Paris

 This weekend I went to Paris, France with my daughter and my 7yr old grandson and 11 yr old granddaughter. Most people assumed we were taking them to EuroDisney but we were there to show them the sights.

The highlight for my grandson was the Eiffel Tower. We took two lifts to get us right to the top of the tower which I had booked well in advance. I am not that happy about heights and eventhough we were inside a lift, I didn't feel that comfortable the nearer we got to the top. Once at the top(which is enclosed in glass) the views were tremendous and I have to admit it felt much higher than I thought. My grandson was truly full of awe and wonder and wanted to go back each day to look at it again.

The newly opened Notre Dame Cathedral which I was desperate to see had such horrendous queues that I had to forget that idea. Just not fair on the children. 

Of course we had to return at night to see the 'twinkles'. The tower is always lit up at night but on the hour for just five mins it is lit by tens of thousands of  flashing LED lights hence the name.

The pyramid above the Louvre. We were there as it reopened after the theft of the French Crown Jewels. I had booked tickets a while ago but it still took 40 mins of queuing to get in due to security . Once we actually got to the security section, I was surprised how unprofessional it appeared. It was nowhere near as thorough as getting into the National Gallery in London. 

I was glad we made the effort though as both the children loved the museum. As it used to be a palace the building itself is so decorative and opulent and of course we did see the Mona Lisa.

So many attractive shops and the numerous bakers with their collections of bread and cakes made it difficult to resist.

The extensive Metro system makes it easy to get around.

It is four years since I was last in Paris and the biggest difference was the crowds and I don't mean tourists. Every metro train we got on was crowded and felt uncomfortable. The cost of food and especially soft drinks was very expensive. Planning ahead and booking tickets before you go is absolutely essential. Overall it was a really good trip and one the children will remember for a long time.

Gozo Day 7:

 

I had decided to do my own thing today as I had seen little of the main town on Gozo. M and C had been here before so had seen the main sights. After breakfast we got the same bus into town and then went our own way. 

It was only a ten minute walk from the bus stop to the Citadel. An information board outside explained that some 12,000 years ago, a land bridge stretched from Sicily to North Africa. When sea levels rose after the last ice age , this land bridge was submerged leaving its high points to form the islands of Gozo and Malta. Natural forces then shaped Gozo's limestone landscape creating the flat topped hill on which the Citadel now sits.

The fortified hill of the Citadel protects Gozo's most sacred space. Within its walls, Phoenicians and Romans built their temples; early christians and medieval citizens worshipped in stone churches and in the 17th century a splendid church was built. Once inside you can walk around the walls of the Citadel giving you magnificent views of Gozo. 

The town of Victoria

The dry fields on the outskirts of the town.

Within the walls was a cathedral with a museum as well as an archaeological museum and old prison cells.



     

The cathedral has no dome but the space for the dome has been taken up by a painting attached to the flat ceiling. it creates the image of a cupola without the need to build one. The result is very convincing.

The Trompe L'Oeil dome. Painted by Antonino Emanuele in 1739 (restored 2019)

Walking around the Citadel you could feel a sense of history. There was a very good video at the entrance which explained much of its history.

From the Citadel I made my way down to the historical part of the town with its narrow lanes and houses with large doors and balconies.

I had really enjoyed my visit into the town but the heat was rising so I decided I would return to the hotel. It was our final day, we would be leaving very early in the morning to catch the ferry back to Malta and from there on to the airport for the flight home. This afternoon was my last opportunity to enjoy the spa facilities and relax in the pool. It was fabulous until I stepped out of the pool onto what felt like a shard of glass. I'm amazed I didn't scream as the pain was so intense. I looked at my foot and could only see a tiny ball which looked like a snail. Looking on the ground I saw another of these tiny snails. They could only be a few mm across. Looking it up on the internet I could only find marine snails (cone snails) which have a tooth like a harpoon and will inject you with a poison. These are found under the sea so that didn't make sense unless they had been brought into the hotel on shoes or through the water system that was used for the pools. I found a tiny hole under the toe from where the pain was coming from so maybe this was a tiny version of the marine one. If so it can certainly pack a punch. Fortunately the pain eased off after a while. Thinking back I feel I should have reported it as maybe this had happened before but too late now..

 

Our last night in the beautiful restaurant. I have enjoyed the hotel, food, walking and of course the company. Hope you've enjoyed sharing it with me.

Gozo day 6: Calypso Cave and Ramla Bay

Another two buses to get us to the start of today's walk in Xaghra where you can visit the oldest free standing  structure in the world, Ggantija, dating from c3500 BC. Sadly we were too early as it didn't open until 10am and we were there at 9. We decided to start the walk and then come back this way on our return from Ramla Bay.

 We walked through the town and past the church with two clocks. There are  other churches in Malta that have two clocks where one is set to the wrong time as a local legend 'to confuse the devil'. On this church they both showed the same time.

It didn't take us too long to walk through the town and arrived at the spot where the entrance to Calypso's Cave used to be. According to legend this is the cave referred to by Homer in the Odyssey, the epic Greek poem of the 9th cent BC. The nymph Calypso reputedly lived in this cave and this is where she hosted Ulysses for seven years before he resumed his journey. Calypso's cave is a series of caves extending down to the sea. The cave is no longer accessible to the public as the roof had caved in. The next part of the walk took us down to Ramla Bay. However the downhill path mentioned in the instructions didn't seem to exist.

It started off OK but then disappeared into the undergrowth. It was a case of scrambling down very carefully as the rocky ground slipped away from beneath your feet. Slowly but surely we managed to make our way down to be rewarded with a sandy beach albeit red and not golden sands.

At the far end of the beach were a couple of volunteers protecting a loggerhead turtle nest as there were still some eggs buried there waiting to hatch. A group of volunteers keep a 24 hr watch over any nests on this beach to protect the turtles as best they can. they reckon that only one baby turtle in a thousand survives. 

C and I decided we would have a swim. We found a spot where we could have a sandy walk into the sea rather than over pebbles. Once in, it was lovely and warm but the waves were much stronger than I had anticipated. I lasted about 20 minutes before deciding I'd had enough of the waves and got out. There were showers near the toilet block so it made sense to clean off the sand and get changed back. My blister plasters had come off so I cleaned my foot as much as possible and replaced the plasters, knowing there would be a few more kms to walk.  

As we wanted to return to the historical site at Xaghra, it meant a change to the written route we had been given. With the help of M's Satnav on the app we got back to the town without getting lost. 

The Ggantija Temples are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The site consists of two temples dating back to between 3600 and 3200BC. The name Ggantia refers to the Maltese word for giants as it was first thought that these temples were built by giants. Some of these megaliths or large blocks exceed five metres in length and weigh over 50 tons. The outer walls are built from hard wearing coralline limestone, one of the reasons why they have survived so long.

On each side of the doorway leading into the temple, circular  hollows are carved opposite each other on two large megaliths. It is thought that these might have held some sort of barrier to close off the entrance. Unlike the rest of the walls, the doorway was built using a softer limestone. 

On this wall you can see evidence of graffiti from centuries past.

There is a museum at the site exhibiting some of the items found during excavations of the temples.

A limestone head found at the back of one of the temples.

When individuals were buried they were accompanied by some belongings. These items were discovered in the oldest tomb in the Xaghra circle. They are dated c4100BC.

A shell necklace

 A bone necklace and pendants 

Seated clay figurines.

Clay snail with human head

It was an impressive site and I am so glad we returned to the town to see these treasures. It took a couple of bus rides to get back to the hotel but we were still back with plenty of time to relax and enjoy the pool.