Six Days in Ragusa, Sicily

Left: View of Ragusa Superiore from Ragusa Ibla. Center: View of Ragusa Ibla from Ragusa Superiore. Right: The cupola of Duomo San Giorgio Ragusa Ibla at night.

Overview

To clarify, here we describe six winter days (February) in Ragusa. We did not make it to the coast at all, instead, we chose to focus on exploring cities and archaeological sites.

We flew into Catania, rented a car, and drove to Ragusa. We chose to base ourselves in Ragusa and its province because it was a part of Sicily we wanted to learn more about. To this end, we dedicated 6 days (7 nights). In this post, we talk about some things you might consider if you are interested in visiting this area of Sicily.

We came to Sicily from Malta where we also spent six days. It was interesting to note the similarities and differences between the two islands. The first people to inhabit Malta are believed to have arrived from Sicily around 5200 BC. For the next few thousand years, those first Maltese people build megalithic stone structures that you don’t see at all in Sicily. The two islands were intimately connected during WWII, although on opposite sides: Italy and Germany used Sicily as starting point of bombers that pounded Malta for several years. And, of course, the two islands share similar Mediterranean weather and flora.

What was most strikingly different between the two islands was the immediate sense of space we got when we stepped foot in Sicily, which felt huge and spacious after coming from Malta. The density in Malta is 1,318 people/km² compared to 198 people/km² for the Province of Ragusa. (The world average density is 55 people/km².) Another thing that hit us was the beauty and variation in Sicily’s landscape with its coasts, mountains, plateaus, large farm tracts, and wild areas.

The earthquake of 1693 (estimated at 7.4 MMS) was a devastating event for the Val di Noto. Val di Noto is the south-eastern part of Sicily which includes Ragusa and the Hyblean Plateau. It is estimated that up to 60,000 died, 5,000 alone in Ragusa, which was over half its population at the time. Out of the devastation came a period of building in a style referred to as Sicilian Baroque. Today, towns in the Val di Noto including Ragusa, are recognized for this rich architectural and artistic style. In recognition of this unique style, eight towns in the Val di Noto were inscribed into the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1992: Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto (South-Eastern Sicily).

Rebuilding after the 1692 earthquake in Ragusa resulted in a new urban center (Ragusa Superiore) created next to the old center one (Ragusa Ibla). Ibla is like a spur surrounded by gorges. Superiore is further west and a few hundred feet higher on average. Many of the iconic views looking down on Ibla are taken from Superiore.

The two parts of Ragusa are draped on the hills above the surrounding gorges, with beautiful views to the adjacent plateaus. Finding your way around will take a good part of a day. But rest assured that the most interesting walking routes between Superiore and Ibla will mean lots of stairs.
We stayed in Ragusa Ibla and were glad for our choice. While Ragusa Superiore is certainly characteristic in its own way, Ibla is more enchanting and there are plenty of restaurant choices and things to see. Specifically, we stayed at the Hotel Sabbinirica and we would highly recommend this hotel. From Sabbinirica it was easy to explore Ibla, yet also get to Superiore. A free parking lot is only a few minutes from the hotel by foot.



Examples of architecture in and round Ragusa. Left: Ragusa Cattedrale S. Giovanni Battista. Center left: Modica Chiesa del Carmine. Center right: Rosolini Chiesa Madre. Right: Ragusa Palazzo della Cancelliera.

What to expect

Driving. The geography around Ragusa and in general southeastern Sicily is such that straight shots in a car are rarely possible. Therefore, it takes time to drive between places. Our farthest outing from Ragusa was a 1.5 – 2.0 hour drive (each way) to the Necropolis of Pantalica, and that was pushing it in terms of time we like to be in a car. Be conservative in your driving estimates and factor in time for road deviations and blockages. On our way to Pantalica, for example, we hit a road deviation (we think due to a washed-out road) that had us back-tracking for some miles to take another route. On another day, on our way to visit a farm south of Scicli, all the train crossing gates were unexpectedly down and we needed to get to the other side of the tracks. We keep trying each crossing point further and further down the road with no luck. Finally, we barely squeezed through a tiny underpass used by farmers.

