletta terminal to get on the bus (packed with tourists) to Blue Grotto. After spending some time walking along the cliffs, we decided to go down to the waterfront for boat ride along the clifs to the grotto. Very nice scenery and colors.  Not sure when next bus would come, we took a good offer from local taxi driver to take us to Hagar Qim. Visited the two reconstructed temples to get some idea about megalithic temples and  ☞ Heritage of Malta. Made our way, very slowly via Rabat, to Valletta for dinner. Finished the day finding local bakery in Santa Venera, open late and selling very good bread.

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Malta day 1-2: Valletta and Mdina/Rabat, Dingli cliffs (Piotr)

Itinerary: Poznań ➜ (Ryanair) ➜ Malta ➜ Santa Venera  @ Triq Guze Pace ➜ Valletta  ➜ @ Triq Guze Pace ➜ Valletta  ➜ Mdina ➜ Dingli ➜ Rabat ➜ @ Triq Guze Pace.

Transfer from the airport was fast (bus X4 and short walk) and I had afternoon and evening to explore Valletta. I used bus stops on San Guzepp street (two blocks from airbnb) to go to different Malta destinations, buses take you everywher, on somewhat “relaxed” schedule. I saw quite a bit just traveling on public buses as they often pushed through narrow streets of small towns. I split the next day between Valletta and Mdina, with short bus trip to the coast to see Dingli cliffs, and finishing with dinner in Rabat on the way back.

We rented two-bedroom apartment in Santa Venera ☞ @ Triq Guze Pace –  good location, high quality and good value (recommended)

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France day 5-6: Paris (Piotr)

Two days just wandering around on my own and with  friends. 360° panoramic view from the roof of Institut du Monde Arabe gave me good understanding of the city layout, the view is really good.

View from rooftop observation deck at Institut du Monde Arabe

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France day 4: Loire Valley (Piotr)

Day trip with ☞ France Tourisme  (6 hours of driving to/from the Valley and 6 hours of visiting the castles): Paris/Louvre ➜ ☞ Château de Chenonceau  ➜  ☞ Château de Cheverny ➜ ☞ Château de Chambord ➜ Paris/Louvre.  I wanted to visit  Amboise and  Leonardo da Vinci at ☞ Château du Clos, but no other people signed-up and the agency offered alternative tour with Cheverny instead. Overestimated distances in Paris, walked over to the pick-up place way too early and had plenty of time for early morning photos. I had the front seat in the minibus, nice weather and good views.

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France, day 3: Versailles (Piotr)

The day was all about  ☞ Versaillles. Took M4 to Gare Montparnasse and local, but fast non-stop train. No railroad strike that day. I was very lucky as my friend works at Versailles and gave me a private tour. We started at the Royal Chapel, visited the upstairs quarters, joined tourist stream to visit main atractions, returned to the Chapel. I then made a big loop zig-zagging through the park and gardens, watching fountain show, walking to Orangerie at the end.

Mirror Basin

We walked through town a bit, found a nice restaurant for dinner, and returned by RERC  and bus to the city center. I walked by Notre Dame, Hotel de Ville and Pompidou Center to my place.

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