Kalyra

We were supposed to head to the docks to get more water (we don’t have a water maker on board, so we have to fill up jerry cans on shore and bring them back). We got a bit side tracked on the way. Boats moor in the creek tied off bow and stern, and it usually requires someone in a dinghy to help, especially when the wind is blowing. Reiss was coming back in on Bolongo, so we helped him tie off while Anouk and the kids used their dinghy to push the boat against the wind in line with the moorings.

A few minutes later we did the same with two other boats we knew that coming into the harbor. All secure, we headed down the creek. It’s a slalom course past small boats and random moorings. Our friend Lawrence once described lobster floats like the floor of a Skittles factory after an accident. The moorings in Sliema Creek are a similar situation.

Through the moorings, past the cool fishing boats, under the bridge, tie up at the dock. Two euros and we can fill up our three jerrycans, the shower bag, and leftover plastic water bottles. One errand done today.

Clearly the skipper was not happy to see Natalie and Erin leave. Apparently the boat wasn’t happy either.

First, the dinghy outboard died. Of course it happened over the weekend when stores were closed and parts weren’t available. We used friends for transport ashore, and I used the extra time on board to update the blog.

The foot pump at the sink wasn’t cooperating either, so Trip replaced that. And we had picked up a replacement bracket for the raw water pump on the engine (it had failed last season and Trip had jury-rigged a temporary solution). Three more projects done.

Still to do:

Realign the engine shaft. Purge the air from the water system (no water pressure). Topping off the diesel and water tanks. And beginning to look for a weather window for our four to five day sail to Greece.
Paying just another portion of our paradise tax.

And since we were still in town, I made the most of our time at anchor and swam laps with neighbor Anouk each morning.

We finished off our whirlwind tour of Malta with an afternoon in St Julians. I had not been to see the cat sanctuary, so we took a peek.

There weren’t many cats around, though they do tend to go out during the day and do their business though. I loved seeing all the little cat houses and blanket lined baskets for resting spots.

It was lunch and a stroll along the waterfront, before we headed back to the boat to wrap things up.

This masterpiece is a cathedral built in the 1500’s in a baroque style, and it’s dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. Commissioned after the Great Siege, it started its life as a rather modest church. One hundred years later, the Grand Master ordered it remodeled to rival the greatest churches in Rome.

It was a mind blowing experience. Every square inch of floors, walls, and ceilings were decorated with carvings, marble, paint, and paintings throughout this enormous church.

The church is particularly famous for its Caravaggio paintings, and the artist has an entire wing and mini exhibit dedicated to explaining his painting techniques. Chiaroscuro, the use of extreme shades of light and dark paint is one of the techniques that made Caravaggio famous, and the works in the cathedral illustrate it well. The beheading of St. John is front and center, followed by the painting of St. Jerome.

A trip to Malta would not be complete without a visit to the Blue Lagoon on Comino Island. We opted not to take our boat (would take forever to get there and back, and we were pressed for time), and instead booked one of the local small cruise ships. The day turned out perfect, and the lagoon was not yet mobbed with people (I can’t imagine what it will be like in a month). We had a gorgeous time.

We had anchored in Dwejra Bay when we first arrived back in Malta, but we had never really explored Gozo. Having Erin and Natalie visit was all the excuse we needed. We took a Bolt (like an Uber) to the end of the main island, hopped a ferry, and rented a car to head out for the day.

The first place we stopped was Ramla Bay. Malta is not particularly known for sandy beaches, but this is one of the places that has one and it’s stunning.

After Ramla we headed inland to the Ggantija Archeological Park, to what is known as one of the oldest freestanding building complexes in the world. Built from Maltese limestone, these structures were raised during the Neolithic period and are estimated to be more than 5,500 years old.

You enter the park through a museum that contains artifacts retrieved from the site and put on display with descriptions and explanations. I had a couple of favorites. The first was engravings of migrating birds placed next to a photo of a lapwing, a migratory bird still found these days in Malta.

The other two were clay figurines that give an idea both of what people looked like at the time (large bodied) and societal norms (figures are reclining or seated together).

Then we headed out to the site itself. The path was lined on either side with Native Maltese plants, including the Maltese rock centaury (Cheirolophus crassifolius).

We carried on from Ggantija along the northern edge of the island, and stopped to visit the Xwejni Salt Pans. The checkerboard or quilt pattern of the carve outs in the shallow rock is quite dramatic. These salt pans are believed to be over 350 years old, with the technique of collecting sea salt in shallow reservoirs via evaporation coming from Phoenician times. Local families still manage the salt pans and the public is not allowed inside (but you can buy the salt).