Weather. We experienced some warm sunny days, one or two rain days, and some fabulous skies. At night, it was a little chilly but not below zero. We actually like walking and exploring in cooler weather, so all this was fine by us. The average weather patterns for the area are just that, average; be prepared for extremes and the unexpected.

One weather event that impacted us happened before we arrived: unusually heavy rain and storms in January 2017. We saw a lot evidence of storm and high water damage in the green spaces (gorges) around Ragusa, on roads in the mountains we took to Pantalica, and at Cava d’Ispica.

Trash. Sicily is a wonderful place, but you need to be prepared for stumbling on trash heaps on the side of the road. We still scratch our head as to why this is. It’s like this: you are driving along a country road and suddenly in a pull-out area there a junk heap, anything from bags of trash to discarded furniture. Around Ragusa, we went for a walk in the “Vallata San Leonardo Green Walk” and came across rubbish heaps, which was a bit disappointing.

Is it open? The upside of off-season travel is not too many tourists and feeling like you have the place to yourself. There were a number of restaurants where we were the only clients. (Good thing we made a reservation!?) The downside is that some places aren’t open as expected or they are on holiday themselves, which includes restaurants, museums, or other points of interest. As well, winter is the time to do routine maintenance for places like Ragusa where summer time is the high season.

Food. We found the food in the Ragusa area to be delicious, easy on the wallet, and very connected to the local traditions. During our stay, we were able to spend time talking with restaurant owners (one of those low season perks) and from them we got a sense of how proud they are of their local traditions. Yet, there was a willingness to be inventive and add new twists as well. Some of the food and dishes that were memorable for us on this trip include:

• Carob – A ubiquitous and beautiful tree in this part of Sicily whose dried pods are ground and used in pastas, cookies, etc. Carob is not just a chocolate substitute. We had several pasta dishes made with carob.
• Capuliata – An unctuous sun-dried tomato condiment. Good anytime of the day, sort of a Nutella of the south?
• Ricotta – Added to all dishes, from appetizers to desserts, the ricotta we ate during our stay was always smooth and delicious. It was predominantly ricotta from cow’s milk.
• Macco – A bean soup that appears on many menus.
• Biancomangiare – A milk pudding that is especially common in this area of Italy. Eating it for breakfast is especially a delight.
• Chocolate of Modica – Famous the world over, this is a cold-processed chocolate.
• Cassatelle ragusane- Little ricotta pastries with cinnamon, typical of Easter.
• Cavolo vecchio di Rosolini – A member of the cabbage family Brassicaceae (probably a form of Brassica oleracea), this plant has a long history in the Rosolini area where it was grown alongside the manure pile. It is called “vecchio” or old because the plant can live for 5-7 years. We ate it in a pasta dish at Antica Osteria U Suliccenti (in Rosolini).

Examples of food during our 6 days. Upper left: Fish sample appetizer at Al Galu' Scicli. Upper center: Pasta made of carob at Antica Osteria U Suliccenti in Rosolini. Upper Right: Appetizer at Osteria U Suliccenti. Lower left: Breakfast items at Hotel Sabbinirica including cassatine ragusane. Lower left: Fried ricotta dessert at LoSteri Ragusa. Lower right: Fish at Ornato in Modica. Lower right: Spring onions wrapped in pancetta at Quattro Gatti in Ragusa.

Restaurants that we tried and would recommend include in Ragusa: LoSteri, Quattro Gatti, La Taverna del Lupo, and Taberna Dei Cinque Sensi; in Scicli: Ristorante La Galu; in Modica: Ornato Ristorante; in Rosolini: Antica Osteria U Suliccenti. We ate twice at both LoSteri and Quattro Gatti because they were that good. It didn’t hurt that they had ricotta-based desserts that weren’t easily forgotten: a fried ricotta-filled ravoli at LoSteri and a decomposed cannolo at Quattro Gatti.

