Getting to the small island of Gozo from our home base in Sliema is complicated. We set out earlier than usual to catch a bus and wound our way northerly for one hour. We then rushed to catch the Gozo Ferry for a 20 minute crossing to the island.
The scene on the large (car and passenger ferry) looked like this.
We knew that a day trip wouldn’t do justice to this popular, laidback, rural destination but we were determined to find our way there without a tour or a car. We arrived at the Ferry Port Mgarr and caught a city bus to Victoria – the major city of the island which we liked very much!
We’ve just arrived, and it’s already time for lunch! Our guidebook directed us to a “not to be missed” restaurant called Ta’ Rikardu. The interior was pleasant,
…but the service slow and lunch totally “missable”. We wasted valuable time waiting for lunch when we could have seen more of the island.
Gozo is a wonderful destination for hiking, birdwatching or cycling, plus there are prehistoric ruins, salt pans, museums and more.
We walked from the town Gharb (which means ‘west’ in Arabic) to the Cathedral Ta’ Pinu (shown below):
The parish Church of the Visitation sits in the central square of the Gharb (shown below).
In total, we took six bus rides and two ferry crossings to spend some time on the island of Gozo. We missed some major sites but now that we’ve worked out the public transportation options, we’ll plan to return on a future trip to Malta and maybe even spend a night or two.
There is lots to see and do on this tiny relaxed, Mediterranean island!
Back in town, we have a nice view of the harbor from the window of our apartment.