Friday, June 20, 2014

Running in Malta: West Gozo

Gozo is the second largest island of the Maltese archipelago. Not a large one, about 5 by 3 miles. Yet, it is loaded with the same historical heritage as Malta, being in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea at the cross road of so many different civilizations and conquests. It is now a proud independent European Community country but, over the centuries, it has seen the influence when not ruling of many other countries.

Gozo is much less populated and urbanized than the main island, Malta, and therefore a better place to run. Victoria is the main city in the center of Gozo with its spectacular citadel which dominates the whole island. Maltese have a long history of combating potential intruders and have built numerous fortifications all over. Here is Victoria's citadel:

I did stop at the information center of Victoria which provided me with a great flier detailing the trail circumnavigating the whole island. The flier listed four sections and I cover two of them, in addition to crossing the island for a total of 18.5 miles. It was hot, above 90F, and sunny so I took a few breaks in addition to many stops to take pictures and appreciate the stunning views of the vertiginous cliffs.
Here is the map of the run and the Garmin activity:
The trails has some markings, red arrows on the rocks, but it is worth getting the flier and follow the instructions.
And the corresponding photo album (with comments!) giving you a visual tour of this Mediterranean jewel! While you are making your mind about traveling to Malta, make sure to click on the slideshow button to get a preview of this wonderful country!

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