Food growing. If you look at satellite photos of southeast of Sicily, you can’t help but notice what appears to be a lot of white structures. For example, see the satellite image included in this post, which is of the area around Vittoria, Sicily. The white structures are actually “greenhouses”, for growing vegetables under controlled conditions. The complexity of the structure and the materials used depend on what is grown inside. In Italy, cultivation in this manner is referred to as serricoltura and the structures are serricolo/serricoli. Here is an overview of serricoltura written Italian, however the pictures are enough to give you the idea. Much of the area around Vittoria (nearby Ragusa), in particular, is given over to growing vegetables in this manner, most of which is dedicated to tomatoes (I know: technically it’s a fruit).

Why do they do this in what seems to be a place with good weather? Well, good weather on average doesn’t mean there won’t be damaging winds or plunging temperatures or strong storms. And, despite good weather in a general sense, it’s not year-round, nor can it satisfy the year-round demand for vegetables. Hence, the protected growing conditions provide more or less controlled conditions throughout the year. There is a long history of protecting sensitive crops in this area. Before plastic, there were numerous other ingenious ways of protecting profitable crops like tomatoes.

We had the opportunity to visit one operation south of Scicli, Az. Agr. Giovanni Parisi. They grow tomatoes, carob, and a special type of bean called “il cosaruciaru di Scicli”, which means sweet thing “cosa dolce” in dialect. The day we visited, we spent time talking about tomatoes, and in particular, the variety datterino. Giovanni explained how the yearly cycle of tomato plants works, plucking a few ready datterini off the vine for us to taste. You can also buy a few of his products to take home. Who wouldn’t want a small jar of sun-dried tomatoes as a souvenir of your visit?


Left: Satellite map of the area Vittoria Sicily showing greenhouse structures. Right: In the greenhouse of Giovanni Parisi with datterini (tomatoes).

Things to tweak

No trip is ever prefect, and sometimes we Monday morning quarterback a little too much in the quest for perfection. Here it goes:


Another base of operations? We spend 7 nights in Ragusa (about 6 full days). In retrospect, we might have shaved off a night or two off of our stay in Ragusa and spent them in a town in another part of Ragusa province or maybe even Noto. It would have been nicer to have stayed closer to Pantalica, like in Palazzolo Acreide. See driving tips above for more information.

Too much of a Baroque thing? While we visited the cities of Ragusa, and Scicli, Modica (three of the eight cities on the UNESCO list), we didn’t feel like we really got to know them, especially Scicli and Modica. Part of that was being a bit worn out on Baroque style at the same time really not understanding what to look for. We considered hiring a guide but didn’t and maybe that was a mistake.

I was also surprised at how many of the buildings (churches, palazzi, etc.) we closed or not accessible. Although a lot of the Baroque beauty is on the outside, it’s still nice to go inside and take a look around. In Ragusa, we found QR codes you could use to view the inside of a building. However nice that technological solution is, it made me less invested in what I was looking at since I couldn’t walk in and experience it in person. Here are the links associated with three QR codes we saw: Palazzo Cosentini Chiesa Santa Maria Itria (with the beautiful blue domed campanile), and Palazzo Arezzo Donnafugata.

Got a phone? Here are a few do-it-yourself tours of Ragusa that might be useful before heading to Ragusa: Baroque tour, Green tour, UNESCO tour, and the Montalbano tour.


View of Ragusa. Left: View from Ragusa Superiore. Center: View from Hotel Sabbinirica. Right: View from Via Solarino with view of cupola of Duomo San Giorgio.

Which necropolis? Our day at Cava D’Ispica was a bit of a miss. Our day at Pantalica was better. For more information, see the post A Walk Around the Necropolis of Pantalica. Advice: pick your tombs, rupestrian churches, and necropolis carefully, read up before you go, and/or get some professional guidance. There are tombs and archaeological features to see everywhere you look. If you are going to do one tomb/necropolis visit and have the means to do so, go to Pantalica. If you are going to Cava D’Ispica, do the northern part first and call ahead of time to make sure it's open.

