russia: moscow: museum of oriental art

My flight from Malta back to Moscow landed Sunday morning. As soon as I booked it I told Claire and Angela that we definitely had to get together and see or do something that day, so I didn't waste it doing nothing at home.

We didn't sort out where we would go until a couple days before, but that didn't really matter much to me. Claire chose the Museum of Oriental Art, which should probably change its name, given the pejorative meaning of the word oriental. It ought to be called Museum of Asian Art. 

The web page of the museum says it is one of the largest 'cultural institutions in the world for the preservation, research, and display of Oriental art.' I'm not sure if I believe it is really that big, but who knows.

We found the ticket desk, which wanted us to pay what amounts to a foreigner tax, meaning a higher entrance fee. We showed our work visas, and said we live here, we don't want to pay the higher price. They let us pay the local price, if they hadn't we were ready to walk away.

The museum was mostly organized by country/region, with a little bit of chronology thrown in.

There were sections for India, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, etc... I'm pretty sure we wandered through every room with exhibits, but I could be wrong. Finding the entrance of the exhibits themselves wasn't obvious, we had to walk past the toilet, and up what looked like a back stairway.

Since all three of us had lived in Eastern Asia (Claire and Angela in China, me in Korea,) we had all seen some of the styles of the exhibits previously. Even so, it was a nice outing, and I'm glad we visited the museum.

malta: malta: blue grotto and haqar qim temples

This was my last day in Malta, I used the day to do another day trip to two more sights on the island. I caught one of the first buses in the morning, hoping to be one of the first people to arrive, thinking there would be fewer pictures in whateva photos I took.

My first sight is called the Blue Grotto. Like the Blue Hole that used to exist on the island of Gozo, this was a natural sight, formed by the action of water over millenia, crashing on rock over and over. People come here to ride boats through the holes that have been created by all those waves.

The bus stop is at the top of everything, you have to walk down a fairly steep road to get to the boats. Go figure, I got all the way down the hill, to find a sign at the boats with the same message as the ferry I'd wanted to ride in Valletta: not working due to wind. Argh.

This time I could see the waves crashing onto the rocks so I could see why the decision was made not to run the boats. I wasn't happy about it, but I could understand. Even so, darnit.

I walked to a viewpoint that lets you see some of the holes in the rocks, but it wasn't as good as what I'd hoped to see. 

Oh well, traveling doesn't always work out the way you want it to.

After the viewpoint I walked back up the hill, and followed the road a bit further, only a 25 minute walk or so. (Uphill the whole way, in the direct sun. I feel this has been a theme of my posts for this trip.)

My second sight of the day was heaps better than the first. It was another set of ancient megalithic temples. This complex was similar to what I'd already seen on Gozo and in Valletta, but it was bigger, with more ruins.

Like the others, these temples of Haqar Qim (sp?) date back to 3600 BC or so, give or take a few years. They are made of limestone, which means they haven't weathered particularly well over the millenia, and that won't get better.

Like the temples in Valletta, these are covered with a giant tent like tarp. I suppose this protects the stones from rain and such, but I don't know how much, if anything, it does against the wind. Since these temples are right on the coast, the wind is constant.

As these temples are also UNESCO sights, there is an entrance fee. Sigh, but I understand why. At least this time I could see that some preservation was taking place.

After wandering around for a while, making sure I stepped into every nook and cranny possible, I headed back toward the entrance, making my way to the bus stop.

It didn't take long for a bus to pull up, and bring me back to Valletta. I'd packed up and checked out earlier in the morning, but was able to leave my bag at my accomodation, so I headed there to pick it up.

If you've read the two previous posts you won't be surprised to know that I had the same dinner as the previous three nights: Indian food, then gelato and pastries for dessert. After eating I caught a bus back to the airport, from which I took off and ended up back in Moscow.

I liked Malta, and I could see myself coming back here, but it isn't at the top of my list for the time being.

malta: malta: mosta and mdina and rabat

Since the island of Malta is relatively small and has good transport to get all over, I decided to sleep in Valletta for three or four nights and do a couple day trips to see sights in other places.

