February
21st, 2004
In order to get to the Blue Grotto and the sights in the south
it takes a longer bus ride. First we went from Bugibba to Valetta
(0,18 Lm) and from there by bus No. 138 southwards. The Blue
Grotto got its name from the counterpart on Capri where the
sea offers in the sunshine a pretty play of colours in different shades
of blue.
By
a fisher boat you get through a more than 20 m high arch
into the 50 m long grotto. From the bay of Wied-iz-Zurrieq
the boats leave (not before 9.30 a.m.) to the grotto and to a few
more caves in the cliffs.
The boat tour takes half an hour and costs 2,50 Lm for adults
and 1,25 Lm for children (3-10 years). When the sea is rough
the fisher boats however stay 
in the harbour. That happened to us. The wind was too strong
for a boat trip. So we just walked along the cliffs to get
one or the other risky view of the caves and arches below. That
was also very nice.
From the cliffs we walked the
two kilometers to the prehistoric temple complexes Hagar Qim
and Mnajdra, which belong to the most impressive
sights of Malta. Mnajdra is about 500 m away from Hagar
Qim toward the coast. In reality the sites are not as impressive
and monumental as at the pictures that we had seen before. If
you like to visit both sites you have to pay for each 1 Lm per
person. We think the price is quite high for that what you get
to see. In the temples you can only walk in the middle aisle.
The
side aisles are closed to visitors with ropes. But you can even
understand that if you know that Mnajdra was closed for visitors
in 1994 because it had been in danger of collapsing and that it
was reopened quite recently. If you are someone who is not very
interested in history and culture, it is in our opinion enough to
have a look at the sites just from outside. Despite the high fences,
taking pictures and video recordings with a good lens and zoom is
no problem.
If
you don´t like to walk so much, you can get the bus
No. 38 from Hagar Qim to Valetta (0,40 Lm). For walkers
the 2 km to Qrendi are no problem. At the church the bus No. 35
to Valetta stops (0,15 Lm). Being back in Valetta, there
was a lot of action - the city was preparing for the carnival
procession. We liked watching the colourful hustle and bustle
for a while before we went back to Bugibba.
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February
21st, 2004)
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Our Tips
Those who are as unlucky with the weather as we were, that
the boats cannot start to the Blue Grotto because of the rough
sea, we recommend to walk along the cliffs. There´s
nothing secured, so you need to be cautious! But you can walk
without any restrictions. The views of the bay are spectacular.