Other case of the hit/miss nature of tomb hunting was late one afternoon when we went looking for sites near Ragusa. We found the interesting and easy to get to (with no open/close times) site Grotta delle Trabacche. But when we went looking for the the nearby Catacomba di Cisternazzi, we struck out. We just couldn’t find it. At this point, we hung up our Indiana Jones hats (actually just Tilleys) for the rest of the trip.

A day of Cava D’Ispica misadventures. We should have gone to northern part of the site first as suggested in the book “Walking in Sicily” [Cicerone], Walk 17: Cave d’Ispica. We instead went to the southern part first and when we got the northern part it was closed in the afternoon.

In the southern part, what could be a really cool attraction, Parco della Forza, was a dud. Parts were roped off, and while €2 isn’t a lot to pay to get in, there wasn’t much there to see. The most interesting feature called “Centoscale” an underground staircase was closed and totally out of the question. We asked. After leaving the Parco della Forza, we tried walking up the gorge, but due to recent rains and a majorly washed out trail, it was almost impossible. Today wasn’t our day.

We tried climbing up to some tombs above the gorge and suddenly out of nowhere a custodian (at least we think he worked at the park) summoned us down. He said his name was “papa” (Francesco?). He was playing with us, but he did show us around a bit: Santa Maria della Cava and the “Jewish” quarters where they worked animal hides. Then again, he could have made it all up. Talking with him – as difficult as it was through his dialect and our bad Italian – redeemed the visit. We threw the towel in around lunch and headed to Rosolini to eat at Antica Osteria U Suliccenti, redeeming the day even more.

During lunch, we kept staring at pictures of of Cava Lazzaro and Tomba del Principe that were hanging on the wall of the restaurant. After lunch, we decided to try and find them, which turned into a wild goose chase. This time there was no “papa” to save us. As the light faded, we ended up at the parking lot for Grotta dei santi, Tomba a finti pilastri, Grotta della Signora, and Grotta di S. Nicola. We did a quick tour of those and really threw the towel in for the day.

A day at Cava D'Ispica south. Left: Trying to make our way up the washed out ravine. Center: Floor detail of Chiesetta Rupestre di Santa Maria della Cava. Right: Talking to the custodian inside Chiesetta Rupestre di Santa Maria della Cava.

Winery tour? We spent one day north of Ragusa in the Chiaramonte Gulfi area. We spent about an hour and a half walking around the town, followed by a quick tour and lunch at the Locanda Gulfi winery. The winery tour was okay and the meal a bit expensive. We could have skipped both. On the other hand, the town of Chiaramonte Gulfi was unexpectedly charming, especially the Giardino Pubblico Comune and adjacent Balcone di Scilia and its panoramic views. The plants in the park were well-maintained with a number of them associated labels with the scientific and common plant names. That’s my kind of park.

On our way back to Ragusa, just above Chiaramonte, we parked the car (at an abandoned hotel) and took a short walk to Mount Arcibessi. That afforded views north, inland and south toward the coast.

Do a Montalbano themed-tour? A lot of Italians ask us if we did the “Montalbano tour”, that is, visiting the popular spots featured in the Montalbano TV series, which is based on the books by Andrea Camilleri. The majority of the places used in the series are actual places in Ragusa province: along the coast, some in Modica, and some in Ragusa Ibla, for example. If you are a fan or just passively interested, you could organize your time around Ragusa based on the places used in the series as described in i luoghi di Montalbano for the province, or in the Montalbano tour for just the city of Ragusa.


Views of Castello di Donnafuggata including sphinx, large banyan tree, garden, and stone labyrinth.


Left: Chiaramonte Gulfi public garden. Right: View from Locanda Gulfi winery.


Grotta delle Trabacche.


Left: Grotta delle Trabacche. Right: Above Grotta delle Trabacche, cows graze on the Ragusan plain.


Views of Necropolis of Pantalica. For more information see the post A Walk Around the Necropolis of Pantalica.


Left: Ragusa Ibla, Piazza Duomo. Center: Giardino Ibleo, Ragusa Ibla. Right: Palazzo Cosentini, Ragusa Ibla.