Malta has a lot of history in war, despite being quite small. The most recent war in which fighting happened on the island was WW2. The geographic importance of the island was huge, it was actually under seige for over two years.

I wanted to see a part of that particular history, so I hopped on a bus to the small town of Mosta, which of course has a giant church. The ride was not long, and the bus stop is obvious, right next to the church. Despite being huge, it is 'just' a parrish church.

The name of the church is the Basilica of the Assumption of our Lady, but not one calls it by that name. It is more commonly known as the Mosta Dome or Rotunda of Mosta, because that is the part of the church through which history happened.

The chuch goes back to the early 17^th century, though that building was much smaller. In the 19^th century a new church was built, right around the old church. Wikipedia tells me local citizens helped out with some of the building, on Sundays and holidays.

The dome is huge, it was the third largest in Europe at one point. The interior diameter is 37 meters, not too shabby. The walls holding it up are 30 feet thick! Even though the church is circular, there are side chapels all around the circle.

On 9 April 1942 the Luftwaffe dropped three bombs in the area in the evening. One of them went straight through the rotunda, while a gathering of 300 people was celebrating an evening service inside the church. The bomb didn't explode, it just sat in the middle of the floor. Needless to say, this was considered a miracle.

Engineers from the Royal Bomb Disposal unit defused the bomb and dumped the remains in the sea off the island, and a replica is now inside the church. The story behind the bomb is the reason anyone comes to Mosta, because the town is otherwise unremarkable.

There is an entry fee to this church, sigh. It isn't much, but it's still annoying. It doesn't take long to walk through the church, appreciating what happened, as well as appreciating the artistry of the building itself.

After seeing the church I walked into one of several nearby bakeries to pick up snacks. No, I didn't need the piece of cake, but I have no regrets :)

I went back to the same bus stop to catch my next bus, out to the walled city of Mdina. This bus stop was also right next to where I wanted to go, yippee!

Mdina is an ancient walled city, it was actually the capital of the island from antiquity to the Middle Ages. The walls are still standing, and the whole thing is still really photogenic. 

Continued reading in Wikipedia tells me the current population is around 43.

Like many cities from way back in the day, the streets in Mdina are not straight, and they are narrow. The greatest part of exploring Mdina is getting lost in the many small alleys. You start walking into one of them and you're never sure where you'll end up.

There were of course several churches. One of the churches I passed had locked gates in front, but the doors behind the gates were open. In other words I was able to peek inside, but was not able to go in. 

Another church was part of a monastery, it was actually a chapel with a beautiful ceiling. There was another huge church with an entry fee, I was getting tired of the fees by this point. That being said, the fee on this one included entry in the next door museum, which was quite nice.

After getting completely turned around in the alleys a number of times, I felt like I'd seen most of Mdina, so I walked back out of the main gate, (there is a moat around the city, I wonder what it looked like back in its heyday,) and to the modern city next door, called Rabat.

Even though Rabat is thought of as the 'new' city, it was part of the core of the original medieval city before Mdina was split off, and has plenty of visible history. I found more churches, and well known catacombs. The biggest church in Rabat was free, thank goodness.

Rabat isn't nearly as pretty as Mdina, but there are more than 11,000 people living there. It definitely feels more alive than Mdina. (to be honest, Mdina feels more like an Instagram location now, not so much a real city. There are heaps of people in the really photogenic spots - doors with floral decorations, etc - but no markets anything real.)

After finishing exploring I walked down the main road until I found a bus stop in the shade. I'm not usually such a fan of shade when sun is an option, but the past couple days in the direct sun had gotten to me.
I had to wait a while, but eventually a bus came along and brought me back to Valletta.

malta: malta: valletta

Valletta is the capital of both the country of Malta and the island of Malta. According to the official boundaries, Valletta is the smallest capital city of Europe at only .8 square miles and 6500 residents. That being said, when anyone says Valletta, they are referring to the metro area, which includes the suburbs. When including the suburbs, the number of residents goes up to almost 400,000.

