Malta and Sicily by yacht: Game of Thrones backdrops, turbulent histories, and cuisine that reflect centuries of invasion
- Malta and Sicily in the Mediterranean both have long and turbulent histories, shaped by thousands of years of invasion and occupation
- A sailing trip between the two takes us to forts, ancient temple ruins, art and, in Sicily, a complex cuisine with elements from a succession of cultures
From the 16th century to the early 20th, small merchant boats called speronara plied the waters between the Mediterranean islands of Malta and Sicily. They carried passengers and merchandise, and in the days before the postal service, important letters.
The speronara was also the vessel of choice for pirates, who plundered ships and caused chaos and destruction ashore. And these waters have carried other aggressors.
Stretching back at least to the 11th century BC, the Tyrrhenian, Ionian and Mediterranean seas have borne the ships of a long list of invaders, from the Phoenicians and Carthaginians to the Romans, the Byzantines, the Aghlabids and the Aragonese.
As we set off at dawn from Marsamxett Harbour, in Malta’s capital, Valletta, evidence of the island’s turbulent past is starkly visible in the fortification walls that rise up from the water’s edge.
With its strategic position between Africa, Europe and the Middle East, and its natural harbours, Malta has long been a prize that needed to be defended.
When our captain, Mark, steers the Esta Bien, his 33ft Jeanneau Sun Odyssey, between rows of moored yachts out into the bay, it feels as though we are sailing back in time.
