Thursday 21st March 2013 +1.0hrs GMT: Valetta, Malta ­ An Island Revisited ­ The Cathedral of St Paul Mdina

It was very pleasant to walk along the narrow medieval streets although the wind was blowing a gale but I took shelter for a short time in the Cathedral of St Paul built on the site where governor Publius was reported to have met Saint Paul following his shipwreck off the Maltese coast.  The building we can see today (See photo) was designed by the architect Lorenzo Gafa and rebuilt by The Knights of Malta between 1697 and 1702 to replace a ruined Norman cathedral destroyed by an earthquake in 1693. The earthquake also led to the introduction of Baroque design within the city.

I had great difficulty in finding my way out of the cathedral but a kindly guardian pointed out that because of the high winds the front exit had been closed.  It was indeed a heavy slant into the wind to get away from the cathedral!

There is much more that could be said about Malta but I will leave you to do your own research should you wish to do so.  For a day when I had planned to do nothing the Hop-on Hop-off tour revealed a side of Malta that I had only glimpsed in previous visits.