Originally published: August 2017
Note: I wrote another article about Malta in 2022, sharing my latest views and feelings about the situation there.
A few years ago I decided to leave my home country and try my luck abroad. This wasn’t a spontaneous decision at all, rather it was the result of many years during which my disillusion and frustration with Malta had been growing and growing until I felt I had to take action or I would fall into a very negative perpetual state of mind.
Of course, I have many friends and dear family back in Malta, but honestly, I don’t miss living there. I make it a point to visit at least once a year and I usually have a good time catching up with friends and spending time with my family, but I don’t feel like I would like to go back and live there.
As you can imagine, several friends and family members ask me why this is so. I’ve finally found some time to really list the reasons for my moving away from Malta and why I don’t feel as comfortable living there as I do in other places.
While this post will be very honest, I’m afraid that some readers will find it too negative or downright offensive. Please keep in mind that is an honest outpouring of my thoughts and feelings and is no way meant to attack anyone or show any lack of appreciation. I did grow up in Malta and received many good things, I was blessed with a great family and a good education and also had lots of great experiences. However, as I grew older I started to feel that this was not the place where I wanted to spend the rest of my life in, and this is an attempt to describe why.
Malta is described in propaganda as being an idyllic “paradise on earth” island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. Surely life is incredibly good over there! Not to mention it’s a tax haven!
First of all, Malta is no tax haven if you’re Maltese. There are a few schemes designed to attract business and executives from abroad. These schemes have been widely used and abused, and that’s where the reputation for being a tax haven is coming from. The island is also famous for housing a great number of online gambling companies. These companies came to Malta due to the fiscal and regulatory incentives and they are by and large doing extremely well.
Online gambling is not something that interests me and in general, I don’t like the vibe that they have about them. I’m sure many Maltese will disagree with me on this, but this is my view on the topic. The gambling companies pay very well and usually provide attractive offices and perks to their employees. Due to them, property prices in the Sliema and St Julian’s area have risen to incredible levels (many would agree that it’s bubble stage already). A whole financial services industry has grown to support these companies.
The downside? Apart from the moral doubts of working at these companies or even incentivizing them to move to Malta, I see a lot of dependence on them. If another country were to offer better regulations and tax incentives, it is likely that many of these companies would leave, as they don’t have any significant ties with Malta. They are merely using the country. In the eventuality of them leaving, we will see serious repercussions on property prices and the financial services industry. Whether this situation ever plays out is anyone’s guess, but it’s definitely something that has always bothered me.
Now I don’t mean to turn this into an attack on gambling companies. They do well to seek out the best environment for them to operate so I don’t blame them for anything. I certainly didn’t leave Malta because of this, so let’s explore some other more important reasons for me leaving.
If I were to describe Malta in one word, it would be frustrating. There is no doubt that islands are (were?) blessed with natural beauty, great weather and beautiful sea. I think the small size of the islands is, however, a big problem for people like me. It is clear that you can find idiots in every country, but in bigger countries, you can mostly keep away from them. You can frequent different places, live in different areas, and generally live amongst people that you like. Not so in Malta, every time you step outside of your door you are bound to experience some kind of ignorance, be it illegal construction, irresponsible driving, and unprofessional behavior. There is noย deeply ingrained culture of doing things the right way. Rather it’s more of a “whatever, if it barely works then it’s good enough”.
I acknowledge that I have trouble really describing what it is that frustrates me and pains me so much about living in Malta. I also know that most Maltese genuinely love living in Malta, and whenever I have tried to speak out against the way things are done, the usual reaction is to try and shut me up and tell me that things aren’t so bad.
I inevitably realized that there was no way I’m going to change the culture of a country. One of the best pieces of advice was given to me by a Bulgarian builder in Malta. In one of my moments of frustration, the builder, who was fixing some stuff in our office, overheard me complain about things in Malta. He calmly came up to me and told me “my friend, if you don’t like the menu, change the restaurant”. It was a seemingly joking and simple comment, but it rang so true for me that that was the moment that I decided to leave for good, and sure enough, two months later I left.
Living in Malta, at least as a local, involves sustaining yourself (whether you want it or not) on a constant stream of local news. You can’t escape the latest political mess, and the smallest incidence can make front-page news. It is really an environment that discourages you to think big and expand your mental horizons. For many years I found it very stifling and I harbored a lot of internal anxiety, frustration, and anger due to this situation over which I had little control.
Since moving abroad, all these effects instantly disappeared and I finally felt free to be what I really want to be and rapidly increase my knowledge in the areas that interest me, such as investing.
They say that a person is the sum of the other people that are closest to him. In Malta, I always struggled to surround myself with people who would constantly inspire me and drive me to become a better person. Due to the small island mentality, there seems to be a lot of jealousy and people try to keep you in line. You’re best just being an average Joe behaving like everyone else if you want to live a good life there. Do something significantly different than the rest and you’re going to have a very difficult time indeed.
But come on Jean, you might say, what about the lovely “best in the world”ย weather that Malta is blessed with? Well yes, Malta does indeed have very hot summers and mild wet winters. The problem is that the vast majority of houses have zero insulation and in the winter months you can feel really uncomfortable due to the insane levels of humidity and cold inside. Although I always felt bad during the winters, reality really struck during my first experience of winter in the UK, when I realized that I was much happier in winter there than I had ever been in Malta. Like many other countries, buildings there are well insulated and have good heating, so you can stay in your flip-flops and shorts inside in winter. In Malta, I would be wearing jackets, long johns and a beanie and I’d still be uncomfortably cold.
