The last place in Malta that we write about on the blog, at least until our next visit, is the island of Gozo. Being an archipelago, the country of Malta is made up of several islands, of which only 3 are inhabited: Malta (with the capital Valletta and the main tourist attractions: Mdina and Rabat, Marsaxlokk, Popeye Village), Comino (often visited for the Blue Lagoon) and Gozo, about which we will detail below.
From Sliema, where we had the accommodation, we took the bus 222 to the last station, Cirkewwa. Being a transit point for both tourists and locals, in Cirkewwa arrive buses from all over the island of Malta, even from the airport. From there we continued our journey to Gozo Island by ferry, crossing Gozo Chanel to Mgarr harbor. The price of a roundtrip ticket is 4.65 euros and is paid on return; for the first part of the boat trip you do not have to pay anything. The program can be found on the official website, and the journey takes about 15-20 minutes. Since we left Sliema and until we took the bus from the starting station in Gozo, we did less than 2 hours, which is why we were able to use on the bus in Gozo the same ticket that we used on bus 222, and that we bought for 1.50 euros directly from the driver at the starting point in Sliema.
We wanted to spend a relaxing day here, so we decided to visit only the capital of the island, Victoria. The bus station, from Mgarr to Victoria, is easy to find, it is located just after the exit of the ferry's harbor and there are shown the bus schedule and the route of each of them.
When we arrived in Victoria, we decided to start our visit with a city walk before visiting the most important tourist point, Citadella. So we discovered a little park decorated for holidays. Actually it was the Christmas Eve and we were just glad to stay on a bench in the sun.
The afternoon we spent strolling on the streets of the old Cittadella, a walk that gave us the chance to have a panorama of the island, to admire its houses and hills.
In any direction you looked, you could see the margins of the island and the Mediterranean Sea that surrounds it, which shows its small size.
As in most places visited in Malta, also in Cittadella in Gozo, you can walk through the narrow streets full of history that can give you the feeling of returning back in time.
The most imposing building is the Gozo Cathedral, although it is not very photogenic because of its protective walls and its shade.
Before going to the ferry to return to Malta, we stopped at the citadel's restaurant to eat. We chose to eat traditional dishes and we were not disappointed with the choice made. We recommend you to try the traditional rabbit steak, but accompanied by the spectacular view of the restaurant within the fortress. We also received fries and salad, and the total price is a good one, around 12-13 euros per person, considering that prices in Valletta were at least 14-15 euros just for the meat.
