MALTA : Past and present merge on a sun-drenched Mediterranean island that travelers visit for its attractive climate, warm sea, rich history and religous monuments

I left the bus and strode through this small Medi terranean village just as the sun began to warm its limestone walls and church bells pealed in the new day.

For most Europeans, Malta’s attraction as a vacation destination lies in its favorable climate and its warm sea. For me, it was the chance to explore the island’s rich history, which now includes last month’s summit between President George Bush and Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev.

Like most Americans, I was unfamiliar with Malta until I met my wife Lyn and we spent two summer months on her ancestral island.

We took a flat in Gzira, a residential suburb of Sliema, the island’s fourth-largest city and a major tourist center.

Our mornings were spent over mugs of black coffee at the neighborhood bakery. Later we would stroll to our favorite pastizzeria to buy the flaky, buttery pastries stuffed with ricotta cheese or peas and known as pastizzi .

Other pastizzerias sell timpana , which is baked macaroni and peas in a pastry shell, and Maltese sandwiches stuffed with tuna, capers and other treats.

Nearly every day we swam, even though the beach at Sliema is rocky. The island’s few sandy beaches are set in little bays in the island’s northwest corner.

Religion--even more so than politics--is at the center of Maltese life, and the island has more than 300 churches. Festa Week, an annual observance during which each parish church pays homage to its patron saint, is a particularly colorful time.

The churches are draped in lights and their interior walls are covered with red damask. Statues, magnificent silver altars and other objects are displayed amid bouquets of flowers.

During the week preceding Festa, streets are strung with banners, bands play and skies explode with fireworks.

Valletta, Malta’s capital, overlooks the Grand Harbor, a stunning natural port. It rose to power during the period of the Knights of St. John, who ruled the island from 1530 to 1798.

Art, architecture and history combine to make Valletta a fascinating town to tour on foot. The Triton Fountain, for example, depicts three of the half-men, half-fish offspring of Neptune, the Roman god of the sea. Then there are the ruins of the old Opera House that was destroyed by German bombs in World War II.

Also damaged was St. John’s Cathedral, a dazzling combination of ornate silver carvings, marble slabs and a ceiling featuring episodes from the life of St. John the Baptist by Mattia Preti.

Dominating the countryside from a hilly perch southwest of Valletta are the walls and cathedral of Mdina, the island’s capital from Roman times to the 16th Century. Now dubbed the “silent city,” Mdina is permeated by its past. The present is limited to about 400 people, a few shops and only a handful of motor vehicles.

From the city’s bastions the view takes in the mostly flat and dry countryside of the island’s interior, a few undulating hills, the clustered buildings of the north coast, St. Paul’s Bay and the open sea beyond.

It’s an inspiring setting, a place where, as in early December when the world was watching, residents can raise their glasses and give a toast . . . to peace and the prosperity of an island in the sun.

Malta’s smaller sister island of Gozo, with about 25,000 residents, is an echo of an earlier era. The high-rises and modern hotels of Malta’s north coast are almost nonexistent there, and the pace of life is noticeably slower. The main occupation remains agriculture, and women still create beautiful lace in a centuries-old tradition.

The island’s rugged beauty is exemplified by the spectacular cliffs and magnificent natural stone arch, towering above intense and dangerous currents at Dwejra.

The main ferry to Gozo runs from Cirkewwa in northwest Malta to Mgarr, Gozo’s picturesque port. Price is $3 U.S. round trip ($10 with car). You can also ride Gozo Channel’s Hovercraft from The Strand in Sliema directly to Gozo, cutting out the long bus trip to Cirkewwa, for about $9 round trip.

Bus service on Gozo is sparse. All lines start in the capital city of Rabat, and there may be as few as two buses a day to some places. Check schedules carefully at the main terminal before making plans.

Air Malta and several smaller British airlines fly frequently to Malta from London, particularly during summer. Cost is about $285 round trip. Charters are available for about $160 round trip. Arrangements should be made in London.

Air Malta and other major European airlines such as Alitalia and Lufthansa also fly from the island to other key European cities.

Pan Am offers a flight from Los Angeles to London, then on to Malta via Air Malta for $1,280 round trip.

Malta can also be reached by boat from Sicily. The Maltese-owned Gozo Channel line leaving from Catania offers inexpensive ($40 U.S., one way), slow (about eight hours) and sometimes rough passage. The Italian Tirrenia line, leaving from both Catania and Syracuse, provides a much more comfortable ride in less than six hours for $50.

A high-speed Hovercraft called the Virgin Butterfly, which began service in 1988, has cut the Syracuse-Malta run to under two hours (slightly more to Catania). One-way fare: $63.

Malta’s hotels range from the Holiday Inn and Hilton, starting at $80 U.S. a night for two, to basic hotels and guest houses in the $20 to $30 range, with a wide variety in between (all prices are regulated by the government).

Finding a room shouldn’t be a problem most of the time, with the possible exception of August. You can also rent flats with kitchens for a week or more at prices starting at $10 a day. While most accommodations are on the north coast, rooms are available in some smaller villages, near Mdina, and on Gozo.

Travel agents can help you book rooms in advance. Otherwise, the Maltese Tourist Office, just inside the city gate in Valletta, will provide listings of accommodations.

For more information on travel to Malta, contact the Consulate of Malta, Tourist Information, 249 East 35th St., New York 10016, (212) 725-2345.