I had the opportunity to visit Malta in early May. I found it to be a welcome bright, sunny respite -- notable for a Seattleite. The language, food and architecture show a mix of influences from Pheonician through Turkish, the Knights of St. John and the British. The highlights for me were visiting the megalithic temple at Hagar Qim, and wandering the streets listening to the Maltese language, a fascinating mix of Arabic, English and other influences.
Turns out Malta ranks as one of the happiest countries in the world in which to live, ranked 15th and just ahead of the US. This from a study by Dutch sociologist Runt Veenhoven, whose work on the World Database of Happiness is available at http://www1.eur.nl/fsw/happiness/ . I find this fascinating for an island that measures 17 miles by 9 miles with a population density of 1,100 people per square kilometer. To be happy living on Malta, one would need to value togetherness, close family ties, and a sense of history.
It will be interesting to keep an eye on Malta's ranking in the database. My one data point from a conversation with the maintenance supervisor at the hotel points to a potential shift in happiness values. He said he'd been trying to immigrate since the 80's but was unable to get a visa for Europe or the US. "It's very small here," he said. "I want more room to grow."
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