"MALTA!" Malta did not appear in our travel itinerary at all, although this small country is not far from Sicily. We knew C.’s wish to spend her birthday in Syracuse from the beginning, but T.’s wish only came to light two weeks before her birthday. She wanted to be in Malta on her special day. We try to “slow travel”, therefore we do not have booked anything in the future, so we are quite flexible in our plans.
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The Saint John Paul II ferry of the company “Virtu ferries” is a catamaran and can carry up to 1120 passengers and 167 cars. The ferry departs from Pozzallo on January 2, 2020 at 2:30 pm. The crossing is fast. We arrive 1 hour and 45 minutes later at the port of Valletta, Malta and T. a little pale in her face. Oh, and one more thing we forgot, we must drive on the other side of the street (left! Kind of strange).

Malta is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and consists of several small islands. In the Romans, the current town was called Mdina or melita - this name probably goes back to the Punic War, meaning a “refuge – mallet” - which is probably the origin of the island's current name. Malta is very densely populated. Around 500,000 people live in all of Malta, 394,000 people live in the capital region. We booked a hotel with breakfast in San Giljan, in the middle of the bar/restaurant/casino area. Fortunately, it is off-season 😉.

​Valletta
January 3rd, we are enjoying the beautiful weather and some late Christmas spirit in this wonderful capital, Valletta. Our daily walk today was 20km, San Gilijan - Valletta and back (we do not want to use our car every day). On the way back we pass by a hairdresser / barber shop and I push Pablo in there 😉

Blue Grotto, Qrendi Temple, Dingli cliffs, Golden Bay, Mdina
January 7th, we drive and explore the southwestern side of the island. There is no corner without any archaeological excavation and a lot of history. The small island seems very touristic and we are happy that it is low season. We drive past a city and stop briefly. Pablo is extremely happy because it is the city of Mdina where the series “Game of Thrones” was partly filmed.

Sicily, Latin Sicilia comes from the ancient Greek Σικελίη Sikelíē, and  is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the 20 regions of Italy. It is one of the five Italian autonomous regions and is officially referred to as Regione Siciliana.
The earliest archaeological evidence of human activity on the island dates from as early as 12,000 BC. By around 750 BC, Sicily had three Phoenician and a dozen Greek colonies and it was later the site of the Sicilian Wars and the Punic Wars. After the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century AD, Sicily was ruled during the Early Middle Ages by the Vandals, the Ostrogoths, the Byzantine Empire, and the Emirate of Sicily. The Norman conquest of southern Italy led to the creation of the Kingdom of Sicily, which was subsequently ruled by the Hohenstaufen, the Capetian House of Anjou, Spain, and the House of Habsburg. It was unified under the House of Bourbon with the Kingdom of Naples as the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. (source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sicily)

After we discovered the north side of the island, the journey continues west and then south. Finally, we spent a whole 2 months in Sicily, so there will be a third part 😉.
We leave our little house in San Nicola l’Arena and make our way to Sciacca. As soon as we leave the Palermo area, we meet a completely different landscape. Agriculture dominates here in the western part of Sicily. Fields after fields, either with olive- or orange trees, or greenhouses strung together.
 
Marsala
On the way to our destination we stopped briefly in Marsala. This little town is a little gem, real cute.
 
Sciacca
Sciacca is one of the largest fisher ports on the Mediterranean Sea and is in the Agrigento region. The area around Sciacca was already known in Roman times for the healing springs. There are several thermal baths which are no longer in operation today. Like everywhere in Sicily, money is lacking. The current structure of the old town emerged under the Arabs. The city wall and the fort were also built at this time. The name of the city comes from Arabic. The city is not one of our favourite places, no big impression.
 
Valle dei Templi
The archaeological sites of Agrigento south of today's Agrigento city center are among the most impressive archaeological sites in Sicily. They mainly show the remains of Akragas (Latin Agrigentum), one of the most important ancient Greek cities in Sicily. The Greek temples, some of which are still very well preserved, testify to the size, power and cultural boom of the then Greek city. one of the best-preserved temples in ancient Greece is the Concordia Temple. In 1997, UNESCO declared Agrigento's archaeological sites as a World Heritage Site. (source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valle_dei_Templi)
 
Marina di Ragusa
We spend our holidays in Marina di Ragusa, a fisher village. The area is more a summer / tourist place, we only see a nose from time to time. Surprisingly, December in the south is cold too, the nights drop between 3 ° to 5 ° C and the houses have no heating. This is a lesson for us for our future rental properties 😉.
We enjoy the 2 weeks with a lot of sun, the children can even bath because it warms up to 20 ° C during the day. We spend the cold days at home or in a shopping mall, which reminds us of the winters in Canada 😊.
 
Ragusa
The origins of Ragusa can be traced back to the 2nd millennium BC, when there were several Sicel settlements in the area. The current district of Ragusa Ibla has been identified as Hybla Heraea.
The ancient city, located on a 300-metre (980 ft)-high hill, came into contact with nearby Greek colonies, and grew thanks to the nearby port of Camerina. Following a short period of Carthaginian rule, it fell into the hands of the ancient Romans and the Byzantines, who fortified the city and built a large castle. Ragusa was occupied by the Arabs in 848 AD, remaining under their rule until the 11th century, when the Normans conquered it. Selected as County seat, its first Count was Geoffrey, son of Count Ruggero of Sicily.
In 1693 Ragusa was devastated by a huge earthquake, which killed some 5,000 inhabitants. Following this catastrophe the city was largely rebuilt, and many Baroque buildings from this time remain in the city. Most of the population moved to a new settlement in the former district of Patro, calling this new municipality "Ragusa Superiore" (Upper Ragusa) and the ancient city "Ragusa Inferiore" (Lower Ragusa). (source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragusa,_Sicily)


Our first visit is to Ibla Ragusa. The place and the cleanliness impressed us. I could imagine living in this part of the city. There we attended a pre-Christmas performance. A water – musical spectacle.
The second visit is planned after Christmas, with a little surprise for the children. We visited the Ferris wheel. With an entry of 20 euros, the price comes close to the same as in Switzerland. Nevertheless, it gave us a nice view of Ragusa Ibla and the Upper Ragusa.
Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/MD4MyB1vkMpF43dL7