Gozo 2

Gozo is not a large island, it's only 14 km by 7 km. Surely I could walk everywhere from Victoria? But one look at the topography put paid to that idea. The central plateau descends sharply into deeply indented coves, typical of a limestone island. Cycling, while feasible, would also be hard work. So I would have to take motorised transport to see the coast.

First to make use of the courtesy bus service provided by the hotel to Dwejra Bay on the west coast where the Azure Window is.

This is a natural aperture formed by erosion. What makes it more attractive is that it is also a highly rated dive spot; third in the world I was told.

Nearby is the Inland Sea, a lagoon whose connection to the sea is through a natural arch. Boat tours were offered.

Teams of divers were going in and out of the site. Lots of income for local operators it seems.

My fellow passengers on the courtesy shuttle were an elderly Norwegiian couple. The wife, a teacher, told me an interesting fact: schools are required to put the less intellectually capable students in the same classes as brighter students, even at the expense of disruption.

The driver had arranged to pick us up at 1400, giving us 4 hours. Even with paying a visit to the interesting ecological display and having lunch with a beer, this was too long, and I dozed off under one of the few pieces of shade in the grounds.

The bay got busier and busier as the sun ascended. Tour buses were constantly pouring in visitors of all nationalities. As you'd expect of a top tourist attraction.

I was taking a different tack in the afternoon. Gozo Segway tours had high satisfaction rates on Tripadvisor so I had signed up for an evening tour. I was taken to the village of San Lawrenz where we were given basic training in riding a Segway. It really is intuitive and within 30 minutes, the English couple and I were following Peter, our guide, as if we had done this all our lives.

Peter took us on offroad country tracks where we saw parts of Gozo impossible to reach without own transport and a bit of walking. Peter took hundreds of pictures of our ride with his smartphone, then later a conventional camera. I'll need to download the album at home before I can select and post pictures from it. Stay tuned.

This is the Azure Window again but from the north, in the much gentler evening light.

Peter and my fellow riders.

Another natural arch. These arches are being created and destroyed with time.

Our Segways and the Ta' Ġurdan Lighthouse on the north coast of the island in the distance. It is said that on clear nights it is possible to see the lights of cars on the Sicilian coast.

Part of the west coast of Gozo.

Somewhere along the way Peter plucked a couple of prickly pears for us to taste. Quite fragrant but full of seeds. These cacti grow profusely on Malta. I had bought a kg box in a Dutch market a few days before. Those came from Sicily. I had solved the seed problem by extracting the juice with a colander and used the juice on dessert and with tequila.

Sadly sundown meant the end of our most enjoyable excursion and we were back at San Lawrenz with the church now floodlit.

Back in Victoria, Café Jubilee was recommended to me for dinner. This turned out to be an establishment full of old charm.

Spotting lampuki pie on the menu, I asked to try this Maltese dish. Unfortunately it was all sold out, so I had to settle for another specialty, rabbit.

This came baked with citrus peel and bay leaves, and accompanied by potato cubes. It looked and tasted somewhat like dark chicken meat. So now I have eaten a bunny.