One other big pain point: the roads. Malta’s road surfaces are among the worst in Europe and are more befitting of a third-world country than a country that presents itself as being a hub of innovation and being on par with its European counterparts. I once tried taking my Brompton bike to Malta to cycle around during our holiday but ended up walking back home after 200 meters. There are way too many potholes, bumps, and uneven road surfaces to be able to ride a bike like that comfortably without damaging it. Not to mention the challenge of staying alive when riding a bike in Malta.
Some of my friends have been severely injured due to irresponsible driving or bad road surfaces, and one of them even died by the roadside after being run over by a youngster driving without a license. I won’t even get started on the Maltese judiciary, but I’ll just mention that after eight years this man has not been sentenced yet. See here and here for more great examples of Maltese incompetency where justice is concerned.
A related aspect is the lack of good pavements. Unfortunately, Malta is not a walkable place at all. We grow up getting accustomed to getting out of our houses and into the car to get whisked to wherever we need to be. This leads to people exercising less and the resulting obesity issues. Malta has the highest child obesity rate in Europe, and Maltese adults are the second most obese in Europe. This fact is evident to me whenever I land in Malta and have a look around. I believe the walkability issue is a significant contributor to the problem. Owning a car is almost a necessity and gives you the independence to go wherever you want, while public transport is of average quality and mostly consists of buses and taxes (an underground metro system would be a game changer). Of course, we can all see with our own eyes that traffic has increased exponentially during the past twenty years, to the point that you are now guaranteed to get stuck in a traffic jam every time you go for a drive, at any time except during the night. Given that in general people tend to keep their cars far longer than the European average, we have a lot of pollution from vehicles and that affects everyone’s health.
Moreover, Maltese people in general tend to overeat, with typically huge portions being served in families, while fast food has gained in popularity. The famous mediterranean diet is not really present in Malta, instead people tend to consume large quantities of bread, junk food and pasta. Kids are given sweets abundantly. This is coupled with a sedentary lifestyle and other bad habits like smoking and alcohol consumption, and you get the resulting obesity situation. A visit to the country’s main hospital will also give a clear indication to where all this is leading to, with crowded waiting rooms filled with people who could clearly used a better diet instead of being given more pills.
Back to the lack of paving. In other countries, I got used to walking a lot, but in Malta it’s impossible to run any errands on foot except if you’re going around the corner from your house. Pavements seem to be an afterthought and come in all shapes and sizes. Some are tiled, some have rough surfaces, some are super narrow etc. What this also means is that we have a big problem with accessibility. One of the main highlights of my trips to Malta is spending time with my 93-year-old grandma, and I would love to be able to take her out for a walk while we chat about our lives. Alas, it’s pretty much impossible given the state of the pavements and the very close proximity of cars and trucks belching out fumes.
Lastly, let’s come back to the idyllic island thing one more time. During the past thirty years, there has been way too much indiscriminate development. Many ugly buildings were built and a good part of them were built in areas that were meant to remain in their natural state. The result is an overexploited island where very few green areas remain. As a kid, I used to go out and play soccer with my friends in the fields nearby. This was commonplace wherever you lived in Malta. Nowadays there is no chance that kids would be able to do that.
A Times of Malta showing illustrating over development in Sliema and St. Julian’s.
Everything’s been built up, and as I said, it’s been one huge land rush with developers making big money while they exploited every inch of the island. Of course, this constant development has also brought with it a lot of air and noise pollution, apart from visual eyesores. We are now seeing an increasingly high rate of respiratory diseases, and frequent complaints about noise due to construction. Gozo, the other island, is currently at a very nice balance between nature and man-made buildings, but I’m afraid that the developers will turn their greedy eyes there next.
Over exploitation (umbrella rentals) of one Malta’s iconic spots – Blue Lagoon
How about the famous Smart City? Rather than attracting all the big IT companies and making Malta another silicon valley, as was originally promised, it’s been sitting there mostly empty. Moreover, itย seems likely that it will soon be turned into another luxury apartment complex. This land had been given to the Smart City developers on the condition that it will be used for ICT purposes, but it seems that the new fashion is to completely disregard such contracts. Real estate agents are already selling apartments on plan even though it is still technically an IT office center and there are absolutely no building plans in place to turn it into an apartment complex. Something similar happened just last year with the former ITS complex in Pembroke. Such free-for-all practices are very common when it comes to building and development.
It’s not only big developers who are the problem though. Many individuals have also constructed illegally while the authorities have turned a blind eye. There is a whole village of illegal properties in Armier bay, and no political party has done anything to remove them over many years.
Armier bay illegal construction.
To make matters worse, much of the remaining countryside is taken up by hunters who occupy whole swaths of land. Yes, in Malta bird hunting is a very popular pastime, and incredibly just a few years ago a referendum to ban this barbaric practice in spring failed to get a majority backing. Any walk in the countryside is sure to be accompanied by the sounds of guns as the hunters try their best to blast every bird out of the sky.
A protected bird illegally shot down in Malta.
No wonder you will hardly see any birds in Malta.ย Illegal hunting is a widespread and serious problem, with poachers specifically targeting raptors (birds of prey) and Herons as well as rare migratory birds such as the Greater Flamingo, Black Stork and Eurasian Spoonbill, among others. Moreover, as I mentioned, hunters occupy a lot of public lands and block off access to hikers, mountain bikers and the regular folk who are out to enjoy a bit of countryside.
