I have had a fabulous week in Malta & Gozo with my friend. Temperatures at this time of year are normally around 24-28 Centigrade, but for most of the week we were there it was at least 31-35 Centigrade and pretty humid; the locals all said they were having a heatwave and that it was warmer than most of their summer. This made the usual sightseeing a little tough and we often ran out of steam towards the end of the day - never mind, a return trip will be required to see the things we missed!
The first couple of days were spent in and around the capital, Valetta. We had a lovely walk round the entire outside of the city, watched the noon battery salute & cannon fire, took the harbour ferry tour and visited the other cities across the shore, albeit briefly.
If you ever go to Valetta, you must visit St John's Co-Cathedral. It is a wonderful baroque church and is owned by the Order of St John's Knights. The inside is exquisite.
We also visited Mdina and Il-Rabat, old fortified towns, then headed off to find the Dingli Cliffs. Bus journeys were crazy as all the bus drivers must think they're the Stig* and are absolute nutters! It did make our journeys a lot of fun, though.
On the last day on Malta, we managed to get tickets to the Hypogeum, an underground temple which was only discovered at the start of the 20th Century. Tickets are booked months in advance on the internet, so if you ever plan to visit Malta and want to see the Hypogeum, make sure you book early. We chanced getting leftover tickets and were lucky, but I wouldn't recommend it. We also visited the Tarxian Temples nearby and had a spot of lunch in the fishing village of Marsaxlokk.
Then we headed off to Gozo by bus and ferry, basing ourselves on Marsalforn, which is probably the busiest resort on the island. It is advertised as such, but it didn't feel massively busy like some of the Spanish resorts; in fact it was very well balanced and we enjoyed it there. There was a lovely swimming area, too.
The next day we headed over to Dwejra Point to see the Azure Window, then down to the seaside town of Xlendi for lunch.
The afternoon was spent at the Citadel in the capital of Victoria. This is undergoing major refurbishment at the moment, but still worth it for the views across the island.
We took in the nearby island of Comino to visit the Blue Lagoon; unfortunately all the boat trips from Gozo and Malta seem to congregate here and it is a horrible tourist trap as a result. We headed off up to the fort and abandoned hospital instead, then across the island to St Martins beach, which was lovely and peaceful. As it was so hot, it made for a welcome dip!
In the afternoon we stopped of at the G'Gantija temples, then visited the only working windmill on the island (currently under refurbishment)
On our last morning is Marsalforn, we took a walk along the coast to look at the salt plans, that are still in use today. We met Emanual Cini who, at 71, is still harvesting salt from these pans today.
Finally it was back to overnight in Valetta before I returned to the UK and my friend returned to the French Alps.
A separate holiday outfit post will be logged shortly. I hope you enjoyed reading about my holiday. Feel free to ask me any questions and don't forget to check out the additional page I have created with links about accommodation and guides to some of the sights.
* - The Stig - reference BBC Top Gear, UK Television programme (try youtube or BBC iPlayer)
LINKS available on a specially created page; information about Malta and some useful guides.
