Glockenspieling: Blown Away by Malta

We woke to another gorgeous morning in Malta and today was an easy going day so we didn't wake early. But we still have kids so it was a lot earlier than I would have woken up pre-parenthood.

Our plan for the day was to see the rest of the big island or as much of it as we could. The best way to accomplish this was to grab the Hop-on/Hop-off bus. Not wanting to waste any time we actually took a taxi to the first place we wanted to see because the bus would have taken us an hour and the taxi ride was only 20 minutes.
Our first stop of the day would be one of the temple sites that make up the UNESCO World Heritage designated Megalithic Temples

Our first stop of the day were the Tarxien Temples. Dating back from 5500 B.C. the Megalithic Temples of Malta are the oldest freestanding temples in the world, even older than the Pyramids of Egypt and Stonehenge. Though the Tarxien temples only date back to 3150 B.C. and are the youngest of the group, they were very important in supporting the theory of a thriving culture on the island and they mark the peak of the temple civilization. Used mainly as a ceremonial grounds they differ from the other UNESCO sites by being completely surrounded by urban development.

An overview of the entire site. All of them are covered by these tarps to keep erosion at bay.

Stinkerbell and I cruised through them fairly quickly and then amused ourselves with the stray cat that seemed to live there. It took our history buffs a bit longer to finish as they read each and every plaque and then discussed. I'm happy that MadHatter takes such an interest in history!

We left the Temples behind to search for the Hop-On/Hop-Off pick up location. Everyone we asked seemed to know that the bus stopped in town but not exactly where. After being given directions to take a left soon, and immediate right and then a left by the Tom Tailor store and then walk, we finally made it. Just after the bus had left. So, we waited 20 minutes for the next bus and finally got ourself situated.

We didn't stop for long at the next two sites as we had another set of Temples we wanted to see...

The pictures above and below are of the Blue Grotto. As we were touring the Azure window tomorrow, we didn't have an hour to spare here. But it was gorgeous.

Next stop, Marsaxlokk. A port city that was established by the Phoenicians when they first landed here it houses a huge market on Sundays and a tourist market the other days of the week. Not in need of any touristy souvenirs we stayed onboard the bus and hopped of at the next stop - the Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra Temples.

These two sites are also part of the Megalithic Temples but pre-date the Tarxien temples. We watched a short movie about the building of the temples which was fascinating but also all just supposition. Because the structures are so old there is no point of reference for the archeologists and they just have to make an educated guess as to how they were built and what they were used for. Supposition or not, it was intriguing.

After the movie, Stinkerbell got to try out her hand at building her own temple...

before heading outside to wind our way down to the sites. Since they are located about 500 meters apart and there are some monuments down by the sea we headed all the way down first and then worked our way back. Slowly, because my kids love the fresh sea air and sunshine. Who doesn't?

Heading back to actually see the Mnjadra Temples.

I won't bore you with all of the pictures. Unless you want to see them; you can head over to my SmugMug page in the next few days and check them out there.

We were getting hungry at this point so we hopped back on the bus. Snacks were devoured quickly...

and then we settled in to listen for a bit and even learned a few things...

We had to change bus routes at this point and we were hungry for some lunch so we grabbed a quick bite and jumped onto the next red bus (we had been on the blue bus route) to take us to the Silent City - Mdina.

Formerly the capital city of Malta, Mdina is now largely known as the Silent City or the Noble City. Completely enclosed by fortified walls, the city is inhabited by only 300 persons, most of whom are the descendants of the nobility that once ruled here. Cars are not allowed in unless you live there and the streets are lit at night by candlelit lamps outside of stately mansions that line narrow streets. It is truly like stepping back in time. And what better way to see it than by horse and carriage.

After our carriage tour ended we found that we still have time before the last bus of the day was back to pick us up. We decided that a walking tour of this gorgeous place was in order so we headed back in through the main gate and got up close and personal with the history here.

The narrow streets were gorgeous and reminded me a bit of walking through Venice.

We popped into the St. Paul's Cathedral (a little tidbit of information that our horse guide taught us - if there is a single cross at the top of the church it is a church, a double cross - like below - is a cathedral and a triple cross designates a basilica. I tried to verify this but can't so I wonder if it is only a Malta thing???). Founded in the 12th century on the spot where Publius purportedly met St. Paul after his shipwreck on the island the church was destroyed in the Sicilian earthquake of 1693. It was immediately rebuilt and is now considered a Grade 1 national monument.

And with that, we had all had enough sightseeing for the day. We hopped back on the bus that would take us back to our hotel and reflected on how the history of Malta had simply blown us away...

Blown us away! Get it...That open topped bus does nothing for your hair.

We actually got off the bus before our hotel as we had made the decision to have a drink in St. Julian's and then eat a fancy steak dinner next door. And we stopped to take some selfies...