A Week in Malta & Gozo - Victoria, Cittadella, and Xlendi Bay (Day 6)

The Cittadella as seen from our hike along the Heritage Path leading out from Xlendi Bay, Gozo.

UPDATED: 2/5/2023

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Exploring Cittadella and Xlendi Bay

On our second day on the island of Gozo, we returned to the walled city of Cittadella to finish exploring the parts we hadn’t gotten to the prior day and were particularly surprised by the contents of the Shipwreck Museum. Then, wanting to spend some time along the coast, we had a wonderful harbor-side meal and 3-mile hike starting out from Xlendi Bay with exquisite views!

We slept in for the first and only time on this trip after a rough night. The house we rented only has air conditioning for the two bedrooms on the third floor, and that level has no bathroom, so we had elected to stay in the only room with en suite facilities, located on the second floor. So, we had the windows open all night for fresh air – it was too hot to have them closed. There are a lot of stray cats, and several had meowing sessions and cat-on-cat battles during the night. By 5am, some locals were up and about, meeting their friends and having discussions in the street, and we also heard a work crew who began hammering very close to our window. When there are narrow streets, sounds travel very quickly and easily!

For breakfast, we stopped in at a place in the town square called Café Jubilee that is fashioned after a British pub. This spot is located right in a popular square in Victoria, just down the hill from Cittadella so is in a convenient spot. We had cappuccinos, fresh squeezed orange juice, and ham and provolone croissants.

We returned to the Cittadella in the morning with plans to hit a few of the museums we didn’t have time for the day before.

Return to Cittadella

Still waking up and unsure what exactly our plans would be for the day, we headed back up the hill to Cittadella to finish exploring it. As mentioned in our prior post, the ticket for the visitor’s center and five museums lasts for 30 days, so we could still use it and gladly spent about two more hours there. We first explored to the Gozo Natural History Museum, which held local and non-local flora and fauna, including an interesting display of stuffed birds (all of which had died natural deaths) and butterflies. This is a small museum which may not live up to your expectations if you compare it to other larger and better funded museums, but for a small museum included in our ticket it was worth a visit. Dustin really enjoyed the ocean fossils, which included a few huge Megalodon teeth. While it would have been great if more information on each species was provided, we had an enjoyable visit.

Huge Megalodon teeth can be found in the sedimentary deposits on and near Malta.

There are some absolutely beautiful butterflies in Malta. Sadly we only saw them under glass.

Looking up the the Cathedral of the Assumption, which can be found in the main square of the Cittadella.

Climbing the steps to one of the side entrances of the Cittadella.

Another side tunnel leads through the walls and into the Cittadella.

While mostly flat, the Cittadella’s streets follow the natural contours of the hilltop.

Shipwreck museum

Across the street from the Natural History Museum is a Shipwreck Museum that is open to the public. It appeared to be a temporary museum exhibit, with a sign indicating it would only be there until the end of August this year, but we were there 3+ weeks after that time period, and it was still open. What we discovered within was a really unexpected surprise!

Like any well-trafficked coastal area, Malta has its history of shipwrecks. Given the historic use of the island, though, it has arguably more interesting shipwrecks than many places. In 2007, a Phoenician shipwreck was discovered off the coast in Xlendi Bay and was historic for a few reasons. The shipwreck dated to the 7th century BCE, meaning it is about 9,000 years old and making it the oldest shipwreck discovered in the region! Because of the depth of the shipwreck, about double the distance down compared to most shipwrecks, divers could only spend a few minutes exploring it at a time. This meant that initial excavations were slow moving, but in the last few years more progress has been made.

The findings provide new insights into the Mediterranean trade routes of the Phoenicians and which goods were popular for trading (wine and oil are a few). This pocket-sized museum held urns and other remnants of that wreck in remarkably good condition! We also learned that 1-2 other ships had wrecked on top of the Phoenician one, adding excavation complexity.

Roman anchors dating from 4th century BC to the 4th century have been found off the coats of Malta and Gozo. (from the Gozo Archaeology Museum)

Ancient Phoenician clay pottery has survived in the shipwrecks of Xlendi Bay.

Archaeologists have found an incredible amount of clay artifacts .

ruins in cittadella & the legend of Bernardo Dupuo

While much of the Cittadella is still intact or rebuilt, the rear of the compound remains in ruins, most of which are in this state from the sacking by invaders..