Then we turned inland, and drove to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of Tá Pinu. Built on the site of a former small chapel, the Basilica was completed in the early 20th century. Though the building looks quite traditional, I found the mosaics to be very modern in style.

From Tá Pinu we headed further west, back to Dwejra Bay. We admired the water where we had first anchored, but noticed it was a bit rolly, so we were happy to visit by car instead of boat this time.

One of the things I hadn’t noticed from my previous visit, was the well formed shells trapped in the limestone cliffs one hundred plus feet above the water that were only now being revealed as the rock face wore away. The shells had to be somewhat recent, as the calcium never had a chance to dissolve.

It had been so fun exploring the island, we were now running out of daylight hours, so we headed straight to the capital city of Victoria, and the Citadella. First built in 1500 BC, it was turned into a castle during medieval times, and then a fortress for the Romans. Despite it looking like a set for Game of Thrones, the series was filmed in other parts of the island instead (rumor has it that they did so much damage in Malta the series had to relocate to Croatia for later seasons). The museums were all closed, but it was still a fun place to finish our day in Gozo.

When we visited Mdina last year, it was a grey and drizzly day, but it was a beautiful place to visit, so we decided to take Erin and Natalie back. Besides, the doorways of the Silent City make for some of the best photographs anywhere!

After exploring and admiring Mdina (AKA The Silent City), we walked into the neighboring town of Rabat where we had a delicious lunch at Bottegins Secret Garden, and then toured the St Paul’s Catacombs. The Catacombs are an impressive and expansive array of underground tombs that were dug out of rock. A legend has it that they were dug by giants, but as we were constantly having to stoop down to negotiate these tunnels, we had doubts about this legend. (No pictures due to very dim lighting and very cramped views).

We headed back to the boat mid afternoon and had a slightly chilly but super refreshing swim off the boat.

Then it was time to head back into town for another fun meal together.

And just like that, Erin was back to visit, this time with Natalie (Madeleine’s sister). Their timing was amazing, as we had torrential rain the day before their arrival and high winds the night of, when they opted to stay in a hotel for the first night (using all of the hotel’s hot water to shower and wash hair – water is always of limited supply on the boat). But where to start for their tour of Malta?

The obvious place to start was Valetta, so we hopped the ferry and headed across the harbor. We started with a leisurely breakfast in one of the main squares (plenty of opportunity for people watching), and then strolled the streets. It was a good start, with a little bit of shopping, a little bit of ice cream, and lots of fun.

Natalie had a list of potential restaurants, and we found a great pizzeria called San Pablo Naufrago in one of the narrow, steep, stepped alleyways of the city.

Not a bad start for a first day – how do they not look jet lagged????

Just after we arrived in Sliema, I saw that Fort St Angelo and a few other museums would be open Saturday night until midnight. As an added bonus, the fort would be lit by candles. It was too tempting not to go.

The views of Valetta across the water from the height of the fort were beautiful, and it was gorgeous to look everywhere and see candles lit (we could not imagine how long it had taken the staff to do so).

An added bonus was the band playing covers out on the terrace. We shared a glass of wine and enjoyed the tunes in the middle of the historic fort.

It started to roll in Dwejra Bay and it was time to move down to Sliema Creek on the northeast side of the main island of Malta. It was a great downwind, jib-only sail. Friends came out by dinghy to help us tie up bow and stern to the moorings (free unless needed by owner) and we settled in, saying hello to the crowd from Monastir that had come in before us. Nick, Mark, Sarah, and Meghan were on their way to the Royal Malta Yacht Club for drinks, so we decided to tag along. The yacht club wasn’t the best, but the drinks were cold, and the ride over was incredibly picturesque.

Of course, coming back to Sliema meant shopping for the boat at the chandlery Gauci Borda (including lugging our dead starter battery there for disposal), and groceries at Welbees and Lidl. As much as I enjoyed shopping and eating locally and seasonally in Tunisia, it was nice to have a much broader selection back in Malta, not the least of which is being able to buy mortadella and bacon!

Unfortunately weather was coming, and that’s never a good situation for us. The moorings we use in the creek are privately owned, and owners have the right to ask us to move whenever they like. While the tour boats are normally moored stern-to against the public dock, during bad weather they come out to their moorings. We thought we were off the hook, only to be told to move just hours before weather was about to roll in. Luckily, Trip had time to jump in a dinghy with Reiss and go suss out our new location. With some careful threading of multiple floats and dinghies, and the usual multiple friends to assist, we tied up to our new spot (which was actually better).