In line with the selfish nature so prevalent in Malta (a so-called Catholic country), we find the issue of smoking. Smoking was banned in enclosed public places and workplaces in Malta on July 1, 2004, with the implementation of the “Protection of Non-Smokers Health Regulations.” This ban was extended to include bars and restaurants in 2005, and in 2018, Malta introduced a comprehensive smoking ban that prohibited smoking in all public places, including outdoor areas like beaches and parks. The ban also prohibited smoking in private vehicles when children under the age of 18 are present. The implementation of the smoking ban in Malta has been enforced in restaurants and offices, which arguably already had arrangements for smokers before the ban, but it is a miserable failure when it comes to clubs and many bars. If you don’t believe me, go have a look for yourself, pick any club and you will most likely see the bouncers, DJ and other people in management smoking, so it is little wonder that patrons also feel at liberty to smoke. The ban in outdoor areas is another complete joke, again just visit any park and beach and see for yourself. As a health-conscious non-smoker, I find this to be another prime example of the selfishness and short-term thinking of the Maltese.
Sometimes people will challenge me by posing the question: “If Malta is so bad, why do so many foreigners fall in love with Malta and want to live here?”. I think that’s a very interesting question that merits delving into.
First of all, Malta is a very very unique place, for many reasons. It has a rich and varied history having been under the rule of several nations and cultures. Its size and geography is also unique, as is the fact that Maltese people have their own language. I can definitely see how these exotic qualities can be such a strong attraction for foreigners.
They would have never have experienced such an environment before, especially if they come from a big city/country where things are much more impersonal. Landing in Malta you tend to feel very welcome as people are very friendly and ready to help out, it feels like everybody treats you like family. This leads to foreigners saying hey, this is an awesome place to live in. Back home I’m just a number and nobody cares about anyone, but here everybody is so involved in each other’s lives, this is something special! I totally see why a foreigner would feel like this. I myself sometimes wish I were a foreigner so I could feel that way. If you don’t speak Maltese there is a better chance of insulating yourself from the daily gossip and mannerisms that end up getting on one’s nerves.
Here’s the thing though. While I acknowledge that some foreigners do move to Malta, love it and enjoy living there for many years, many others try the experience and leave after 3-4 years because they just can’t take the way things are done there. It’s one thing living a life of work-beach-party (Malta is the best place for that) and quite another when you decide to settle down, start dealing with the authorities, buy a house and try to get contractors to deliver quality work, etc etc.
People who are used to not having to struggle to get simple things done will start to get pissed off at how much time they’re spending dealing with seemingly innocuous tasks, and eventually end up leaving the island. Of course, the passage of time also amplifies the feeling of living in a very small place that acts like an echo chamber and innovation is stifled by the local way of life and culture, and that can also lead to one deciding to leave and live in a more open environment.
I guess I’ve written more than I meant to, the reality is that I really struggle to put my feelings into words, and that is why I don’t frequently share my thoughts on the subject. I prefer to focus on the positive things I have in my life rather than acting all pessimistic. My feelings about Malta at the end of the day are genuine sadness for what was once really an idyllic place that has been destroyed over the years. I would love to say that I hope to one day return, but I really can’t see how the culture can change and the harm due to construction undone.
P.S. While in this post I focused on the negative things about Malta that led me to leave, there is, of course, the flip side. There are many great things about Malta, and I do still think that it is a very good place for digital nomads to spend some time in.
2019 Update
It’s been more than two years since I wrote this post, and I’ve interacted with many people about the subject both in the comments section as well as over email exchanges. Unfortunately, not only has the situation in Malta not become any better since I wrote this, but things took a nasty turn for the worse.
The obvious big news item was the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2018, followed by several scandals in the political scene. During the last few months of 2019 we’ve seen Malta in the worldwide news for all the wrong reasons, with several top members of the governing party being forced to resign due to their misdeeds and connections to the murder.
As we close off the year, prime minister Joseph Muscat has been named โPerson of the Yearโ for organised crime and corruption by a consortium of investigative journalists.
It was a busy 12 months in the world of organized crime and corruption. But without further ado, here is our 2019 Person of the Year: https://t.co/oDVXs9EZYI#occrpaward #CorruptActor2019
— Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (@OCCRP) December 27, 2019
Dr Muscat joins a list of previous winners of the OCCPRโs yearly prize that includes strongmen such as Russiaโs Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijanโs Ilhan Aliyev, Venezuelaโs Nicolas Maduro and the Philippinesโ Rodrigo Duterte.
โUnder Muscatโs leadership, criminality and corruption have flourished โ and in many cases gone unpunished,โ the OCCPR said.
The organisation highlighted the way Dr Muscat had acted throughout the investigation into the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
I had intentionally avoided politicising things with my original post, as I don’t consider myself a supporter of a particular party in Malta, but things have really gone to new extremes with the Labour party in government led by Dr Muscat in recent years.
Not only have things become worse in Malta, but the country’s reputation overseas is at an all-time low due to this government’s shenanigans.
What is quite impressive to me is that the Maltese population by and large has been quite passive during this whole debacle. Not to mention that probably around half of the population still doesn’t think that anything irregular has taken place in the past few years, as you can witness if you open any article on local newspapers reporting cases of corruption. The kind of brainwashing on display is at least on par with what you would expect from people in communist countries with no access to outside information. To see people defending the prime minister and his cronies while hurling abuse at any detractors, Maltese or foreign, is just sad.
One would hope that the Maltese will choose better people in leadership, independently of which party they’re from, and avoid further damage to the country. It’s worth keeping in mind that right now, the Maltese economy seems to be doing very well, however I am of the opinion that this boom has not been very organic nor is it built on solid ground.
If we take an honest look at the last 15 years of growth in the Maltese economy, we would find that the big driver has been an artificially favorable tax system designed to attract foreign companies to relocate their business in Malta and thus gain huge tax benefits. That drove an influx of foreigners needed to staff the relocated companies (most of them online gaming companies), which in turn drove up property prices and helped build an impressive financial industry to service these aforementioned companies. If one of these pillars were to be affected by the scandals rocking the political scene, all the pieces will fall like dominoes causing a serious crisis in Malta.
