March 19, 2024
There is a bridge between Mdina and Rabat that is claimed by both cities. The problem was solved when the cities agreed to give the bridge to the church, making it a "no man's land." In the center of the bridge is a column.
On first glance at that column, it looks like Captain Hook's hook is on top of the heptagonal base, but on closer examination, we discovered it is a snake rising from a fire--the serpent that bit but did not injure St. Paul. This may be the only monument to a snake I have ever seen.
The pillars on the sides of the bridge have interesting embellishments. If I am recalling correctly, there was a church graveyard on one side of the bridge.
There is a lot of reflection, but I think you can make out St. Joseph carrying the Child Jesus in this window display.
Suddenly we were in another very very very crowded area with a major party atmosphere. This group watching the street from their balcony had bags of shredded paper that they were throwing down on the crowds like confetti.
It was wall-to-wall bodies, but nobody seemed to mind.
We had heard band music off and on all day, but all at once the crowd shifted and a band came walking through that impossible mass of humanity (but slowly, slowly).
And don't the doorways look like passages to Narnia or some other magical, mystical place?
Left: This is a creative re-purposing for an old telephone booth from the days of British occupation. Now it contains an emergency defibrillator (for use by medical personnel only).
Right: Casa Gourgion looks like a church but is actually a residential building built in the early 20th century in the Gothic Revival style.
The original cathedral was built in the 12th century but was damaged in an earthquake in 1693 and subsequently rebuilt in the Baroque style between 1696 and1705. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Malta (a title shared with St. John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta, which I will cover in the next post).
If you walk into the church with your eyes down to watch your step as I did, the first thing you'll see is row on row of marvelous marble tombstones. I don't think I have ever seen a cathedral floor this creative and dramatic anywhere else in the world. The remains of several bishops are are entombed here.
A painting of the shipwreck adorns the chancel:
A few of my favorite embellishments include this marble statue of an angle holding a cloth on which the face of Christ is imprinted, which means this is likely the angel who guarded Christ's tomb, and the cloth is the grave cloth which lay over Christ's face before the resurrection. I also love the triangular paintings under the domes, which we saw in many churches in Sicily and Malta. No space is wasted!
Left: These gaudy blown-glass chandeliers are popular in Malta. Right: We had several in our hotel lobby.
If I am remembering correctly, this bridge over the alley was built as a sort of escape hatch. If the main house was attached by marauders, the residents could flee to the house across the street and a fire could be set to destroy the access.
On our way back to our hotel we took a peak into the Carmelite Priory, also known as the Church of the Annunciation. It is another luxurious church, or maybe better described as a palace of worship, and was built between 1660 and 1675. It survived the aforementioned earthquake of 1693, which destroyed many of the other churches in Malta. A story is told that when the French invaded Malta in 1798, they came to this church to steal its treasures. However, a young boy climbed up to the belfy and sounded the alarm, the beginning of the Maltese resistance movement.
Nearby is this intriguing shop, but Julia told us the Maltese falcon actually has absolutely nothing to do with Malta.
When Julia dropped us off at our hotel, she recommended a few restaurants nearby. We ended up at Nenu the Artisan Baker. The entryway has a glass floor that lets you see into the "kitchen" below (actually a clever diorama). The menu is filled with traditional dishes.
Chris ordered fish soup and I think she thought it was pretty good. I had what is essentially the Maltese version of pizza: bread dough topped with thinly sliced potatoes, tomatoes, anchovies, onions, capers, olives, fresh mint, fennel, and sesame seeds. It was very good but I was still full from lunch and could only eat about 1/4 of the pizza.
Bob and Stan had roast horse:
We had Maltese trifle for dessert, and unfortunately I didn't get a picture of it. I was in a food coma.
I had been a long day and we had walked a lot of steps. We were glad to go back to our hotel and crash.
If you walk into the church with your eyes down to watch your step as I did, the first thing you'll see is row on row of marvelous marble tombstones. I don't think I have ever seen a cathedral floor this creative and dramatic anywhere else in the world. The remains of several bishops are are entombed here.
Definitely Baroque--lavish and over-stated.
The ceiling frescoes contain scenes from Paul's life:
A whole day could be spent wandering the treasure-filled narrow alleyways.
Nearby is this intriguing shop, but Julia told us the Maltese falcon actually has absolutely nothing to do with Malta.
When Julia dropped us off at our hotel, she recommended a few restaurants nearby. We ended up at Nenu the Artisan Baker. The entryway has a glass floor that lets you see into the "kitchen" below (actually a clever diorama). The menu is filled with traditional dishes.
Bob did not think it was as good as the horse he has eaten in other countries. (Who do you know who can make a similar judgment?)
We had Maltese trifle for dessert, and unfortunately I didn't get a picture of it. I was in a food coma.
I had been a long day and we had walked a lot of steps. We were glad to go back to our hotel and crash.
(Bob) Mdina was very, very crowded. It was kind of fun to see the band, but I would much rather of had freer access. The whitish/tan buildings in Malta are gorgeous and leave it very clean looking. The horse was a big disappointment - I've had much better horse in Japan, China, Kazakhstan and Iceland.
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