The Great Escape

  July 31 - Valletta As we’re off back to Worthing tomorrow we decided to make the most of the sun and the sea by taking the ferry to Birgu and go swimming off the rocks.  With the breeze at the end of the peninsula, and, because of Fort Angelo, not being in full sun till lunchtime, it’s a great spot for a dip. The warm sea was a bonus as well and not something that we’re likely to experience in the English Channel! 🥶 😆   For the last two weeks we’ve been in Malta we’ve seen and heard fireworks most days, all, we believe, in celebration of a Saint’s day or some kind of religious fiesta.  It’s all seemed a little odd as the displays have mainly been at odd hours during the day and not at night when they’d be more visible.  We experienced more of the same again this morning but this time it was like a major celebration. There were huge displays all around the bay and harbour and, with the noise reverberating off all the battlements, it was really quite impres...

  July 30 - Valletta On an earlier recommendation we visited Mosta this morning to see ‘The Sanctuary Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption’, otherwise known as the ‘Mosta Rotunda’!  The view we had of it from the walls of Mdina made it clear why that’s its preferred description, it’s a ‘domed’ church.  The dome, which is unsupported and originally planned to be a copy of the Pantheon in Rome, is believed to be the third largest in the world.  There is no actual consensus on this claim though as ‘people’ can't seem to agree if it’s the height or the width of the dome that matters.  Apart from its size and shape the church is also renowned for what happened to it during WWII.  In 1942 the German Luftwaffe was doing its part to earn Malta the title of 'most bombed place on earth' when about 300 people were inside the church for Mass.  Whether deliberate or by misfortune, three bombs hit the rotunda, one of which penetrated the dome but failed to detona...

  July 29 - Valletta Out onto a traditional ferry and then across the harbour to the ‘Three Cities’ was our itinerary for this morning and, with nothing more planned, that’s exactly what we did.  Once over there though we had a lovely day spent wandering around the streets and alleyways, and then strolling around the harbour taking in the views.  There’s lots of hills in both Birgu and Senglea (two of the three cities) and after plenty of up (I don’t remember any down!) we spent some time walking over and across the enormous old battlements.   With plenty of bars and restaurants along the waterside it was a good opportunity to stop for drinkies and gawp at some of the ’superyachts’ in town. 

  July 28 - Valletta Trying to beat the crowds today we had an early start to visit Valletta’s most important treasure, St John’s Co-Cathedral.   Built in the late 16th century as a church for the Knights of St John, it became a co-cathedral in the 1820’s when the local Bishop started to share his function with the cathedral at Mdina.  On the outside, architecturally, there’s not a lot to it, but the Baroque interior is pretty spectacular.  With its magnificent ceiling frescoes, the lavishly gold decorated chapels and pillars (and practically everything else!), and the impressive marble floor tombs, this place is just stunning. Just to add to the whole experience as well the cathedral is home to two of Caravaggio’s more well known paintings, ‘The Beheading of St John the Baptist” and ‘St Jerome Writing’.  After leaving the cathedral our next stop was to the Fort of St Elmo, a fortress overlooking the Marsamxett and Grand harbours.  Constructed in the lat...

  July 27 - Valletta Today a ferry ride across the water and then have a wander around the ‘Three Cities’, that was the plan anyway!  The ferry bit worked ok but once we got dropped off in Birgu it didn’t take long before we realised that the plan wasn’t going to plan!.  We started off by having a walk/ scramble along the rocks at the base of Fort Angelo. This was looking like an ideal spot to go for a swim, and with plenty of shade in the early morning we were sorely tempted.  Ultimately though we decided it could wait and we’d be back another day.  One other benefit of the spot though is the view back to Valletta, it’s pretty ‘speccy’.  Next up was a visit to Fort Angelo itself.  This well preserved fort has been described as ‘The jewel in the crown of Malta’s rich military heritage’ and it sits at the end of Birgu’s promontory in the centre of the Grand Harbour.  Originally built in the 13th Century as a castle it was then rebuilt by the K...