Taking the Decision
Over the years since I’ve written this post, I’ve received many emails from (mostly young) people who identify with my feelings and are struggling with taking the decision.
I want to make it clear that while we live in an era where travel is very easy and affordable, uprooting yourself and moving to another country is still a significant psychological and logistical challenge for most people.
Here’s a copy of an email reply I sent to a person who reached out to ask for advice on how to approach the decision. I hope it can be of help to others in the same stage of their lives.
Every person who decides to leave their home country will have the fears and worries that you mention, that is perfectly normal.I had the same concerns myself when I was in the same situation. What I did was to sit down in a quiet place for an hour or so, take a pen and two sheets of paper. On one list the pros and the other the cons about moving. Take your time and let your heart and mind both outpour onto those two pages. When you’re done, you should have a clearer picture of what you should do. If it’s still not clear, assign a rating of 1-5 or 1-10 next to each point that you list, with 1 being of least importance and 10 being essential for you. Then add the scores up and hopefully one should be significantly higher than the other.Know that you can’t control what you’ll find on the other side, but you owe it to yourself to at least seek a betterment of your situation if that’s what you need to do.I have yet to come across anyone who regretted leaving a negative environment that bothered them (job, country, etc) but I have met plenty of older people who have significant regrets about not taking a chance on a better future when they were younger.
Further Reading
- Bloomberg – Why the EU is furious with Maltaย – covers problems that I mentioned in the post and other big issues that surfaced in the past year since I’ve written this post.
- Only in Malta – Facebook group showcasing daily unbelievable occurrences in Malta
- Malta New Reality – More shenanigans in Malta
- The Shift – Daily updates on scandals and corruption in Malta
- 70% of Malta’s young people wish to leave.
We โsettledโ in June โ17 on this island and it took us 9 month to understand the โcultureโ of the locals. Itโs absolutely not the place to settle and we will be leaving back to the European Main Land in 2 weeks from now. We canโt wait! Everything in your article is 100% pointing out the true state of the country and itโs citizens, being in a great hurry to destroy the rest of whatโs left here to enjoy. We have lived before in many different cultures, in and out of Europe… nothing we have experienced before is worse than Malta. Itโs desperate… the average โJoe blowโ is around every corner at all level of society and itโs just impossible to get away from them. The only chance is to get out of here!
Dear Jean
I am a foreigner living in Malta for 10 years now. I really appreciated your post as the first honest, politically unbiased view of the island by an actual Maltese citizen I have seen in print EVER – or at least in English ๐
The frustration that you refer to exist, but they are livable. The much bigger issue for people like us, not from within the EU, is that it does not seem to matter how long you have been here, how much benefit you bring, or how much tax you (of which you do not especially benefit as you are considered ‘a temporary resident) to the residency offices or the local bank. Each and every year, including in the past 3 months, we go through a process to renew our stay – and every year there are surprise new requirements. Or your travel document is suddenly (after 6 years!) marked as ‘Not accepted’ when returning home from a work trip at midnight.
My concern for Malta is the shortsightedness in the treatment of the TNC professionals who are bringing necessary skills to Malta across the industries that have chosen to settle here.
Now I have written a lot more than intended.
Thank you once again for proving what I believed but could not find – much of Malta is in 2018. ๐
Thanks for sharing your concerns Wendy, I wasn’t that aware of this issue.
Hi too all… lve planned to vist malta soon again. My mother born there and grandparents. I was once there back in 1990 june to sept. With my nanu taking me on a history tour of islland . It was a happily experience. The meantimg of my reilitives.
Spending time with them. Also going for quiet walks. Dinners in. Also some out. I loved the sun and water. Was a great way to spend the day . Also a nap. Then be up too prepare a small bit to eat. Walk too center village to meet up with locals. To chat. Being that the evenings were cool breezey. Eat healthy meals. Listings too my elders . Finding want matters the most…… going to church giveing God. Time in ur day. I was only 17yrs old. I feel very blessed to be part of maltese tradition and culture. Being from America.Going to malta in that time was for me was like a heavenly place on the planet. Not to speak of all the histrionic churchs i walk in and around which was the skyline of the island in my eyes. Ive read most of the comments that others r saying that ……. for sure the development is changeing new generation of people . The older generations r dying. The new ones r comeimg Along . So it seems that the younger maltese generations dont care about how they really need too preserve the island. Save it knw so it doesn’t turn into ugly dirty skyline of tall buildings along the coasts. I agree……….. stop….this development. Its nasty too see that a very special small island is building up a ugly skylines. The beauty of the the island is its low structures and the church’s being only tbe tallest symbols on the island. That’s being said tells u that hundreds of years ago maltese people were more in touch with God…. on a daily basis. Back then most people went to vist early morning prayers for the day.. every day….then went about there adult lives. To do good for all…. in everyway that evey family loves all its people. If u look back at the maltese anserty….going far as 300 yrs most people on the island r related to each other . This is why this small group people love and care for another. I say too the all maltese ages…. the very young….the older generations of people still around . PLEASE encourage these younger men and women of Malta to remember that if u what to preserve its past years of rich history . Let the rest of the world knw that we need same the island frm be coming a modern city……. thats what’s making people ugly on this small group of island people.
I lived in Malta in the 60’s and to be a kid here then was the best place in the world, still can’t believe we used to safely play in the road! I moved back here 14 years ago and wow has it changed and even in the last 14 years the additional detrimental changes have kicked in. I agree with everything Jean says, Malta is a Marmite country – you either love it or you hate it – no in-between. The bureaucracy, the traffic, the ugly buildings, the mentality balanced against the weather, pastizzi, beaches, laid back attitudes.
Some mornings I hate it and in Winter it looks ugly….but when the sun shines….
