马尔萨什洛克港口五彩斑斓的渔船，马耳他 Colorful boats in Marsaxlokk Harbor, Malta (© Klubovy/Getty Images)
马尔萨什洛克港口五彩斑斓的渔船，马耳他 Colorful boats in Marsaxlokk Harbor, Malta (© Klubovy/Getty Images)
色彩鲜艳的船只，历久弥新的传统 Bright boats, timeless traditions
马尔萨什洛克港口五彩斑斓的渔船，马耳他
色彩斑斓的“卢祖”（luzzu）——即马耳他的传统渔船——停满了马萨什洛克（Marsaxlokk）那避风港湾的水面；这座村庄坐落于马耳他东南沿海，距离首都瓦莱塔仅需短途车程。作为该国主要的渔业中心之一，这里的生活节奏始终与大海的律动保持着和谐的步调。村庄约有4000名居民，并以其充满活力的滨海区域而闻名——尤其是广受欢迎的周日鱼市，以及每天清晨满载新鲜渔获归来的船只。
“卢祖”（luzzu）这种传统船只适应了当地水域的特性，至今仍在使用。它们漆成鲜艳的蓝、黄、红、绿等色调，在港口内密集排列。每艘船的船头都绘有一对眼睛——这一源自古代地中海传统的图案，被认为能保佑水手在海上航行平安。这些船只共同构成了一道既实用又极具视觉冲击力的风景。
Colorful boats in Marsaxlokk Harbor, Malta
Colorful luzzus—traditional Maltese fishing boats—fill the sheltered harbor of Marsaxlokk, a village on Malta's southeastern coast. Just a short drive from Valletta, the island's capital, it remains one of the country's main fishing hubs, where daily life follows the steady pace of the sea. Home to roughly 4,000 residents, the village is also widely known for its lively waterfront, especially its popular Sunday fish market, and for the steady return of boats carrying fresh catches each morning.
The luzzus are adapted to local waters and remain in active use today. Painted in bright shades of blue, yellow, red, and green, they line the harbor in tight clusters. Each bears a pair of painted eyes on the bow—a symbol rooted in ancient Mediterranean traditions, believed to protect sailors at sea. Together, they create a scene that is as practical as visually striking.
马尔萨什洛克港口五彩斑斓的渔船，马耳他 Helsinki's shoreline during blue hour, Uusimaa, Finland (© Klubovy/Getty Images)
马尔萨什洛克港口五彩斑斓的渔船，马耳他 Helsinki's shoreline during blue hour, Uusimaa, Finland (© Klubovy/Getty Images)
色彩鲜艳的船只，历久弥新的传统 Daughter of the Baltic
马尔萨什洛克港口五彩斑斓的渔船，马耳他
色彩斑斓的“卢祖”（luzzu）——即马耳他的传统渔船——停满了马萨什洛克（Marsaxlokk）那避风港湾的水面；这座村庄坐落于马耳他东南沿海，距离首都瓦莱塔仅需短途车程。作为该国主要的渔业中心之一，这里的生活节奏始终与大海的律动保持着和谐的步调。村庄约有4000名居民，并以其充满活力的滨海区域而闻名——尤其是广受欢迎的周日鱼市，以及每天清晨满载新鲜渔获归来的船只。
“卢祖”（luzzu）这种传统船只适应了当地水域的特性，至今仍在使用。它们漆成鲜艳的蓝、黄、红、绿等色调，在港口内密集排列。每艘船的船头都绘有一对眼睛——这一源自古代地中海传统的图案，被认为能保佑水手在海上航行平安。这些船只共同构成了一道既实用又极具视觉冲击力的风景。
Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland
Finland is famous for the northern lights, its high happiness rankings, saunas, and thousands of lakes. Helsinki adds history, design, and the Baltic Sea to that list. The story begins in 1550, when King Gustav I of Sweden founded a trading town that would become Finland's capital in 1812. Today, a walk through the city can take you from Senate Square and the white-domed Helsinki Cathedral to the sea fortress of Suomenlinna, a UNESCO World Heritage Site accessible by ferry.
Over 70% of Helsinki's 265-square-mile area is water. The city stretches across more than 300 islands, giving residents easy access to parks, forests, and the shoreline. Visiting in autumn? You're in luck. The surrounding forests offer bilberries, lingonberries, and mushrooms that people can forage under Finland's Everyman's Right. If you work up an appetite, try karjalanpiirakka (Karelian pies), creamy salmon soup, or a warm cinnamon bun with coffee. Watch out for the trams and cyclists. And if someone lends a hand, 'kiitos'—thank you—goes a long way.
