Carnival in Valletta, Malta runs from 6pm on Thursday, February 4th to 9:30pm on Tuesday, February 9th. Each day there are planned events.
On Friday afternoon we take the bus to Valletta to see what's happening. We find an increase in police and temporary fencing in the city as well as a good number of porta-potty's dotting the city. St. George's Square has been transformed into a huge stage with temporary seating. We learn that advance tickets are necessary for the program, which will include a dance competition. We opt not to try to get tickets.
On Friday afternoon we take the bus to Valletta to see what's happening. We find an increase in police and temporary fencing in the city as well as a good number of porta-potty's dotting the city. St. George's Square has been transformed into a huge stage with temporary seating. We learn that advance tickets are necessary for the program, which will include a dance competition. We opt not to try to get tickets.
Booths have been setup selling sweets - mostly cookies. We are drawn to sample cookies from a couple of different stands. We don't notice any vendors selling beer, wine or soda, that's interesting, as we have heard that the evening crowds are sometimes a bit inebriated. We pop into a restaurant for some chicken wings and beverages.
Per the official Carnival website there will be a costume parade starting at 5:30pm. We find a number of floats in the area at the start of the parade. Some are clearly satirical with what appear to be local politicians. However, we don't have an appreciation for the satire. We would probably need to be here a little longer to catch on.
Per the official Carnival website there will be a costume parade starting at 5:30pm. We find a number of floats in the area at the start of the parade. Some are clearly satirical with what appear to be local politicians. However, we don't have an appreciation for the satire. We would probably need to be here a little longer to catch on.
There are children and young adults in costumes streaming through Republic Street with their parents.
At 5:00pm it does not appear that the parade is anywhere near ready to start in 30 minutes. We stop by a cafe and ask the waiter about the time. He indicates the parade may start around 6:30pm or maybe later. This causes me to think about last year when we attended Carnival in Ambato, Ecuador. In that case we had reserved seats along the parade route and even went back to our room for a while waiting for the (delayed) parade to approach. That was a great way to attend a parade!
We enjoy the floats and the people in the streets of Valletta, but ultimately decide not to hang around waiting for the parade. We catch a bus back to St. Paul's Bay and stop at Damiano's to share a pizza for dinner.
We enjoy the floats and the people in the streets of Valletta, but ultimately decide not to hang around waiting for the parade. We catch a bus back to St. Paul's Bay and stop at Damiano's to share a pizza for dinner.
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