Balcony seats aren't only inside the theatre in Valletta.
I have two types of Valletta walks.
The first is the Saturday stroll with the bustling crowds and my seven year-old, where at some stage there is a planned pit-stop of a cappuccino for me and a cassatella for him. The second is an evening passeggiata, when the streets are empty and almost silent except for the clickety clack of a heel, where the orange lights play tricks with shadows of our linked arms. And always, at some stage, there is a voice inside that says ‘Look up.’
It’s so easy to go rushing about our lives without noticing what is happening around us. In Valletta, much of the beauty of the old city is above our head. Look up, for there is much to feast the eyes on – whether you’re squinting in the sun, or trying to make out a detail in the half dark.
You will see…
Old balconies
Dolce-vita style signage
Pigeons
An old lady peering from behind a lace curtain
Bold stone sculptures
Caper plants on the bastions
Washing on lines
Wicker bread baskets dangling on strings
Gargoyles
‘Tourists are welcome’ signs
Derelict, abandoned upper storeys
Stepped streets looming ahead vertically
Bird cages in balcony windows
What else have I missed?