戈佐岛上的盐田, 马耳他 Salt evaporation ponds on the island of Gozo, Malta (© Marius Roman/Getty Images)
戈佐岛上的盐田, 马耳他 Salt evaporation ponds on the island of Gozo, Malta (© Marius Roman/Getty Images)
困在网格里 Stuck in a grid
戈佐岛上的盐田, 马耳他
马耳他戈佐岛的什韦尼湾，总有一种魔力，能让海水、岩石与阳光呈现出一种宁静而有序的美感，令人不由得放慢脚步细看。几个世纪前，当地居民在石灰岩上开凿出层层盐池，形成数百个用来蓄海水的盆地。海水进入池中后，在阳光照射下逐渐蒸发，最终结晶成天然的地中海海盐。由于石灰岩海岸易于塑造，加上夏季温暖干燥，戈佐岛逐渐发展成重要的制盐地。每年五月左右，第一批盐晶生成，采盐季随即开始。工人们手工耙盐、清扫、堆放晾晒，最后装袋并储存在洞穴中。
游客可以顺着海岸一路走到盐池旁，不过要注意避开标有“禁止进入”的区域。如果你在夏天造访，说不定还能看到工人们正在耙盐、晒盐的场景，不妨停下来欣赏一下眼前的景色。返程之前，也可以去马耳他各地的美食商店，挑一份盐味十足的纪念品带走。
Salt evaporation ponds on the island of Gozo, Malta
Xwejni Bay in Gozo, Malta, has a way of making everyday elements look like a quiet choreography between sea, stone, and sun. You can't help but pause and look closer, right? Centuries back, families began carving these limestone pans, shaping hundreds of basins that trap seawater with each wave. Once the water settles in, the sun's heat does the rest, slowly evaporating it into natural Mediterranean salt. Gozo became a salt-making hub because its limestone coast is easy to shape, and its warm, dry summers keep the crystallization process steady. The first crystals form around May, marking the beginning of the harvesting season. Workers rake the salt by hand, sweep it with brooms and brushes, gather it into small piles to dry for another day, then bag it and store it in the caves.
Visitors can walk right up to the pans along the shore but look out for 'no trespassing' signs. If you swing by in the summer, you might spot active raking and drying. Take a moment to enjoy the view, and before you head back, consider collecting a salty souvenir from one of the many gourmet shops around Malta.
戈佐岛上的Cittadella城堡,马耳他 Cittadella on the island of Gozo, Malta (© Davide Seddio/Getty Images)
戈佐岛上的Cittadella城堡,马耳他 Cittadella on the island of Gozo, Malta (© Davide Seddio/Getty Images)
A celebration of Maltese culture
That mighty fortress at the top of the hill is called the Cittadella—it's a medieval fortified city at the geographical center of the island of Gozo. Gozo is the second-largest island in the Maltese archipelago (after the island of Malta itself), and despite all appearances it's the less densely populated of the two.
On both Gozo and Malta, today marks the start of a two-day celebration of Maltese culture called Mnarja (sometimes spelled Imnarja). The national festival dates from the 16th century and is dedicated to the feast day of Saints Peter and Paul. During Mnarja, centuries-old Maltese customs and traditions are on full display. The streets come alive with traditional folk songs called ghana, as well as dancing, and horse and donkey races, some of which feature jockeys riding behind in chariots. Malta's national dish, a rabbit stew called fenkata, is served at nearly all Mnarja events. During the festival's medieval origins this was the only time of year when ordinary Maltese people were allowed to eat rabbit, which was usually reserved for the knights that then ruled the islands. To wash down the rabbit stew? Maltese wine, of course. Saħħa! ('Cheers!')
马耳他文化庆典
山顶上那座雄伟的堡垒被称为Cittadella，它是一座中世纪的防御城市，位于戈佐岛的地理中心。戈佐岛是马耳他群岛中的第二大岛（仅次于马耳他岛本身），尽管从表面上看，它是两个岛屿中人口密度较小的一个。
在戈佐和马耳他，今天标志着为期两天的马耳他文化庆祝活动的开始，这一活动被称为Mnarja（有时拼写为Imnarja）。这个国家节日可以追溯到16世纪，是为了纪念圣徒彼得和保罗的节日。在姆纳贾期间，几个世纪以来的马耳他习俗和传统得到充分展示。街道上充满了被称为加纳的传统民歌，还有舞蹈、赛马和驴子赛跑，其中一些是骑师坐在战车后面。马耳他的国菜，一种名为芬卡塔的炖兔肉，几乎在所有的姆纳贾活动中都有供应。在节日起源于中世纪的时候，这是一年中唯一允许普通马耳他人吃兔子的时候，兔子通常是留给当时统治群岛的骑士的。把炖兔肉洗干净？当然是马耳他葡萄酒。萨尼亚！干杯
瓦莱塔，马耳他 Valletta, Malta (© Deejpilot/GettyImages)
瓦莱塔，马耳他 Valletta, Malta (© Deejpilot/GettyImages)
Victory Day in Valletta
Today we're visiting Valletta, the capital of Malta, where the Maltese people are celebrating Victory Day. The national holiday commemorates the end of three historical sieges made on the Maltese archipelago—the Great Siege of Malta, which took place in 1565; the Siege of Valletta by the French Blockade, which ended in 1800; and the Siege of Malta during the Second World War by Italian and German forces. After nearly two and a half years of devastating air attacks, the WWII Siege of Malta finally ended in 1942. King George VI of the United Kingdom, which then ruled the island, awarded Malta the George Cross 'for the heroism and devotion of its people' during the great siege. The George Cross was incorporated into the flag of Malta in 1943 and remains there today.
The Maltese people typically celebrate Victory Day with cultural activities like literary readings, music, theatrical performances, and a regatta in the Grand Harbour, seen here. The armed forces parade on Republic Street in Valletta, ending at St. John's Co-Cathedral, where they salute the prime minister and the Maltese anthem is performed. The cathedral holds a mass for the highest-ranking officers and the president places a symbolic garland at the foot of the monument of the Siege of Malta to commemorate the victims of World War II.