Afterwards, we spent some more time wandering through the ruins housed within Cittadella. As mentioned in our prior blog, during the Ottoman invasion of Gozo in 1551, 6,000 people of Gozo were taken prisoner and enslaved by the Ottomans. This was a huge portion of the small island’s population. Most of the buildings within Cittadella’s walls that crumbled to ruins during that bombardment are still in ruins today. Visitors can wander through several streets of half-walls and remnants of houses and buildings that are basically left as they were on that fateful day.

One of the houses in ruins has a tragic story that we had learned in the visitor’s center the prior day. Discovering that the city was about to be attacked by the Ottomans, the man living there, Bernardo Dupuo, decided he would rather kill his wife and two daughters than have them captured as slaves. So, upon hearing of the invaders, he returned home with his family, killed them, and then went out to battle, where he himself fell. I love hearing stories of places – even, unfortunately, tragic ones like that – and seeing the spot where they occurred.

An impressive arched view looking out from the Cittadella toward the city of Victoria.

Lindsey poses next to an iron gate meant to keep folks out of these Cittadella ruins. This is the front of Bernardo Dupuo’s home.

Ancient indoor well. What is it about holes that makes people want to relieve themselves of coinage?

The wind blowing through the streets of Malta and Gozo felt so good on a hot day! I (Dustin) love this picture of Lindsey!

I love how this tree has grown! Is this natural or human induced?

Lindsey walking the ramparts at the Cittadella.

Xlendi Bay and the Coast of Gozo

Xlendi Bay is a great stop for photos, swimming, and all manner of water sports. Or, a relaxing waterside meal.

We finally made up our mind what to do for the rest of the day. Gozo is a relatively small island with a lot of interesting spots scattered throughout it. We knew we really needed to pick just one spot for the rest of the day.

We decided to catch the bus and venture over to Xlendi Bay for lunch and the afternoon but with no real solid plans after that. We researched the bus information online and found the local bus station that had several bus stops – Victoria Bay 1-5. At Victoria Bay 5, we were able to catch the bus bound for Xlendi Bay. Upon arrival, we discovered that the bus route we had found on their website was not running for the foreseeable future but that another route would get us there. This was something we ran into a few times – that the transportation website may not always have the latest updates to schedules – so, our recommendation would be to always allow extra time for bus travels.

We ended up having a short wait at the bus station for the alternative bus. The center of the bus station is a park-like square with benches and trees, so it was one of the nicer places we have had to wait for public transportation before.

When the bus arrived, we paid 2 Euros each, and journeyed about 10 minutes to Xlendi. Like most bus systems but worth noting for those not as used to bus rides, passengers need to hit the ‘stop’ buttons throughout the bus to let the driver know if they need to get off at the next stop.

lunch in xlendi bay

Xlendi Bay was beautiful! There were a few boats, mostly for recreation, a few areas marked by buoys for swimmers, and a string of harbor-side restaurants with outdoor seating. The harbor itself was deep and narrow with cliffs rising up on both sides quite steeply.

We picked The Stone Crab for lunch and sat near the water. We were given complimentary bruschetta, which was delicious. I ordered crab tortellacci (pasta that is essentially extra large tortellini), and Dustin had calzone with mushrooms, ham, and oregano.

After a slow, relaxing lunch, we decided to wander back up the cliffs nearby to see about taking a short hike on one of the paths that was visible. Dustin found a description of one of the hikes online, and we figured we could walk a short portion of it along the cliffs.

the heritage hike in gozo

From Xlendi Bay, we headed steep uphill on the road and caught the trail over the edge as it eased down into a ravine, over a bridge, and then climbed up the other side. This trail is visible from the road and so easy to locate.

After making it to the other side of the ravine, the cliff plateaus to overlook the ocean. The Xlendi Tower is situated on this outcrop. First built in 1650, the Xlendi Tower is the oldest remaining tower on Gozo. From this spot, we had a beautiful vista over Xlendi Bay. We thought back to the Shipwreck Museum that we had visited in the morning and contemplated the Phoenician shipwreck and urns resting at the bottom of this very bay for centuries upon centuries.

Below on the oceanside of the cliff, we got a glimpse of the squared salt flats that Gozo is known for. The more well-known salt pans are on the northern part of the island and are called Malsalforn Salt Pans and so while we were disappointed we wouldn’t have time to see them, we at least got a glimpse of those at Xlendi. A woman and her dog were wandering among the salt pans, collecting salt in a little jar. From how tiny they looked to us, we could tell that we were higher up than we realized. Apparently that salt pan site is still used by a company to collect salt, but we saw no signs of industry.