When I see what it going on it just upsets me. So much corruption when it comes to building and corruption in all levels of government. I am glad I left the island two decades ago and I doubt I will ever visit as what was once a beautiful country is now a cesspit of concrete , crime , corruption, loose morals , murders , violence … the place I loved and grew up in no longer exists ..what a shame Malta ever joined the EU , yes you benefited but sure are paying a hefty price for all you thought you gained and you donโt even realize it.
Dear Jean
You couldn’t be more spot on on describing the real Malta. It’s true it’s nice to come for a holiday and see the history that surrounds it and the beauty of the sea connection but then after couple off days catch that flight and see ya later.
I moved from Malta to Australia 10 years ago but returned back to live with my young family last August and manly to be close to family as we couldn’t do the yearly trip like you do from England but I still finding hard how ignorance the Maltese people are of not speaking up and seriously not seeing in what state this country has become.
Would love to do something to make it better but I find myself hopeless. Kids and hubby are enjoying close family so far but it’s only been 6 months that we moved back. Let’s see what the future here holds
Thanks for your blog it made me feel I am not the only one winging about the “beautiful Malta!?”
You’re welcome Lorraine. The laissez-faire attitude is slowly but surely destroying Malta.
Totally agree with your blog Jean. I am an expat in Malta and everyday is a love and hate situation for me….the driving arghhh!!
Even where I live is totally surrounded by construction. I came here in the hope of a better life but have spent 3 months with chest infections (which I don’t normally get) and sadly all my expat friends have left in less than 6 months of being here…
If this is progress why would anyone want it??? Oh yes money…..that is pretty much at the route of the problem in Malta in my opinion and it certainly doesn’t fit with its so called Christian values. Best wishes to you!
I too left Malta some 8 years ago, and am now living in my third country, but can actually speak for several others as I travel constantly in my work. Itโs possible that I may move yet again at some point. I have a successful career and make very good money.
My profession is finance and the most important lessons I learnt in my professional development were learnt in Malta, working for tough Maltese family businesses with operations in North Africa and Europe. There are quite a few of them, you would be surprised. Then again, they donโt employ whingers of any nationality.
My Maltese experience and education has given me a competitive edge over colleagues from other European countries because we Maltese are more versatile and flexible. Insularity and being poorly read are our biggest disadvantages, and guess what Jean, I see a lot of both in your writing. You know what is the biggest mark of insularity? Itโs when you absolutely lack both perspective and hard knowledge of realities, or have a utopian view of โabroadโ , and fail to recognise that what you are is where you come from, no matter how far and how permanently you move.
Living in different countries has made me realise the very hard choices and realities in even the best countries. Some examples :
London is great…..if you have a great salary. If you want to maintain a Malta lifestyle that can be obtained on a much lower income in Malta, including decent housing, a reasonable commute and good schooling for the kids, you need 80 grand a year. The average salary in London is 27K. Before taxes. If you reach your mid thirties and donโt have a good income in London, you need to cut the BS, thank the stars for a few or several great years in one of the worldโs truly great cities…..and leave.
Many Maltese live in Belgium, and are so smug because they think they โleft the islandsโ. The truth about these Maltese is that none of them would be there if they were not working for the EU, paying very low taxes on very high salaries with very good pensions. Brussels is the city that attracts the highest percentage of Maltese โmigrantsโ by far, by my reckoning. Yet none would be going there if they were working Belgian jobs paying some of the highest taxes in Europe on low salaries. Brussels is also a very ghettoised city, like quite a few other cities in Europe, with a lot of racism that is subtle that can make your life hell if, as in London, a very high salary does not insulate you from the petty aggravations or atrocious traffic and nightmareish commutes. Imagine living in a small Flemish commune and never being invited by other parents to kids parties because you are โforeignโ or just donโt speak Dutch. And you yourself find yourself making โracistโ decisions in cities like Antwerp, Brussels, Paris and Rotterdam. You wonโt live in a part of town with a large Muslim or African minority. Not if you care about the value of your home and in some cases, the safety of your kids. Most of Brusselsโ expats live in just 5 communes of the city. Most Dutch people I know would not dream of living in Rotterdam.
The further east you go in Europe, and the smaller the community anywhere in Europe, the deeper the prejudice. Be very aware of that. In Europe everybody has prejudices. Including yourself.
Germany and the Nordic countries are amongst the best places to raise families. But language is a big barrier for most Maltese in many careers, and schooling can be especially tough if the kids are not immediately fluent in the local language. And given the nature of the German schooling system, with aggressive streaming at a very young age, you donโt want an academically gifted child to be held back by language in such a system, because the pressure to push that child into a technical or apprenticeship direction can be brutal.
In the South of Europe and especially Italy, there are no jobs, there are high costs, there are big barriers to working in several trades and professions if foreign and taxes are high, services are bad, and salaries are low. And itโs as simple as that. In the east of Europe itโs only good if you are highly paid and working for a multinational. And the racism is immense.
So after you have done patting yourself on the head about leaving Malta, dig into real life. You will make it with a will. But only if you have a good head on your shoulders, and a good CV. And the luck to avoid some very nasty pitfalls.
I’m glad you’ve embarked on a successful career, however I think you’ve missed the point of my blog post. This is a personal blog and I only wrote this to share why I left Malta for anyone who would be interested.
Having the good fortune of being able to work from anywhere, I have found my ideal spot in the world and am totally happy there.
Stash,
Not sure if your nick was done on purpose to refer to money but certainly half your substantially long cynical comment deals with money. If that’s all you care about then yes of course Malta is great for you. You can make it and hide it and get away with ripping off government and to hell with society and quality of life.
