This year a worldwide financial and economic crisis leading to a decrease in commerce and an increase in unemployment worldwide hit Europe.
This led to (and this list is by no means exhaustive): financial crisis, rising unemployment rates, less access to health care, drops in standards of education … understandably leaving many people in dire straits. In Europe alone there are now currently twenty three million people without a job.
The cost of fuel for the home has been discussed in the Maltese media for the past few years and the two suppliers Enemalta (electricity) and Liquigas (LPG gas) have come under fire from consumers.
In 2009, Malta had the fifth-highest electricity prices in the EU but gas prices, although having risen; remain competitive with the rest of Europe. Due to this, it’s worth investing in gas heaters, hobs and ovens, as this works out much cheaper than the electrical equivalent.
Renting property in Malta is popular – particularly amongst foreigners who live on our small island, and for people who don’t want to be encumbered with a mortgage for many years. Renting your accommodation also gives you a degree of freedom of movement with leases typically being for 1 year – renewable annually.
There are a wide range of properties available for rental, including villas, houses of character, terraced houses, maisonettes and apartments. Apartments are by far the most popular type of rental property in Malta, as they are relatively inexpensive.
Recession, recession, recession! Aren’t you just sick and tired of hearing about it? That is all we have heard for the past year and a half isn’t it? People losing their jobs, prices shooting up, banks and other organisations going bankrupt and so on. All this has meant that many people have had to cut down on their spending for obvious reasons.
Some people have a natural talent to sniff out a good bargain but for those who don’t be aware that few good places still exist in Malta where one can find a good bargain indeed! I am mostly referring to the open markets one finds scattered all over Malta, some on a daily basis and some on a weekly one.
Malta’s location in the centre of the Mediterranean Sea makes it heaven for all fish and seafood lovers. Maltese cuisine in fact includes many dishes related to either fish or seafood. Fish restaurants can be found all over the Maltese islands and there are far too many to mention them all, so I will focus on the most popular ones by locality.
St. Paul’s Bay
The area itself is renowned as a fishing village so it’s natural that my ultimate favourite fish and seafood restaurant is located here.