We’re now on Saint Paul’s Street, standing in front of the Collegiate Church of Saint Paul’s Shipwreck. This is called a collegiate church, which means it has a chapter of canons and special status, almost like a small cathedral. Small and easy to miss, yet legendary in its own right, this is one of Valletta’s main parish churches. It looks narrow and tucked in, squeezed by Valletta’s streets. Don’t be fooled. This is one of the city’s oldest churches, begun in the fifteen seventies and later dressed up in full Baroque style. For Malta, it’s sacred ground. Its name tells the story. Around the year sixty, the Apostle Paul was shipwrecked on Malta while being taken to Rome as a prisoner. The Bible tells us the ship broke apart and the survivors swam to shore. The islanders welcomed them, lit fires, and helped them recover. Then came the moment everyone remembers. Paul was gathering wood when a snake bit his hand. He shook it off, and nothing happened. The locals stared. They thought he must be a god. Paul stayed, preached, healed the sick, and converted the Roman governor Publius and his household. That’s why Maltese tradition says Christianity began here. Paul is seen not just as a saint, but as the spiritual father of the nation. You can step inside for free if you wish to. The ceiling shows scenes of the shipwreck and Paul’s time on the island. It’s rich, warm, and full of story, though calmer than Saint John’s Co-Cathedral. Look near the high altar, and you’ll find treasures that locals hold very dear. One relic is a piece of marble believed to come from the column on which Paul was beheaded in Rome. Another is even more striking. Inside a gilded reliquary shaped like an arm is a fragment believed to be part of Paul’s right wrist bone. Yes, an actual bone from the man who survived the shipwreck. These relics are blessed and displayed on major feast days. The art tells more of the story. The main altarpiece shows the shipwreck itself. On the left side of the church stands a lifelike wooden statue of Saint Paul, carved by Melchiorre Cafà in sixteen fifty-nine. Every year, on February tenth, that statue is carried through Valletta’s streets with a big celebration. Legends follow Paul wherever he goes. One says he stayed in a cave in Rabat, now Saint Paul’s Grotto, and that soil from the cave could cure snake bites. People once sent that soil all over Europe. Legend says Malta lost its venomous snakes when Paul shook off that viper. Today, there are none. Coincidence or miracle? That’s up to you to decide. Before we leave, look again at the facade. In the niches are statues of Saint Publius, the Roman governor who became Malta’s first bishop, and Saint Luke, who was shipwrecked with Paul and wrote the story down. Above them, a small ship sits as a quiet reminder of the wreck that changed everything. From here, we start moving toward Valletta’s edge. We’ll head downhill to the Lower Barrakka Gardens and the Siege Bell Memorial. It’s about a ten-minute walk and a beautiful one. Follow the map to get there.