It is you who missed the point of what Mr Galea is talking about here. I have lived in various countries as well and all have their disappointments. But on a social level and depending on what you are looking for in any country you can develop your niche. In Malta that is hard to do because you simply cannot avoid being confronted with everyday self destructive contemptuous egotism. Stupidity and ignorance are celebrated as virtues.
I find that actually it is people that think and speak like you do, tend to be obsessed with making money with no care on how its done, lack any sense of social ethics and hold nothing but contempt for others if they do not uphold making money for its own sake. People like that tend to be well educated on paper but very poorly read and lack capacity to manage medium complex problems and situations. I am not saying you are like that but from personal experience that’s my conclusion and I could be wrong.
Its what I know to be the root of what’s wrong with the majority of people in Malta. I cannot speak for countries like Italy even though I have my opinion but suffice it to say you don’t see this sort of behaviour not even in Sicily.
Good luck for the future
John
I have been holidaying in Malta for 18 years but I am not sure I will come back again. It has changed and lost a lot of its charm. The pavements are a serious problem and so is the over development. I completely Agree with you about the Maltese attitude, anything will do. Well I am sorry but the rest of the world expects a better standard. Food here has become bland,even the coffee has got bad. Why am I moaning ? Just sad.
It’s definitely changed very rapidly Glennis. With regards to food, I think this is one area where things actually got better. There is way more choice now and the influx of Italian restaurants has upped the standard. It’s also true that some local restaurants have failed to progress and have now fallen behind all the newcomers, and perhaps this is what you are referring to.
I have been gone 15 years bro, and i agree with you, so much. The reasons you mentioned are why I left, even back then when we’d just joined the EU – plus other reasons too – like needing to get out from that embryo-mother-like connection maltese people live inside all their lives with their parents unlike almost anywhere else in europe (the distances are so small i guess that you are expected to occupy the same 25km radius and so can see them daily, while it would be natural all over the world to move town, or even state when you get to college, and not be so closely watched). Also everyone gives you their opinion on your choices in Malta, and dishes out ‘tips’ on everything which as a highly independent person irritated me in a way I cannot explain. I am still not zen enough to laugh that aspect off, although I know people who learned to. This aspect is 100% maltese and I’ve not come across it anywhere else. I would also add the absolute heteronormativity of the culture, and still very backwards equality attitudes that are at least 20 years behind the rest of western europe.
I don’t think you can get away from idiots abroad anymore than you can in Malta actually. On that point I will disagree. I always only got the illusion of space. I think unless you go to iceland or something you never can get away from people. I mean I’m not joking in my apartment here in Berlin I’ve heard my next door neighbout fart, some miscreant pooped in the stairwell of the building – and I live in a ‘good’ area, mind. Even in rural ireland people would let their horses get into your garden or set a blaze by your car or some such craziness. Once a neighbour on a coke binge in ireland knocked my door and shoved his dog into my house before I could say anything then disappeared for two days. A man was bludgeoned to a coma by ‘lads’ on a spree a short step from where I lived. It barely made mention in the news.
Actually the crazy and the drunk violence in general i’ve witnessed abroad compared to Malta is very high – road rage included (and a car tried to run me off the road in birkirkara bypass once because I honked at them when they overtook me illegally)
But I’ll say this though, growing old(er) outside of one’s family circle, in the big sprawling world, where nobody else seems to be connected to their family either, feels wrong sometimes. It’s a kind of emptiness. And despite the undeniable small-world-mentality Malta has, let me tell you there’s some metropolises out there that will roofie your ambition worse than il-gahan-malti because everyone you bump into is basically another ennui-soaked berliner who wants to be 21 when they’re almost 40. (Where I’ve lived for the past 4 years). I thought my art life and inspiration would change having lived abroad but, that has not altered at all. I’ve just had more freedom and learned what it feels like to not be in Malta.
But you know… lately Calypso has been calling me. I wanna give it a go. If it goes South hey I could also fly north again the way I did before.
Enjoyed reading your article – all the best!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Lisa. Fantastic art pieces! All the best with your Calypso plan ๐
Thanks Jean, you have saved me a lot of time and heartache; I was seriously going to give Malta a try, but the issues that you outline in your excellent piece are precisely the sort of things that would rub me up the wrong way, and the sheer number of supporting comments from your countrymen have convinced me that it would be a wrong move.
I was actually most interested in Gozo, but with the threat of over development looming there too, it would be a heartbreaking experience.
You’re welcome, for what it’s worth I still suggest visiting the islands and seeing things for yourself, perhaps notwithstanding the downsides it would still be worth moving there. Deciding on a place to call home is a personal decision and everyone has their own criteria and deal breakers, so you might actually like it. Gozo remains one of my favourite places so far, and I’m hoping that sense prevails and it doesn’t get ruined by overdevelopment.
Philander, you’ve got to go and see it. Then you appreciate how great it’s somewhere else. I was a week. Actually I wanted to stay longer to get a deeper inside and become acquaintd with everything, but 1 week was enough. It’s enough to see everything you want to see (the sights) and what you don’t want to see (which unfortunately is quite a lot). I went there without having read this article before.
Best is to stay in Budibba or Qwara and then take the public bus and try to walk up any side street you can to explore as if you lived there. It’s quite an eye-opener.
And don’t ask the hotel to get a better room because yours is noisy, you will be told they are fully booked up even if on booking.com they have ample availability. And don’t buy an icecream on the promende in Sliemma because the guy in that brown stand named “patisserie” will bow down under the table and happily serve you some 3rd rates ice-cream out of a big container bought at a supermarket instead of the fancy stuff he has on display. And don’t get scared by a loud car noisy if some rich younger in an overpowered Mercedes or Hummer goes over the Promenade at a 100 per hour overtaking several cars. It’s normal. Oh, and don’t “go Topless” but feel free to dump you litter whereever you are. Don’t even dream about buying on of their 1.5 million โฌ penthouses with sea (sorry, sewage) view. Well, you might get themm for 800K if you ask nicely. Oh gosh, you’ve got to see it to believe it. Then you’ll learn to appreciate how nice it is where you currently are. Lol….