Left: Underneath Ragusa Superiore. A large cavern that was once a quarry. Right: View of Hyblean landscape near Monte Ibleo.

Six Days in Malta

Upper left: View of La Valletta from the Grand Harbor. Upper right: Saint Paul's Shipwreck church. Lower left: View across the Grand Harbor of the Three Cities from La Valletta. Lower Right: St. Lucia's Street in La Valletta.

Overview

If you had asked me what came to mind when I heard the word Malta, I would have responded the 1941 film The Maltese Falcon. Lame, but true. But after a recent visit there for six days, I know a lot more about this fascinating young (it gained independence in 1964), yet old (megalithic structures older than the Great Pyramid) country that sits in the Mediterranean ocean. More precisely, the three principal islands of Malta (Gozo, Comino, and Malta) are 80 km south of Sicily.

Malta has seen a lot: it was ruled successively by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs and the Knights of Malta. So as you can imagine, there is a lot of rich history there. And yes, there is a story about the falcon and the island. More on that below in the Nature section.

To clarify, here we talk about our six winter days in Malta, which means there is no information about beaches or other summer activities. We focused on cities, archaeological sites, and museums.

At 1,318 people/km², Malta is the 8^th most dense country in the world. You might think that civility and cleanliness would suffer at such a density, but we did not find that to be the case. (The world average density is 55 people/km².) That Malta is dense is particularly noticeable when, from the vantage point of the old capital, Mdina, you look across the island and see green, but never without buildings and settlements. Yet with all the density, we found that areas we visited (admittedly, tourist areas) to be very clean. The folks we encountered working at archaeological sites and museums were knowledgeable and helpful. In particular, I remember a woman working in the bookstore of the UNESCO site Ġgantija Temples (it-Tempji tal-Ġgantija). In 20 minutes, she taught us more about prehistoric cultures in Malta than any guide could, and we didn’t even buy a souvenir.

With its red public telephone booths, driving on the left side of the road, and English as one of its official languages, Malta is unmistakably British. Yet, in our opinion, it’s much less British than Gibraltar. Malta is part of the European Union, and uses the Euro, and not the British Pound. And keeping on the subject of the European Union, our trip was made possible by a low-cost Irish-based RyanAir with its direct flight from Bergamo to Malta.

Lodging

We stayed at Lloyd House in La Valletta, which proved to be perfect for us. Lloyd House is a couple of apartments near the Upper Barrakka Gardens, which turns out is a very convenient location. We were started with some basic provisions for breakfast for a few days.

Architecturally, La Valletta is easy on the eyes with its soft limestone tones and colored wooden balconies. As far as cities go it’s young: it took shape in the late 1500s, built by the Knights Hospitaller (Knights of Malta). The foundation stone was laid in 1566 by the city’s namesake Grand Master de Valette. (I have not found any answer as to why the city has two L’s rather than just one.) In fact, if you are planning a visit to Malta, it would be good idea to read up on the Knights of Malta because their history is intimately intertwined with that of the island.

La Valletta, the capital city of Malta, is a laid-back place. It’s set on a grid and rather easy to get around, but it’s also hilly in some parts. On hilly streets, instead of sidewalks, you’ll often find long runs of stairs composed of steps of maddeningly short-height. We learned in a tour (at the Malta Experience) that the short step height was due to the Knights of Malta. When a knight was fully dressed in armor, short-height steps were a godsend. Or, so the story goes.

We ventured out a few days by bus from La Valletta and one of those days we took the Number 41 bus between La Valletta and the Cirkewwa Ferry Terminal (where you can catch a ferry to Gozo). Along the way saw a good part of the northern coast, including Buġibba, a popular tourist resort. From that look, we were absolutely glad we did not stay there. La Valletta has a well-worn charm about it that is a relief to come back to after a day of exploring, not to mention a good choice of restaurants.


Left: St. Paul's Church Mdina. Center left: Ricotta filled pastry at Caffe Cordina, La Valletta. Middle: Pastizzi at Crystal Palace in Mdina. Center right: Lloyd House La Valletta. Right: Statue in Domus Romana in Mdina.