  July 26 - Valletta (Day trip to Mdina) Out on a day trip today to the city of Mdina.   Mdina, a medieval town about 15 kms away from here, was the old capital of Malta and is known as the ‘Silent City’ (apparently this name originated when the population went from thousands to only hundreds as people moved to the new capital of Valletta).  Originally inhabited by the Phoenicians, around 700 BC, and then by almost everyone else since, most of the town’s existing architecture is from the 1500’s onwards. Considering the city’s history the place is actually quite small, less than 1sq km, however, with its narrow cobblestone streets and alleyways, and its many palaces and churches, this old walled city really is a beautiful place to visit. One particular standout was the cathedral, St Paul’s.  Constructed in the early 1700’s the church apparently stands on the site where Roman governor Publius met St Paul following his shipwreck on the island!.   The Baroque sty...

  July 25 - Gozo to Valletta   A travel day today from Gozo to Valletta.  It was a much quicker journey going in this direction as this time we used the ‘fast ferry’, a catamaran.  Only 45 minutes from Gozo and we were in Valletta, it was a little less ‘interesting’ than the other way though! 😊 On arrival at our hotel we had a bit of a pleasant surprise when we booked in, the view from the ‘balcony’ is stunning.  Although we knew we’d booked a ‘room with a view’ we’re actually looking out across the ‘Grand Harbour’ and to the three fortified cities of Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua!  Once unpacked we went out for a bit of a meander around town and eventually came across the ‘Upper Barrakka Gardens’.  Originally built for the recreation of the Knights of St. John in the 16th century, these gardens are located on the highest part of the city’s walls and provide great views of the harbour below.  It was also a lovely spot to experience the cool...

  July 24 - Gozo   A bit of a slack one today as we had a day out to the beach. Xlendi, our destination, is only 3kms away but in 35° degree heat we decided not to walk.  Xlendi, “a lovely little hamlet” (according to the local council blurb!), is situated on a rectangular bay nestled in between some beautiful limestone cliffs, and it would be a great place to spend a few days.  With bars and restaurants right on the seafront, gin clear aquamarine blue sea, and some lovely cliff top walking, this is a place where you could definitely chill out. 

  July 23 - Gozo An early….ish start today as we try and miss some of the steaming heat of the day for our visit to the Megalithic Ggantija Temples.   These monuments, encompassing two temples and apparently used for some kind of fertility ceremony, have been classified as the oldest structure in the world and date back to 3600 B.C.  The site itself has been laid out well to ensure decent viewing, but it also houses an impressive archeological museum containing exhibits found in and around the temples.  When thinking about the age of these, and other similar monuments, and how they’ve managed to survive all these years, it’s pretty mind blowing.  However, I must admit that I’m much more impressed when seeing something like a medieval cathedral and thinking about the planning, design, and workmanship that’s gone into making it  ‘real’.  Our second visit of the day was to the Basilica of St George’s, our ‘local’ church.   ‘Local’ because our B...

  July 22 - Marsascala to Victoria (Gozo) Our last few hours in Marsascala this morning before moving on to Gozo. We’ve had a good time here but 5 days was enough.  Marsascala is a nice town but it’s a little bit grubby and a little bit tatty. It’s a shame really because it wouldn’t take a lot of effort to fix things.  Moving on, by bus, ferry, and then bus again, we arrived in Gozo. Our first impressions here are that it’s cleaner, tidier, and in better nick than where we’ve been the last few days, which is great.   Our accommodation is looking good as well.  The room is in a real Olde Worlde sandstone house, in a tiny narrow alleyway, in the ‘Old Town’ of Victoria (Rabat in Maltese, but not to be confused with the Rabat in Malta!), and it’s lovely.  Bottom R: I wasn’t sure we were getting on the right ferry! 😂 After Roberto, our host, gave us few tips for dinner and sites to visit, we took off to find his top of the list recommendation, The Ćittadell...