Three Days in Gozo

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Well, my time in Gozo is done, and I am back in Valletta. It feels like being in a different country--the two islands are so different. It was hard leaving Gozo this morning, because I really liked it there, but now that I am settled back in in Valletta, it's all good.

I spent the last three days exploring Gozo using their somewhat crazy public transit system. The buses were all bought from England, usually after the English decided they were no good anymore. The roads are terrible, but at least the island is small.

The day after the boat trip was Sunday, and a lot of things are closed down on Sundays. This is one of the most religious places I've ever been to. Sunday morning I walked along the coast to the salt pans, a maze of 'pans' that have been carved out of the limestone. They are filled with sea water, and in the summer, when it evaporates, the salt is collected and used.

While I was having lunch in Marsalforn, the church bells started pealing madly. Now the bells always ring fifteen minutes before mass starts, and again on the hour, but this was something different. The bells rang for five minutes at a time, with a minute or two in between, for just over twenty minutes. Why? To celebrate the inauguration of the new pope. (Apparently the same thing happened the day he was elected, and later that day when his name was announced, but I was in a plane between Calgary and Toronto at the time.) If I hadn't known what the bells were for, I might have been annoyed (I was sitting at a restaurant just below the church). But since it was a celebration, I enjoyed the moment (all twenty or so moments actually).

Monday morning I explored Il-Kastil, the citadel in Victoria, the main city in Gozo. It was a windy morning, and I got there early enough (9:30am) to be able to explore the ancient city by myself. It is a maze of narrow winding streets, and of course the high walls. From the walls of the citadel, you can see all of Gozo spread out before you, plus Comino and Malta in one direction. There are four museums inside the citadel, and I visited all of them. The highlights were the Folklore Museum, because it is set in some medieval houses that have been recently restored. It is a maze (within the maze of the walled city) of winding stairs and low pasageways between rooms with vaulted ceilings. The other highlight was the Old Prison Museum, with original graffiti carved into the walls by the prisoners. Many of the prisoners were Knights of St. John.

I left the Citadel and Victoria behind and caught a bus to Xaghra (pronounced shaa-ra) to see the Ggantija Temples (gee-gan-tee-ya). They are about five thousand years old, and are pretty impressive for their size. Let me tell you, exploring the temples by myself was even eerier than the city. I'm not sure where all the other tourists have got to.

After seeing the temples, I decided instead of waiting an hour and a half for the next bus back to Victoria (where I'd have to catch another bus back to Marsalforn) I would just walk directly to Marsalforn. It was a nice walk, all downhill, with fantastic views of the Marsalforn Valley (Gozo is a series of valleys and plateaus) and the citadel towering over Victoria in the distance.

Yesterday I went to the southwest corner of Gozo, to explore the 'geological freaks' at Dwejra (dway-ra). Lonely Planet calls them geological freaks, but really it is an arch (the Azure Window), an 'inland sea' (the Inland Sea), and a hole (the Blue Hole).

As I was walking down the hill from the village of San Lawrenz to Dwejra, a vehicle pulled up beside me. Here's the conversation that followed, with my thoughts in italics:

"You must be from Canada" A very astute comment, based on the Canadian Flag on my back pack
"Yes." I replied.
"Where are you headed?" There's only one place this road goes to, so that must be where I am going.
"There." I pointed to the bottom of the hill.
"You should take some good pictures of the Azure Window, because it is going to fall down soon."
It's time for the Canadian sense of humour to kick in. "Well," I replied, "then I'm glad I came today."
"Well, it won't fall down tomorrow, but maybe in a year or so." The joke fell flat on Maltese ears.

Last night, I treated myself to a nice dinner at a restaurant overlooking Marsalforn Bay. It was a fabulous way to end a relaxing and enjoyable time on Gozo.

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Photos

The Blue Hole
Apparently this is one of the top diving spots in the world.

Graffitti from a prisoner in the Old Prison of the Citadel
Each oar on the ship represents a day spent in prison