What worked

Touring in winter. There was no swimming on this trip, nor did we see anybody in the water. However, we had great weather, up to 20 C some days, short-sleeve shirt weather for us northerners. At night, it could get chilly, but never below zero. And, we had one day of rain. The best part of touring in winter: low season and less tourists but still fairly good weather.

Home base. As mentioned above, we stayed in La Valletta, which proved to be a great choice for us. I can’t imagine staying elsewhere. We had a great choice of restaurants and attractions nearby. Plus, you can take a quick boat ride to the reach the three cities to the south or Sliema to the north. Pretty much all major bus routes start/end in La Valletta.

Funky Cold Mdina. Mdina (without the “e”) is really worth a visit. It’s easy to get there by bus or taxi and easy to spend a full day or more there. Mdina was the original capital city of Malta and has many important and beautiful buildings inside the old city, as well as things to do and see. But don’t forget the surrounding city, Ir-Rabat, outside the walled city where you will find the Domus Romana and St. Paul’s Catacombs.

As picturesque as Mdina is, I’m glad we did not choose it as our base of operations from the point of view that we had better bus and dining options in La Valletta. If you are of the means to do everything by car (rented or taxi), then maybe Mdina or the surrounding Ir-Rabat would make a better base of operation just from the point of view of being somewhat centered in the middle of the island.

We had the best pastizzi – savory, delicious and surprisingly cheap traditional Maltese pastries – at the Crystal Palace (nearby the Domus Romana) just outside the Mdina. We ate two lunches there, or rather, grabbed the pastries and retreated to the nearby Gnien Howard park overlooking the walled city.

Bus and taxi. Getting around by bus and taxi is the way to go. We were glad we didn’t rent a car after we got first-hand experience on the roads while riding on the bus and in taxis. The bus system is pretty easy to figure out and they thankfully allow you to pay on the bus, though is best to have change available. We could have bought a multiple day pass, but we didn’t. Instead, we just paid as we went and we don’t think we ended up paying that much more in the end.

About the only negative in our bus experience was a Sunday night ride from the Cirkewwa Ferry Terminal (where ferries run between Malta and Gozo islands) back to La Valletta. It was long ride due to intense traffic and we stood for almost two hours because the bus was packed. (That would have been a good time to have just hired a taxi.)

We took a taxi between the airport and our hotel, and also took a taxi around Gozo. When we got off the ferry in Gozo, we were already running a little late in our day, so we just got a taxi from the ferry to the Ġgantija temples, the taxi waited an hour and a half for us, and then took us to Victoria all for € 20. He proposed even waiting some more and taking us to see more of the island for an additional € 10, but we declined. We took another taxi back to the ferry because the bus was jam packed. So, we did not take any buses on Gozo.

Calling all UNESCO buffs. The whole city of La Valletta was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage site in 1980. Added to that, there are six sites on Malta inscribed together in the World Heritage List as ‘The Megalithic Temples of Malta’: Ġgantija, Tarxien, Ħaġar Qim, Mnajdra, Ta' Ħaġrat, and Skorba. They are the oldest, or among the oldest depending who you ask, free-standing structures on earth. Older than the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Great Wall of China and the Great Zimbabwe of Zimbabawe (what the …? look it up). We saw the first four temples by bus. It would have been easy to see all six sites within a few days by bus, and less time by taxi. The Heritage Malta site does a good job of giving an overview of each temple as well at the Wikipedia page Megalithic Temples of Malta. It’s worth studying where the temples are located if you plan to do them on your own. Some of the temples are included as well as stops on the hop on/off buses that ply the island. (Yes, they exist there too.)

The UNESCO site Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum was unfortunately closed for repairs.


Upper left: Hagar Qim temples, Malta. Upper center and right: Mnjadra temples, Malta. Lower left and right: Tarxien temples, Malta.

Sites. Here's a quick rundown of thing we did, which should give you an idea of what you can do in six days. The Lascaris War Rooms was a big standout. We had absolutely had no idea about Malta's role in WWII and how the island suffered. The story came to life in this museum.

