MALTA: The Blue Grotto and Dingli Cliffs

Here we go again!  Do you think we'll ever finish our Malta trip???  HA!

Today we're off to the Blue Grotto and the Dingli Cliffs, both on the southern coast of Malta with a totally different shoreline than the beaches of the northern coast.

The distance between the two sites is approx. 10 km.

We took the Hop On- Hop Off (HOHO) bus from Bugibba one day and stopped at the Blue Grotto.

The next day we took a normal bus from Bugibba to the Dingli Cliffs.

This is what we saw from the HOHO bus as we came to the Blue Grotto stop-off point.

If you remember last week's post from the Marsaxlokk fishing village,

we had just passed it on the eastern side of the island before arriving here.

From the bus stop we walked down to the ticket office and boat ramps to the lagoon.

As you know by now, Malta depends on its tourism sites like this.

So the boats were there waiting for us.

Off we go...for a tour of approx. 25 minutes, inside and outside the caves.

Our guide, just behind me, kept tapping my shoulder to make sure I saw everything.

He was so cute, making sure I captured the highlights, especially the color of the water.

To tell you the truth, I loved the outside cliffs as much as the inside caves.

And as you can see, it was a gorgeous day.

As we headed back to the lagoon, we saw all the watchers,

which we, too, would later become.

But first, we went exploring up the stairs to get an overview of the lagoon.

Pay attention to that rock island (center) which you'll see from Dingli as well.

Coming back down a different set of stairs gave a different perspective.

(You can see how far off the rock island is in the distance.)

This is when we became the watchers, enjoying the view and activity.

The cactus, by the way, is all over the island.

When we left to catch the next HOHO bus, I couldn't help but think of America's west.

And all for €8 per person.  Totally worth it.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

The next day, as I said, we took a normal bus from Bugibba, north, to Dingli, south.
In combining these two places in one post you see the similarity of the southern shoreline.

At the bus stop, we first looked inland to get the lay of the land.
Everything was way off in the distance, even though my camera makes it look nearby.

But turning towards the Mediterranean Sea, we realized how high up we were.
The Dingli Cliffs rise 253 meters above the sea, the highest elevation of the Maltese Islands.

Remember that rock island offshore from the Blue Grotto?
Yup.  The same one can be seen from Dingli.

Along the roadway, following the shoreline, is the Dingli Aviation Radar station.
It stands out like a sore thumb in the vicinity of the cliffs.

Finally, when you walk far enough, you come to the St Mary Magdalen Chapel, built in 1646.
It's normally closed except the Sunday during Holy Week and on Mary Magdalene's feast day,
22 July, when a mass is celebrated.

It clearly was a place for respite from the sun.

And it was there where we took our last look out to sea from this side of Malta.

You really go out of your way to find these two tourist spots, away from the opposite northern coast,
bustling with a different kind of tourism, related to the capital city, Valletta, and the beaches.

Because Astrid and I love the out-of-the-way spots,
we were gluttons to see what you, too, have now seen...the other side of Malta.

My Malta Facebook Overview

We're back!  And, boy, do I ever have a lot to share....!

But as a starter, for those of you who didn't see it on Facebook, I posted images of something we did each day while out-n-about.  Our Internet was terrible at our hotel...so much so that I couldn't even pull up my Pic-Monkey collage program.  So I ended up posting an album most days, which I have now made into collages, once back home.

As a refresher, here's a map of the Maltese Islands:  Malta, Gozo and Comino.

We spent all but one day on Malta and did NOT visit Comino (more on why later).
The numbers on this Wiki map relate to what days we were there, as listed below.

Day 1, Friday:  Arrival

There is one 3-hour flight per day to and from Amsterdam to Malta on Malta Air.

And because we arrived at our hotel in Bugibba late afternoon, we had time to get settled,

eat real Maltese food (rabbit stew and stuffed beef olives bragioli) at a nearby restaurant,

 AND have gelato (the difference between gelato and ice cream?) while walking the promenade.

Day 2, Saturday:  Valletta Grand Harbour Cruise

They always say it's good to get an overview of something first

before you hone in on the specifics, right?

So we took the 1-hour bus ride from Bugibba to Valletta, got off in Sliema 

and walked around the harbor to our tour boat for a 75-minute ride.
Valletta is the capital city of Malta and has been selected as the European Capital of Culture for 2018.

It was totally worth the overview!  (wiki map)

Day 3, Sunday:  Marsaxlokk Fishing Village

Every Sunday there is a market in this eastern coastal village on the island,
so it was a no-brainer to make a day of it.
The 'x' in Maltese is pronounced 'sh' so Marsaxlokk = MARsa-shlock.
It's known for its colorful boats.

Day 4, Monday:  Blue Grotto

We did another overview of the island via a hop-on-hop-off bus
and stopped at the Blue Grotto on the south coast of Malta.
Malta survives from its tourism business, of which this is one of its highlights.

Day 5, Tuesday:  Dingli Cliffs

We took a regular bus to get to this out-of-the-way part of the southern coast.
Some of the cliffs rise 253 meters from the Mediterranean Sea, the highest point on the island.

Day 6, Wednesday:  Gozo Island

We signed up for this full-day excursion because it's the only way to do it properly/easily in one day.
A coach took us to all the highlights, including the megalithic temples from 3600 BC (top).
Seeing the Azure Window was one of the best highlights for us both (right-center).

Day 7, Thursday:  Addoloratta Cemetery

We passed Malta's largest cemetery the first day from the airport to our hotel in Bugibba
and knew immediately that one day we would visit it.
You learn so much about a people and their culture from their cemeteries.
One thing we learned:  it's all about F A M I L Y.
But then, this is a Roman Catholic culture, so it made sense.

Day 8, Friday:  Rabat

Mdina used to be the capital city of Malta, a walled, citadel city.
Rabat is a suburb just outside Mdina's city walls, within walking distance.
It so happens Rabat was preparing for the St. Joseph festival on Sunday,
so we got the best of all worlds that day, seeing the red velvet and banners everywhere.

Day 9, Saturday:  The Three Cities

Remember the harbor cruise we took our second day around the Valletta capital city?
There are 3 "fingers" that jut into the same Grand Harbor on the right.
Those are the 3 cities of Senglea, Vittoriosa (Birgu) and Cospicua, all in walking distance.
We walked up and down only the first two, which are the ones most populated,
but not nearly as touristy as Valletta.

Day 10, Sunday:  St. Paul's Bay Promenade

We made the wise choice to stay put our last full day on the island,
and walked the promenade along the bay for 5 km, 2 hours, enjoying the gorgeous day.
Later in the afternoon, Astrid even lay out in the sun and took a swim in the Mediterranean.
Malta does NOT have herons, so the weathervane is probably from an English/Dutch owner.

Day 11, Monday:  Departure

We had to get up at 3:45 a.m. to make our 7:40 a.m. flight back to Amsterdam.  UGH.
But whenever I see Amsterdam's flight tower, I always tell Astrid, "We're home!"
Even after doing a week's grocery shopping on the way back, we still arrived home by 1:30 p.m.
Isn't it strange how we are always excited to leave but equally excited to come back home!
There's no place like home, of course.

And now I'll start the long process of honing in the the specifics of the trip.
I've decided Malta is one of the Europe's best-kept secrets!