Valletta has been associated with the Order of St John, the French Republic, the Protectorate of Malta, the Crown Colony of Malta, the State of Malta, and the Republic of Malta. 

Because Malta is a set of islands in the Mediterranean Sea, it has been fought on and over many times throughout its history. From what I've learned, many of the cities around the country were founded as forts, and many of those forts are still standing in some form.

Valletta is one of those cities. There are several fortifications around the city, protecting the harbour in particular. I stayed in one of the suburbs, and to get into the city proper it was a long walk or a bus ride, both of which went around a small marina.

When I first looked at my phone to figure out how to get to the city center it said I could take one of the small ferries that leave just as often as buses come by. When I got to the spot from which the ferry was supposed to leave I found a sign saying the ferries were closed for the day due to wind. I looked out at the water and saw small waves, but it didn't seem that bad, but since I'm not the one driving the ferry I don't get to decide. I didn't see the ferries sailing at any time during my four days in the area, I have no clue how smooth everything needs to be for them to sail. 

I took the bus instead, getting off when I saw something interesting. The interesting thing seemed to be an abandoned fort of some kind, I'm a sucker for anything that looks abandoned. I walked around and took a few photos, then kept walking in the direction in which the bus had gone.

Next up was a giant church. By this point I'd figured out that pretty much every church in the country was huge, regardless of whether it was a cathedral, or 'just' a regular church. St Publius had an open door, so I walked in. 

I was going in as a couple was coming out, and about a minute later I realized the priest had shut the door behind them. It turned out the church wasn't really open for the public to be wandering around, but since I'd walked in through an open door it was okay for me to finish up.

St Publius was a lovely church. A great ceiling, a beautiful altar, a tall vaulted ceiling, and stained glass windows. The best part: I had it all to myself. If only I could get lucky like that all the time.

From there I continued toward the city center, to see the sights listed as worth seeing. I finally found the major cathedral, only to find out that there was a steep entrance fee: 10 euro!! Call me crazy, but that's ridiculous, especially when I saw how many people were queued up to go inside. At least you get a brochure with a lot of information about the church.

Even with the queue and and ridiculous price, I paid to go inside St John's co Cathedral. It was just as big as other churches I'd already seen, and just as fancy. Unlike the other churches I'd seen, I was not allowed to wander all over. 

Most of the sanctuary was blocked off by ropes, so I wasn't able to stand under the center of the ceiling.

Another difference was that this cathedral had a whole lot of side chapels. None of them were super amazing, but with how much I'd paid, I took the time to look at every single one. Toward the back of the sanctuary was a set of steps, which I followed up to get to a balcony at the back of the sanctuary. I felt as if I was looking out and down over the rest of the world, which was fun.

The cathedral with crowded, it is not a place I'd go to again.

Much of the central area is a pedestrian zone, which I loved. All my wandering took me past a number of traditional Maltese balconies, which are mostly covered, and painted. When you have a building full of these balconies it catches the eye of every photographer.

Another thing that caught my eye was a reserved parking spot. It was held for members of a convent, with a simple chair.

My self guided tour kept going by heading toward the grand harbour, a sight on many postcards of the city. This is where cruise boats pull in, it's huge. It is better seen from the other side of the water, but you can still appreciate the size when your in the middle of the whole thing.

From there I walked until I found a bus stop where I could catch a bus back to my neighborhood. Earlier in the day I'd noticed an Indian restaurant very close to my accomodation, and it turned out to be an excellent choice for dinner :)

The next morning I got going quite a bit earlier in the day, and started with a long walk. Over two hours I think, to get to my first sight of the day. It was warm and sunny, I wanted to enjoy that as much as possible.

I passed a few churches, walked over a bridge, saw a LOT of sandstone coloured buildings, and small shops along the way.

