On my final full day in Malta, my new friend Jasmine and I decided to visit two of the island's major sites: the Blue Grotto and the temples of Hagar Qim and Mnajdra. And so, yet again, we boarded another bumpy long bus and traveled to the southern coast of the island.
The Blue Grotto is not actually one grotto, but a series of small caves at the foot of the cliffs that run around the edge of the island. Small boats run by locals run every few minutes, taking tourists through the caves and inlets. Words cannot accurately convey how stunning all of this was.
The water of the Mediterranean was many different shades and tones, due to the playful nature of light outside and within the caves. The cliffs loomed high above, with their white rock face imposing and strong. Waves lapped quietly along the walls of the caves, and more forcefully at the foot of the cliffs. I kept dipping my hand into the water to remind myself that I was in the middle of the Mediterranean, which stretched out flat for hundreds of miles opposite the cliffs. The area was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been and I will not forget the childish wonder I felt while bobbing in and out of caves and looking up at the cliffs over my head.
Afterwards, we watched several owls, a hawk, and other birds of prey fly around at the hands of a local trainer, and then caught the next bus to the temples, a little further down the road. The Hagar Qim temples are the oldest religious site in the world, and are incredibly massive. They are paired with the nearby Mnajdra temples, built for the same reason and by the same people. Not much is really known about these enormous sites. However, I've been wanting to visit them and Malta for over a year after learning about them in one of my history classes. Jasmine and I wandered around the temples, both equally intrigued by their construction and purpose and marveling at the size of the rocks used to construct the structures.
Following that, we caught the next bus to Mdina/Rabat, where we had been the previous day, and grabbed dinner at a small local cafe. I had a massive lasagna that was delicious, and was completely stuffed. However, I had a while to digest it as we waited in frustration for another bus to take us back along the Dingli Cliffs so we could see the sunset. After giving up after over an hour of waiting, we jumped on the bus that would take us home, only to see the bus that we had originally wanted pull in, causing us to promptly get off the bus we were on at the next stop and grab the desired bus.
The ride along the cliffs was bumpy and fast but the sunset that we saw was gorgeous, with the light reflecting off the sea and the sky displaying a fiery red and orange range of colors. All in all, it was the perfect close to my last full day in Malta. After about two hours on buses to return home, I packed my suitcase and called it a night as I had to arise early the next day in order to catch my flight home.
The following morning, I awoke early and left the hostel after bidding Jasmine a quick farewell. We had exchanged addresses and connected on Facebook, in order to stay in touch. I walked to the bus station, reversing the course I had taken every day during my explorations, and sat in the early morning sun, soaking in my last few hours of Malta. It was a little after sunrise, so the light was just starting to rise over some of the buildings and hit Balluta Bay. It was a wonderful compliment to the sunset I had seen the previous night.
The ride to the airport was long and bumpy, as all bus rides tend to be. I arrived, checked in without any issue and went through security in about ten minutes. Then, with several hours to kill, I grabbed a pot of tea and a croissant, claimed a comfy chair, and hung out in one of the airport cafes. Having a cup of tea that tasted just like home was soothing, as I waited to depart for Istanbul.
I was flying to Berlin via Istanbul because it was the cheapest option that did not require me to travel nearly twenty-four hours and have an overnight layover in a Scandinavian country. However, the flight wasn't great, as the adult (yes, adult, not a child) behind me was constantly kicking my seat and the flight attendants missed me a couple times when passing out food and drinks.
Once arrived in Istanbul, I thought I was going to miss my connecting flight and therefore sprinted to the gate, only to find that I was okay. The only thing that sticks out to me in regards to that airport, besides how big it was, is the massive variation in the dress of women. I saw women in hijabs, niqabs, burkas, chadors, khimars, and al-Amiras. I also saw women dressed in low-cut dresses, tank-tops and jeans, long-sleeved shirts, saris, and more. Any type of clothing, it was there.
My flight to Berlin was uneventful, and I eventually arrived in the late afternoon. It was odd being back around German speakers again, but incredibly lovely to be somewhere familiar. My parents met me at my gate, and, as stated in a previous post, it was a wonderful surprise.
That's about it for my spring break summary. Up next, a catch up post on what I've been up to this past week. Tschüss!
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