Malta and Gozo, the beautiful sisters in the Mediterranean – Diepresse.com
The sunny small islands in the Mediterranean are brimming with cultural treasures and discoveries.
In an inconspicuous house, half an hour outside the center of the capital Valletta, there is a sight that makes the heart of every archaeologically interested faster: the hypoger. In Greek the word simply stands for « basement », but the site is far away from what is generally understood by a basement. In 1899 this type of temple complex, which leads three floors deep into the ground, was discovered by chance when building a new cistern.
The homeowners would have loved to cover up the find because they suspected that their place of residence would become a museum, but they were only able to maintain their secret for a few years. In the meantime, the Hypogeim space is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, accordingly the number of visitors is also large. At the moment, only groups of ten people can visit the site in a few slots. A pre -registration is essential and to plan weeks in advance. The Stone Age underground walls have already been created in 3800 BC and unique in their kind and shape. It is believed that it is a grave, since the extensive underground cave system of skeletons were found by around 7,000 people.
Enigmatic underworld
If you catch a Timeslot, you can only move down without any bags and drinks and with plastic -covered shoes. There it can sometimes be queasy whether the tightness of the gears. The air is damp and stuffy, some of the walls and blankets are adorned with ocher -colored ornaments and paintings. The whole acts in its shape – on many different levels up to a kind of hall with a column structure that is removed Stonehenge Reminds – through and through puzzling. According to the current research, optical illusions were deliberately installed in order to give the large hall even more depth.
Even if there are scientific explanations, many questions remain open: Why was something like this built? What kind of people were these? Because little is known about this culture from the Neolithic period. But not only in Malta, also on the neighboring island Gozo there are impressive sites. Numerous art treasures were discovered, most of them with female form. This led to the assumption that it was a matriarchal culture, but that is also not clear. A small statuette from the hypogaum, « the sleeping lady », points out: it is beautifully executed, surprisingly modern in its shape and probably 5000 years old. After three quarters of an hour you will be returned to the surface, for some the joy of climbing up from the underground world again.
History and Malta – one is inconceivable without the other. Almost everything that can be visited is closely linked to a wide variety of chapters of European history. The small island, two flight hours from Vienna, is full of cultural treasures, was supposedly full of pirates and was under the rule of the Order of Malta for centuries.
Knight and artist
This attracted Ritter from all over the world, in the capital Valletta the traces and traces of this time are omnipresent. From the Grand Master Palace over the harbor, the fortifications and the Cathedral of St. Johannes, in which the largest and only signed picture of the Renaissance artist Michelangelo Merisi alias Caravaggio is located: « The beheading of John the Baptist ». The picture is stunning in its effect. It dominates a whole side wing of the Christian building that is bursting with baroque pomp. The entire old town is a unique ensemble: there are shopping streets, countless restaurants and hotels of all kinds. Which are not only stimulated in summer, because Valletta is also suitable for winter city trips.
Sun, warmth and infrastructure
The sun is strong here all year round, the temperatures are significantly milder than in Central Europe. The sea is almost always within sight in Valletta, the island is manageable, and within a maximum of an hour and a half you can get almost anywhere. A huge hotel and road network extends across the whole island, and the bus network is also well developed.
« /> With a few exceptions, the coast of Malta consists of exciting rock formations. Julia Pollak
When the peak is reached in summer, the image of the island will change as every year. Then it is less the individual tourists, but the families and package travelers who spend their vacation in the hotels on the rocky coast. There are also sandy beaches, but only in a few bays. One of them is the Golden Bay in the northwest with the Radisson Blue Golden Sands, which is visible from afar, which attracts with a beach connection with a lift and all kinds of water sports activities.
Quiet neighboring island of Gozo
From here it is not far to the ferry that leads to the next island of Gozo in just 15 minutes. Gozo is Malta’s quiet sister, the Maltese herself come here to go on vacation. It is greener, agriculture is also operated here, and it is too dry on Malta itself. If you want to immerse yourself deeper into the archaeological history of the island, you can visit the five temples of ġGantija on Gozo. They should also be around 5600 years old. The facility is connected to a small museum and can be visited all year round. Here, too, exceptional rock processing and shaping let visitors immerse yourself in a fascinating early world, but this time above ground.
The stylish mix of historical artifacts runs across the centuries on both islands and has always adopted its own shapes in the southernmost Mediterranean. Almost all cultures have left their mark. In every place there is a church that say Maltese that there are 365 churches for them – one for every day. Even if little is produced on the island, Maltese cuisine is characterized by Mediterranean delights – each with a special twist.
Cooking courses on site
This can also be experienced well on a cooking class on site. These are offered on Gozo, for example, in the Maldonado Bistro in the city of Victoria: Chef Larry Zammit leads visitors into a world of sweet quBBAJT (nuts, honey and protein dominate this snack) or bigilla (a bean paste that fits every dish). After work, everything can then be eaten, of course in connection with Maltese wine.