Finally I got to a proper sight: a set of old temples, a UNESCO designated spot. The Tarxien temples are dated all the way back to 3150 BC.

The temples were 'discovered' in 1914 by a farmer tilling his fields. From what I've been able to find, archaeologists aren't completely sure about the use of these temples either, though they think animal sacrifices might've happened here.

Archaeologists also learned a bit of how these types of temples were constructed because those who did the constructing this time left stone rollers outside. The skills of engineers back in the day were just as good as they are now, and they didn't have computers.

The ruins are now under a giant tarp of sorts, to help protect the stones from the elements. Since I'm not good at imagining how things could've been, all I saw was a bunch of big stones and rocks. (Then again, this is pretty typical of lots of ruins I've seen, though I can always appreciate seeing history, and its value.)

From the temples I walked down toward the water, through the suburb of Birgu. I wanted to get all the way to the edge so I could look across at the Grand Harbour. To get there I passed under one of the old city gates, which stretches across the whole road. Quite impressive.

By this point I was in dire need of shade, which was not anywhere to be found. Am I a horrible person for getting tired of the direct sun and heat by that point? Hee hee. While searching for shade I walked past a marina, which was quite photogenic with all the sailboats lined up. I also saw outside the walls of a fort, which to be honest looked the same as every other fort I'd already seen in Malta.

Finally I found a small tree, which provided a wee bit of shade. I stood there for ten minutes, then found a nearby bus stop and started making my way back to my neighborhood. 

As I'd enjoyed the Indian restaurant so much the night before, I went back for more. After the main course I walked down the street to have dessert: gelato and mini pastries from a gelateria. YUM.

After a day trip the next day I went back to the Indian restaurant and gelateria. And again after the next day trip as well. Why fix something that isn't broken?

I don't know that I feel the need to come back to Valletta in particular, but there is good transport around the island, so if I come back to Malta, this is where I'd start.

malta: malta: popeye's village and mellieha

The bacon in the breakfast buffet of my hotel in Victoria never did improve, sigh.

I packed up and checked out and walked to the bus station. I know I've already said it, but the transportation system of this island is great, and makes exploring the whole island really convenient.

It was easy to catch a bus to the ferry port. I had to wait about an hour for the next ferry to leave. I didn't know the ferry schedule ahead of time, I wish I had. The port itself was pretty, with another big church and homes near the water. If I'd known how much time I had to kill I would've wandered along a couple streets.

I sat on the upper deck of the ferry, because why not. The ride was only 20 minutes, but quite windy. I remembered the ferry port on the island of Malta, and remembered how to get to the bus stop right there.

I'd used my phone to figure out how to get to the next accomodation I'd booked, and realized that one of the buses would go out to something I wanted to see along the way. Taking this bus meant I'd have my pack with me while walking around, but it meant I wouldn't have to make an extra trip to see it.

Popeye's Village isn't Maltese at all. It's actually an old film set, built for the making of the 1980s Popeye musical. The place is photogenic, and visitor numbers continue to increase every year with the rise of social media as a travel platform.

It is also called Sweethaven Village, and is built in Anchor Bay. The bay is right between two cliffs, and the view I wanted was from the top of one of the cliffs. The view was totally worth it, even though it started pouring while I was out there. Yuck. Rain is the one kind of weather I really really really don't like. 

I didn't pay the entry fee, as going in didn't really interest me. Well, that's not entirely true. When it started pouring I took cover in the ticket office, along with the others who got caught outside. Whoops.

When the next bus pulled up the whole soggy lot of us climbed on. I assume everyone knows how good wet clothes smell? Yeah, just imagine that for 30 people in an enclosed area.

I'd booked accomodation in another small town, called Mellieha. There isn't much to see or do, but it is built on a steep hill, so there are plenty of stairs to climb. I didn't really want a stair workout at that point, buuuuut....

I checked in, then rested for a while as everything dried.

I went back out and explored for around 3 hours. Not surprisingly, one of the places I went was another huge church. I saw the outside of the church, but the church doors were locked so I wasn't able to see the interior.