• La Valletta
  • Natural Museum of Archaeology – Good presentation.
  • Upper and Lower Barrakka Gardens - Both gardens offer great views and a nice break with a bit of nature.
  • Hastings Garden – Out of the way garden for good quiet and green down time with great views north.
  • Siege Bell War Memorial – Great views.
  • Malta Experience – We has reservations about doing this, but finally gave in. The movie was so/so. Dim projection, not that interesting. The stand out however was the tour of the Knights Hospitallers Hospital that is part of the ticket.
  • St. John's Co-Cathedral – It is worth the entry price to see the inside of this church. Read this article about co-cathedral if you are interested in why it has that “co-“ in the name. Basically, it means St John’s shares bishop-related functions with St. Paul’s Cathedral in Mdina.
  • Collegiate Parish Church of St Paul's Shipwreck – An interesting, theatrical church. Our impression was influenced by that fact that everything was in chaos as they prepared for the big feast of St. Paul which happened after we left.
  • Casa Rocca Piccola – The most interesting part was going into bomb shelter.
  • Lascaris War Rooms – A great presentation of the WWII story of Malta.
• Mdina/Ir-Rabat (Malta Island)
  • St. Paul’s Cathedral, Mdina – The other St Paul’s Cathedral. Was interesting, but could have skipped it.
  • Palazzo Falson – Interesting look at a house that dates back to the 13^th century and the collections of the last owner Olof Gollcher.
  • Domvs Romana – Small museum dealing with Roman times in Malta. The museum is built around a Roman house from 1 BC.
  • St. Paul’s Catacombs – Interesting for the first 10 or so tombs, but then it gets a little tiring. Still, worth a visit.
  • National Museum of Natural History Museum – Good displays of geology and paleontology of Malta, as well as birds.
• Out and about
  • Dingli Cliffs – See the nature section above.
  • Blue Grotto – We tried, but boats weren’t running the day we visited, due to high winds. Lesson: always call before heading out there. We were fine as we just walked up the road a bit and visited Hagar Qim and Mnjadra temples.
  • The Megalithic Temples of Malta: Tarxien, Hagar Qim, Mnjadra, and Ggiantia. Ggiantia is particularly well-presented.
• Victoria (Gozo Island)
  • The Cittadella – Walk the ramparts and bastions.

What would we do differently?

Gozo or no Gozo? We made the trek to Gozo to see the Ġgantija Temples and the Cittadella. If you are staying on the main island of Malta, it’s at least a whole day investment. If you are on the main island and have already seen Tarxien, Ħaġar Qim, and Mnajdra temples like we had, it might not be worth it to you to see Ġgantija. And, the Cittadella on Gozo is like Mdina on the big island, but smaller.

To get to Gozo from La Valletta can be a bit of a chore. I had seen somewhere that we could take a boat directly from La Valletta to Gozo from Sa Maison, and I though ah-ha, we’ll do that. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the Sa Maison terminal, it was boarded up for repairs and we ended up taking the 41 bus, which stops every 200 feet it seems. Great way to see the island, but not so great in terms of time. If you can afford it, take a taxi from La Valletta. There is an express bus from the airport to Cirkewwa, but you first have to get to the airport.

One variation of the trip might have been to shave off a night or two in La Valletta and spend them in Gozo. From that location, we could have also visited Comino Island, which we totally ignored this trip.

Three Cities. We could see the three cities (Birgu, Senglea, Cospicua) across the way and to the south of La Valletta, but we didn’t spend much time there other than a quick walk through a part of Cospicua on our way to the Tarxien Temples. The three cities looked charming and have interesting points of interest and warrant more investigation then we gave them. As well, we did not venture at all into Sliema area, north of La Valletta either, though to be honest, it looked less interesting from a distance.

More taxi, less bus. Sure, you can save money on the bus, but the next time I’d hire the taxi more to cut time off of a few bus rides we took, in particular, the bus we took to Cirkewwa to catch the ferry to Gozo.

