Day 52 Mdina and more Valletta

We got up and went to Mass at St. John's and then took a city bus to the original capital city of Mdina.

Mdina square:

When Valletta was completed after the siege of Suleiman, the capital was moved and this old fortress city went to ruin. Today it is home to 300 people who live in the old buildings and a convent of nuns; it has loads of restored churches and buildings, some that date back to 1300s. The Cathedral of St. Paul was built in 1090 by Count Roger the Norman but later rebuilt in 1700 after an earthquake.

St. Paul’s church in the old city of Mdina:

The Annunciation of Mary:

It was on the site of a small church from 300s which was the site where Paul converted the Roman Governor Publius. Its Museum has MANY ornate silver pieces and a large collection of coins that date back to the Phoenicians in 400 BC. Our old pastor Father Kingsbury would have been in awe of this collection.

Back in Valletta we walked thru a series of tableaux that depicted the Great Siege of 1565-what a brutal event for both sides. The Knights were outnumbered badly: 40,000 Turks to 600 knights and 7000 untrained Maltese who were heroic in the face of slaughter. One fortress was taken at a HUGE cost to the Turks; in the end, 30,000 invaders died from battle or sickness while the locals lost about 1500. The other fortifications, while damaged, held and the defenders had good recovery rates because the Knights knew the importance of hygiene. After all, they were originally founded to care for the wounded in the crusades.

First century Roman statute in a house near Mdina:

Looking up a typical local street in Valletta:

We visited St. Paul's Shipwreck Church, but there was a large funeral so we did not intrude. We found a nice little cafe, had a drink and went back to the hotel by 3:00. We notice our walking tours are ending earlier. Tomorrow we leave Malta.