Heart of Valletta: a six-fingered Queen Victoria statue and Caffe Cordina (1837) — Malta's oldest café. Coffee, pastizzi, and the island's social salon.
Coffee and pastizzi at Cordina is a must. Outdoor tables with square views.
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St. John's Co-Cathedral is a Baroque masterpiece where each of 8 chapels belonged to a different "tongue" of the Order. 374 knight tombstones on the floor. Two Caravaggio paintings including "The Beheading of St. John" — his only signed work.
The Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta was the seat of the Order's rulers, then British governors, now Malta's president. The armoury holds 5,000 exhibits including knights' ceremonial armour.
The National Library (1796) — the last great building of the Order of Malta, housing the 1530 deed granting Malta to the Knights. Free entry, one of Valletta's most underrated treasures.