Massive limestone cliffs reach out of brilliant azure blue water.

Lindsey pauses to take in the view as she crosses this ancient Roman footbridge.

Although unused today, the Xlendi Tower has kept watch along the coast since 1650.

We didn’t feel were were very high above these salt pans until we saw the size of the person walking below. Hint: look up from the top point of the right pool of water.

Xlendi Tower is currently undergoing repairs. You can see a marked difference between the old weathered stone and the smooth new blocks.

Following the path along the cliff face reveals miles of amazing views.

We decided to continue walking along the trail . . . and somehow ended up on a 3-mile hike on the cliffs towering above the Mediterranean Sea. This is a portion of the hiking trail called the “Heritage Hike.” Because of the serpentine coastline, as we came around bends in the hike, we could see the beautiful cliffs ahead of us before then following ascending paths over each one. We hiked over the Sannap Cliffs and the Ta’Cenc cliffs along the way. There were no other hikers on the trail, though at a few points the trail passed a local overlook that had locals out for the sunset.

The cliffs and ocean views were along the right side of the trail. Along the left was agricultural land dotted with little shacks for the owners to I guess hang out and watch their livestock. A few had people in them, and one had a small group of men grilling dinner next to the shack.

At one point during the hike when we were on a particularly high portion of the cliff trail, we realized that the inland view wasn’t to be missed either! From the spot, we could see Cittadella from a distance and many of the other coastal towns dotting the island. Gozo truly is a small place!

I love looking at the layers of rock and contemplating the immensity of Earth’s history.

Looking back as we rounded the curve of the cliff, still contemplating my place in the enormity of time…

Beware of erosion! Don’t get too close to the edge or you may find the ground crumbing beneath your feet..

The Sanap Cliffs and il-Pinnur, their highest point

You can really get a handle on the size of the Cittadella when looking at it from a distance.

As the colors in the sky dipped into warm twilight, we knew we needed to find a way to end our hike since we did not want to get stuck on the trail once the sun set. Around the town of Ta’Cenc, we found what appeared to be a road on our Google map app, and headed inland. It turned out to be someone’s driveway that connected to the main road to town - oops! It just so happened that the owner was standing behind the closed and locked gate to his driveway chatting with a friend on the other side. We apologized for being on his property and asked to pass through, but he did not have a key to unlock the gate with him but suggested a way to climb over a few fences to get around it, which we did.

After a very short walk, we came to the bus stop that would take us back to the center of Victoria. We had a bit of a wait before the bus showed up more-or-less on schedule. While we were waiting, we decided to go back to Maldonado Bistro for dinner again since nothing else looked as good near where we were staying and conveniently made the reservation online for 8pm to give us plenty of time to get there.

As the sun drew closer to the horizon, warmer colors emerged from the rocks and ocean.

The contrasting colors between blue ocean and golden cliffs still blows me away!

We made it to the bus stop as evening shadows began to spread.

Narrow streets lined with cars seemed to be a common sight in both Malta and Gozo.

Dinner in Victoria, Gozo

Back in Victoria after the short ride, we grabbed a few essentials from a market on the way home, got ourselves cleaned up, and headed to dinner again at Maldonado Bistro.

This is definitely a restaurant that has loyal patrons who return time-and-time again. The prior night, we had a table of British travelers sitting near us. From what we could gather - we weren’t actively eavesdropping, but they were loud! - the server knew them well, and they seem to come a time or two a year to Gozo and always frequent this and one other restaurant.

This time I had Lampuki (mahi-mahi) that Dustin had the prior night, and Dustin had pork belly. For dessert, Dustin stuck with the lemon tart from the night before, while I tried their chocolate mousse. Every bit of the meal was as delicious as the night before, and we definitely recommend this restaurant for anyone looking for a fine dining option in the area.

Exhausted from the long day and hike, we headed home and did a bit of pre-packing since we would be heading out of Gozo the following day.

Here’s our approximate route of the day. Note: we did not walk this entire route but to get the hike route to show up, I put it into Google Maps as a walking route. From Victoria to Xlendi was via bus, we hiked from Xlendi along the coast to Ta’Cenc, where we caught a return bus to Victoria.

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