Agree with ALL you said. I manage to overcome it by ignoring politicians and practice politics in a heritage organisation Din l-Art ฤฆelwa in which I have been a Executive Committee Member for the past 25 years, struggling to restore places which are left abandoned.
Thanks for your work Stanley, I really admire people like you who work tirelessly against all odds.
Wow, if you had omitted the word ‘Malta’ from your article, I would have sworn you were talking about Sydney, Australia. But here, no one talks politics, religion or race – for fear you are labelled racist and discriminating.
It rains mostly in Summer – which is awful if you love the beach.
There’s no shooting birds in Sydney – you need a licence for that, but there is shooting people.
The income tax rates are much higher, in fact there is a tax for everything and a fine for everything – from jay walking to picking clams on a beach. The cost of living is very high.
And bad roads? You haven’t seen anything until you use the roads in NSW.
The building are not illegal – the fines would be in the $ millions – but with the number of high rise blocks of flats going up, Sydney looks like a ghetto.
We left Malta a long time ago. The grass is not greener. I am thinking of going back actually – if only for the weather. Anything else would not be unfamiliar.
Hi Tania, sorry to hear that about Sydney. I’ve never been there although it’s definitely a place I want to visit someday. All the best and good luck if you decide to return to Malta.
Well Tanya
Stay were you are trust me. It’s not the Malta you left and you will be very disappointed. I left Sydney in August 2017and not very happy that I did!
Your words are spot on to how I feel everyday. Sadly, I can’t leave, for more reasons than one. But I keep hoping that at some point, I will. Although I’m already 50 years old . I know I’m not THat old but with all the frustration I feel on a day to day basis .. it leaves me feeling older than my actual age. I so envy you and all those who have taken the same step. I love my Malta but it is nothing as it once was, when I was a kid and enjoyed going to the countryside with my family. Still the system and the mentality was always as it is. I had the opportunity to leave when I was much younger , (I was in London for three weeks and offered a job) but my mom changed my mind at the time. You know the usual “what will you do if you come back and you don’t have your car/ place .. anymore?” Now she is old and I feel guilty leaving her on her own and I do not have a cent in the bank, due to many years struggling with work .. since I am always so depressed with the overall situation in this country. I feel totally suffocated and when my mom is gone, I think I will just sell house and all and head to the UK for starters. I’m sure I will feel less old the minute I leave this forsaken rock. I admire you and people who really love their country and wish it was a better place to live in, without resorting to go to an other place; to survive our sanity.
Hi Jean my full respect for this truthful read about Malta I can not believe how blind , ignorant,greedy, shallow and couruppet that rock is my daughter fell in love and married a Maltese man thank god they left that place and now live in Abu Dhabi ..My daughter,me and my wife still have to tell him not to treat our daughter like it’s 1920 s he didn’t like it his parents think it’s a big deal to buy apartments and shout it out saying it’s all for the baby and I tell them when she grows up she will make her own mind up these people can’t even hold or kiss there grandchild because there to busy talking about themselves sorry Jean for some reason Malta thinks anyone gives toss.
WOW @ Jean- you have no idea ! Malta is like a golden egg – you should try some other countries out there.
Your complaints could be construed as rather petty – The pavements aren’t big enough…๐๐คฃ that takes the cake !!!
WOW wow “gobsmacked” – in the big scheme of things – REALLY!!!!!.
You should take a 6 week trip around Southern Africa and various eastern European countries, you might retract some of your complaints and be grateful…..by all means – you don’t like it leave…but don’t write in ignorance -please.
Hi Will, I have indeed tried out many other countries and settled on a place I like better. With regards to pavements, this video is worth watching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nk2EtBYJ_ww
I have to admit, I know you literally for a total of a few minutes….but today I had to admit that I was agreeing with what you anticipatingly wrote a few months back. Not that I didn’t agree with the latter at the time – I was still adamant to admit all hope was lost…to the ships…still, I now figure out better why you left your island…but I understand better now, why I have to leave mine soon.
Thanks for sharing Alex, unfortunately things seem to be getting worse and worse.
Any human being who is truly blessed will leave Malta immediately.
It is with a heavy heart that i admit that yes jean…everything you wrote is true. It has become one very fast rat race to “who fattens their wallet ” most. The sheer selfishness of maltese drivers ! Blocking “give way “yellow grids when they are themselves waiting at traffic lights! The dirt everywhere, the lack of discipline, the inefficient public transportation system, the deafening noise from business owners “in politicians pockets “! The ‘ rape ‘ of paceville and the surrounds by money hungry nightclub owners, who rendered this zone as no better than a red light district. Oh ! I could go on and on…the sad thing is our intelligent youth are all flocking to leave, brainy young people that could come up with a save the islands plan. An introduction of a small fee for rubbish collection would in turn purchase night road washer trucks. A call for ideas re the introduction of a fast ,efficient metro system would see the emvironment in turn improved. A disciplined hefty fine for littering, traffic contraventions , noise pollution etc…it is a crying shame the free for all, rats scurrying to their holes with what they can loot mentality malta has become. I hope it is not too late for the islands , we are loosing our children ! Wake up parents !
Can’t say I blame you. I’m doing the same thing myself for mostly the same reasons.