I walked all the way around the property of the church, which actually wound down the hill, so I ended up on a lower level. This lower level brought me to the entrance of another church. This second church was a lot smaller, almost tiny. This smaller church is where people from around the world come to pray to a certain saint.

In one hallway there is a big display of items left by visitors, when they've come to pray to the saint. 

There are photos and letters too, telling the stories of those prayers. This was definitely among the most interesting church displays I've ever seen.

To be honest this church is the only specific thing I saw in Mellieha. The streets weren't particularly photogenic. When I looked up the city on Wikipedia I was stunned to find the population listed at 10,000, I never would've thought that many people were around.

Mellieha is mostly a resort town, the current town is basically as it was developed during British colonial times. 

Around the town there are the remains of British forts and natural caves used during the military parts of Malta's looooong history, but I didn't make enough time to see them. 

I doubt I'll be back to Mellieha.

malta: gozo: salt pans, Xewkija, Ta Pinu and the (former) blue hole

As I planned this 'day trip' to different sights around Gozo I realized one of the places I wanted to go was right next to where I'd just been. Ooops.

My day started with more rubbery bacon from the hotel breakfast, argh.

I caught the same bus as the day before, just staying on a little longer. My first sight of the day was a set of salt pans. The information sign said they'd been hand dug, waaaaay back in Roman times. Life was certainly a lot more physically taxing in those days.

They were full while I was there, so I wonder how they change as the process happens. I walked on the rock areas that separate each little square, and surprisingly didn't fall. (I'm naturally (un)coordinated, this sort of stumble is something I do regularly.)

It was really windy on the coast, I was surprised to see a man fishing off some of the rocks. He was standing very near an area where water continually crashed on the rocks. He was wearing a raincoat, but I can't imagine it helped keep off all the water being blown by the wind.

I caught a bus back to Victoria, and again changed buses at the bus station. Again, I didn't have to wait long for the bus I wanted.

My second sight was another giant church, this one in the town of Xewkija. (Again, I haven't got a clue how that name is pronounced.) I'd seen this church from a distance on two previous bus rides, and I wanted to see the interior.

St John the Baptish church felt even bigger than all the churches I'd already seen during this trip. I don't know if it actually was bigger, but it definitely felt that way. It was decorated differently, but still quite nicely.

There was a giant rotunda, it was the focus of the ceiling, as compared to a long vaulted ceilings as the other churches had. The interior of the church was all white, and there was a fair amount of natural light coming in. The effect was in making the interior feel light and airy.

I walked around and realized one door led to a set of stairs which took me up to the rotunda! There was a suggested 'donation' of 3 euro in order to go up these stairs, and a lady sitting at a table watching to make sure people donated. I paid, and started climbing.

The stairs didn't lead to the interior of the rotunda, instead they led to a door to the roof, and a way to walk around the top of the church. I loved the views. The only way to make it better would've been if I could've walked around the interior of the rotunda. Oh well.

This town was close enough to Victoria that I decided to walk back. After snacks and a thirty minute rest, I went back to the bus station for yet another bus.

This bus took me to yet another church. I'd seen this one marked on a tourist map of the island, so why not see it? The church is called Ta Pinu, or maybe the town has that name? I'm not entirely sure. Either way, the church sits on the very edge of town. The way it sits on the edge of town shows just how big the church is. I found myself wondering how often it is full during a service, if ever.

The interior of this church was different from the others I'd seen. There was a long nave, with a tall vaulted ceiling. This one was mostly white inside, with only the area near the altar having colour. Another nice atmosphere.

From this church I walked to the coast. I used a travel app to plot the course, and I'm not sure that where I walked was actually a good place to walk, but oh well. Near the end I was walking along the edge of cliffs, hoping the wind would've blow me off.

