Visit to Malta (3): outside Valletta
Saturday was another brilliant day weather-wise and equally successful from a sightseeing point of view. The whole day was occupied by a tour of locations outside Valletta with the same guide Audrey-Marie Bartolo using a minivan for the eight British tourists.
First we drove to the town of Mosta (population 19,000) to see the Parish Church of Santa Maria which is better known as the Mosta Dome. This was built between 1833-1860 using funds raised by the local people. Its most notable feature is the great dome which rises externally to 61 metres and is one of the largest unsupported domes in the world. Audrey-Marie told us the story of ‘The miracle of Mosta’. This occurred on 9 June 1942 when 300 parishioners were waiting to hear Mass and Italian aircraft dropped three bombs over the dome. Two bounced off and landed in the square without exploding, while one pierced the dome, smashed off a wall, and rolled across the floor, failing to detonate. A replica of the bomb is on display in the church sacristy.
We had a short break in Mosta and Roger & Silvia had cappuccino with a Welsh couple called Tony & Non. We then drove to the town of Rabat (population 11,400) where we toured Casa Bernard, a gorgeous 16th century home of a Maltese noble family of French origin. These days it is still privately owned by a wealthy Maltese couple who often take tourists round themselves. Today they were away, so a neighbour showed us round and she displayed immense knowledge of, and affection for, the house and its contents of paintings, furniture, silver and china, and various objects d’art.
Next door to Rabat is the walled citadel of Mdina (population now a mere 240). This was fortified as long ago as 1000 BC by the Phoenicians and in medieval times it was effectively the capital, but today it is known as the Silent City because of its peaceful, shady streets and few inhabitants. We saw St Paul’s Cathedral which was built between 1697-1702, making it the first cathedral in Malta so that the one in Valletta is called the Co-cathedral.
Again we had a break and this time Roger & Silvia ate a Greek salad in the company of a British couple called Rex & Sally. Before leaving Mdina, we were taken round a 17th century Carmelite Priory, the only one in Malta open to the public. The highlight of the Baroque building is the beautifully-decorated refectory. It is clear that Malta remains a deeply Roman Catholic country and that there is no problem finding new priests, monks and nuns.
Our final destination was a place called Paula which is home to one of Malta’s most important prehistoric sites. The Hal Saflieni Hypogeum is a subterranean necropolis which is thought to date back to somewhere between 3600-3000 BC and was only discovered by accident in 1902. Over three levels, halls, chambers and passages have been hewn out of the limestone rock and then an estimated 7,000 bodies were interred there. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage site that is carefully protected: only ten visitors are allowed at a time (we were four British and six French) and carbon dioxide is removed from the air. We know so little about the people who created this huge underground structure or about the culture that led to so many bodies being stored where so few could see them, but it was an awesome experience to share the same space for a while.
We were dropped off back at our hotel shortly after 4 pm to complete seven fascinating hours exploring more faces of Malta.
After the experience of last night, this evening Roger & Silvia decided to move up-market for dinner and found a place nearby called “Trattoria Campanella” which worked out really well. Silvia had a main course of king prawns, while Roger went for a port dish. After dessert plus wine and coffee, we decided to try out a local liqueur and we were recommended something called ‘bajtra’ which we were advised was made from prickly pears – it was pink, sweet and delicious.