Spot on! Maltese by birth, but have lived overseas for most of my life, like you I enjoy visiting every few years. I was there recently after an eight year absence and was shocked at how worse things have become. I cannot emphasise enough the word shocked. What I saw and experienced was so confronting that I decided to never visit again. The country has been “raped”, people have lost their soul, and I fear that it will soon enough all come to a “train wreck”
I got the link to your article through a friend that works at oxford university. this person left to continue his studies in science and as far as I am aware he is doing very well.
Kidding you not, I have read your article 4 times as it had a profound interlinking with thoughts that have been pestering me every morning for the last 7 years.
I grew up in 90s Malta… things were always challenging – at home ,with both parents working, financially, things were difficult. Both parents had respectable jobs – the reason that they never got promoted I only understand now.
The fact that I am thinking twice or three times to write this comment encapsulates the problem of having to be careful.. shutting your mouth at the face of things done wrong and the limited mental capacity for persons to understand constructive criticism …as mild as it may be.
I cannot get into the specifics of what I went through because It may prove damaging to my livelihood but I can assure you that some of the stories I have gone through as a professional merit newspaper articles. To all young people with even a mild sense of ambition;
DO YOURSELVES AND ALL YOUR FUTURE ACQUAINTANCES A FAVOR, DO NOT SETTLE IN MALTA.
Thanks for sharing.
Hi Jean,
Wish I had the age and means to leave too.
My son has moved out of the island nearly two years ago & his company has promoted him 3 times during his first working year. He has also won the best worker due to his enthusiasm & dedication at work. No way such things can ever happen in Malta. I do not regret him leaving although for different reasons than yours, and surely he’ll have better opportunities & open mindedness away from here. Wish I could do the same!
Thanks for sharing that Marlene, and congratulations to your son on his achievements! I’m sure he will go on to greater things.
Hi, Thank you for this blog post. It was a relief to me as well to read it hence I thought I was the only one having this thoughts about Malta.
I have lived in Malta for almost 2 years and I left 2 years ago, going back to my home country Sweden. I did enjoy some parts of Malta but most of the time I was actually not happy at all living there. The people in general was not very welcoming, the landlord was a real asshole and dealing with authorities, banks and other service areas was a nightmare.
Living there, working there and paying tax and being a good citizen apparently was not appreciated by the locals at all. And in general the Maltese people are very rasist people with a narrow minded mindset. Of course I met some nice people there but most of the time not.
I feel sad for Malta and its people and the way things are there, I really hope they will realize at some point and do something about it.
Once again – I am happy I found this blog post and all other comments – I now see that I am not alone and it is not only in my head ๐
br,
/Carina
Thanks for sharing your experience Carina.
Our culture is changing but only for the worse especially with all these foreigners coming here whose culture is much different from the western way of life so give ten years more and will change even more but only for the worse.
This article represents what I have been feeling for a long time. I am trying to make that step and hopefully I’ll emulate Mr Galea in the near future.
Take care
Thanks for commenting Renzo.
Normal complaints from a native of a country to justify why he is leaving… if I wrote an article about why I left Colombia and I decide to move to Malta and why I don’t consider to go back you would find a similar article… so yep for an expat, I don’t think this is useful in my case Malta apart from their problems is being really good for me, that is not my final destination yet. However is where i live now and so far so good over the past 7 years… ๐ i do not deny says some things that are true, however, you tend to be reallllyyy tough with your native country at the time to criticise…
Hi Angela, I have no doubts that you could write a similar article about why you left your country. People who leave their home country normally have very good reasons to do so. I’m glad that you’ve been enjoying Malta so far.
You do say that it is not your final destination yet, and I think that is an important factor. I’ve lived in places which had serious problems, but I wasn’t that bothered or compelled to write about them because it wasn’t my country and I knew I would be leaving anyway.
Writing a post like this necessitates a feeling of hurt and indignation at the way one’s country is being driven to ruin by irresponsible people and certain aspects of the culture which do need to change but fail to do so.
The comments on FB (on Lovin Malta’s article) are enough to prove your point. What I found claustrophobic as a kid growing up in Malta (cause foreigners do not experience this side of Malta) is the fake Christian mentality. Religion in Malta isn’t a personal tool to help us be better people, but rather a communal be-all and end-all. Allahares ma tmurx il-quddies il-Hadd imqaddes ghax tghidx kemm jghidu bik!!!
I am a proud Maltese citizen living in France; I wear the Maltese cross day in day out; I speak highly of Malta to all my clients and then, every 2-3 months I come “home” (I don’t really know where my home is to be honest cause I feel trapped between 2countries) and understand all the mumbo-jumbo and start doubting my entire existence… No one seems to get us. You made my day just by knowing I am not the only one!
I think you understood my feelings and the reason for writing this perfectly. Thanks for commenting.
Lived In OZ for 7 years, I know the feeling and I agree with you,
We have a such of jam. Don’t know why is so difficult to get it right.
Things are getting worst by time . In here there is a big lack of thinking and planning before we do things . Then when the shit hit the fan ,I m all right fuck you jack. Best man win (Exucuse my French ). Ex. bugibba karnival ok no probs, but there was little planning and logistics leaving drivers frustrated and angry because roads closed everybody stuck kaos .
Now as mentality the answer is “u imma mhux kollox irrid ikun Ta darba f sena!” Fuck no, not even the taught of something like this when it’s gonna create panic and kaos and stress on the locals and danger in the streets everybody driving like nut cases, not mentioning the business as for me I do t go to bugibba in that Kaos ..
Another thing that hurts me is as you fly you see just a big solid rock over malta then when look over Italy on words is just green everywhere.
So why the hell we do things if can’t do them right, don’t do them or get a team of pros from EU.
Another example Papaqali. Now it’s too late.
Prosit – it was cathartic to read your blog and some of the comments.
Thanks Etienne, glad it was useful to you.