I finally arrived at my last sight of the day. Well, it used to be a sight, but isn't anymore. A natural sight known as the Blue Hole used to be on the western coast of Gozo. The action of water over the millenia created a natural rock arch, which collapsed a few years ago. I don't know if the collapse happened because tourists would walk over the top of the arch, but that wouldn't surprise me. Travelers will often 'break' something amazing due to their desire for a photo.

Though the Blue Hole doesn't exist anymore, the cliffs are beautiful, as was the sunset. If I'd had another night on the island I would've considered coming back for another sunset. I caught the last bus back to Victoria not long after sunset, the timing worked out really well.

malta: gozo: victoria

The first year I came to Moscow was the first time I'd ever had a fall break. I never had one when I was in school, I never had one when I taught in Korea, and I never had one while I taught in Ukraine. My first year in Moscow I planned to go to Malta. Then I found out my visa would still have been a single entry visa, they weren't going to have finished the conversion to a multi entry visa in time for my planned holiday out of the country. This made me change my plans, and that first year I stayed in Russia for the break.

This year I finally got to do what I wanted, go to Malta. It took two flights to get there, with a long layover in the main airport of Istanbul. Thankfully that's a good airport to be in if you need to waste time.

I landed at the main airport in Malta, but my journey was far from over. From the airport I caught a bus to a ferry port, then took a ferry to the next island over. Malta consists of two islands, and I figured I should start by going out as far as I could, then working my way back over the weeklong trip. After the ferry I had one more bus, which took me to my first city: Victoria, on the island of Gozo.

Victoria is the capital of the island of Gozo, and is centrally located on the island. The city itself doesn't have too much to see or do, but it's a great base. The population count of Victoria is just under 7000, which tells you how small most everything is on Gozo. According to Wikipedia locals call the city (or at least the city center,) Rabat, as the name Victoria came from the colonizing British.

It was easy to figure out where to go after getting off the bus, and checking into my accomodation was easy enough. 

I shouldn't have taken a nap, but I was exhausted from traveling for so long, so I did. When I went back out it was mid afternoon.

I started by walking in the general direction of the citadel. The modern city is built around the citadel, which is old. It might go as far back as Neolithic times, but they know for sure it was fortified during the Bronze Age. Pheonicians did their part, as did the Romans when the island became part of that empire. The Aragonese, Knights of St John, and the Ottomans joined the queue of people and empires who had a part of history in Malta.

Entry to the citadel itself is free, but there are a few places inside the walls that have separate entry fees. I went in only one of them then, it was more interesting to wander around, seeing how all the buildings fit within the walls.

Standing at the walls gave me the chance to look out over some of the surrounding area. It wasn't stunning, but it was nice to see. Victoria is essentially built on a hill, though not a big one.

Not surprisingly, the place I visited in the citadel was a church. It wasn't cheap, 6 euros!! I wanted to wait until the next day, but they lady selling tickets said it would be closed the next day. Sigh. 

This cathedral was huge, with a beautiful ceiling. I walked all around the areas I was allowed to be in, and sat down for a few moments to enjoy the atmosphere.

Dinner that night was a plate of scallops and chips in a cafe on one of the central squares.

The next day I was up early to get first dibs on the breakfast included in my room price. Most of it was okay, but I was sorely disappointed in the bacon, which had the consistency of rubber. I'm sure it is because the meat was being kept warm under a heat lamp, which is no friend of bacon. Sigh.

The next two days I put together day trips of sights I could get to from Victoria. The island of Gozo has a good system of public transport, making it easy to see everything and not spend too much time waiting for buses.

Another sight I saw in Victoria itself was St. George's Cathedral. A huge church on one side of the main square in the city. The first time I walked by, the doors weren't open. During my entire time in Malta I wasn't able to sort out whether churches are open only at specific hours, all the time, or some other schedule.

St. George's was big, and felt big. The ceiling was all painted, so I did spend time just staring upward. The sides had more mini altars and memorials, which were also colourful.

I didn't spend much time in Victoria itself though I slept there every night I was on the island. Yet I don't feel as though I missed much of anything.