Live Blog : On the way to Malta

It's been a while since my last 'live' travel journal entry. I guess the pandemic didn't really help and any travels done were either to get from one residence to another or a trip to catch up with friends. It's finally time for an actual holiday, to Malta, a country which I have never been to. I only booked my flights last week - in fact less than 7 days before the outbound flight. Flights were pretty easy to get and the return journey cost less than £100 - outbound with Ryanair and inbound with Jet2. The low cost was probably the main reason for the last minute booking. However, even with the flights and hotel booked, there was one more hurdle - testing negative for Covid-19. I didn't really have to test negative to get to Malta as the Maltese government regulation states that a negative test is not needed to enter Malta if the traveller is double jabbed. However, the UK government requires a negative test to return to the UK. So, there was a risk that even after entering Malta, I might be stuck there if I test positive before leaving. So, to avoid this risk, I managed to take advantage of a peculiar rule that states that the test needed to return to the UK can be taken 3 days in advance even in the UK. So, since my inbound flight is a Friday - I could take this test on a Tuesday. So, test I did - just this morning at a clinic that just popped up in Cambridge city centre. Less than an hour after taking the antigen test, a certificate was ready certifying that I am Covid negative. So, here I am, typing this journal up on the 16:11 Cross Country service from Cambridge to Stansted Airport, looking forward to a short holiday in Malta, pin number 57 on my world map! Hopefully 2nd times the charm. P/s: I had tickets to Malta in February 2020 but had to forgo it due to the onset of the pandemic.