Ferry to Sicily. We took a plane from Malta to Catania to continue our trip in Sicily. We learned later that there is a ferry between Malta and Pozzallo that takes under 2 hours. Our destination in Sicily was Ragusa and Pozzallo would have been close enough. The ferry should be considered if you are going between the islands.


Left: Mdina City Gate. Left center: Parliament building La Valletta. Right center: The Saluting Battery La Valletta. Right: Pjazza Jean de Vallette, La Valletta, Malta.

Nature, but… I had this idea that we’d take some nice long walks on country roads and work our way to this or that archaeological site. In anticipation, I bought the “Walking in Malta: 33 Routes on Malta, Gozo and Comino” [Cicerone], and while it’s a fine book, it really didn’t prepare me for the fact that I wasn’t going to get the type of walking/hiking like I’m used to around our temporary home in Bergamo, Italy. For example, we tried to follow WALK 5 Żurrieq to Siġġiewi because it went by Hagar Qim and Mnjadra temples, which we wanted to see. However, parts of the hike require a lot of road walking, which wasn't so enchanting.

Malta, as noted above, is a dense island so wild spaces are not as you might expect, and add to that a trail system that is not as developed, let’s say, as in Italy. So, if you are looking for nature-all-to-yourself, it’s worth studying up some more or adjust your expectations. To be fair, Comino is billed as the place to walk and we didn’t make it there. As well, during our day on Gozo, it seemed like a greener and less dense place so maybe we should have targeted that for walking.

One other minor nature ding would be on the Dingli cliffs. They are billed as a major attraction, but they are hard to see, let alone appreciate on foot. I’m guessing they would best be appreciated by boat. We walked around on top of the cliffs like other folks we saw but that’s about it. There were no trail indications or interpretation.

Speaking of nature and cliffs, we visited the National Museum of Natural History in the Mdina, which excels in its explanations of Malta geology and paleontology. Although the wildlife collection is a little tired, it’s bird collection seemed pretty good. It is there that we learned the falcon story. The Knights Hospitaller (today called the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and Malta) were required to pay one falcon a year for having been granted Malta in 1530. That would be one peregrine falcon.

The Maltese Falcon is a 1929 detective novel by Dashiell Hammett. Why Hammett chose the falcon as the MacGuffin I don’t know for sure, but it might have been for the symbolic nature of the bird as a rental agreement for Malta. Ironically, the last falcon pair were reportedly shot in 1980, by a hunter named Sam Spade…just kidding on the last part.


Left: Lower Barrakka Gardens La Valletta. Left center: Main street in La Valletta. Right center: View from Hastings Garden La Valletta toward Manoel Island. Right: View from Mdina north.

Missed attractions. These go in the next time bucket.

• Limestone Heritage Parks and Garden. Why? Limestone is Malta’s main natural resource and it plays an important role in the history of the island. For thousands of years, Maltese have cut blocks of it to build temples and carved into it to create tombs. Therefore, it would be good to find out more about this stone.
• Clapham Junction cart ruts. In the Natural Museum of Archaeology in La Valletta we learned about the cart ruts, but it was toward the end of our stay. It would be interesting to see some of the ruts in person.
• Fort Saint Elmo. It looks cool as hell, is in a great location, and has a great history. It was unfortunately closed while we were in La Valletta. 
• In the three cities (Birgu, Senglea, Cospicua) across the Grand Harbor from La Valletta, there are many sites to see that we would definitely warrant a look, including: Fort Saint Angelo, Malta Maritime Museum, Malta at War Museum, Forti Rikażoli, and Fort Rinella.

Left: View toward Blue Grotto. Right: Ceiling detail of St. John's Co-Catherdral in La Valletta.

Left: View inward of Cittadella, Victoria, Malta. Right: Mosaic floor in Domus Romana, Mdina, Matla.

Left: Garden of Casa Rocca Piccola, La Valletta. Center: Lower Barrakka Gardens La Valletta. Right: View from the Cittadella, Victoria.


Ġgantija Temples. Left: The complex from the outside. Right: View from inside looking out.