| Walking in Gozo involves a lot of changing sides of the road in an effort to put yourself at the least risk of being hit by a car. The streets are narrow with no shoulder, the drivers fast, and sidewalks are oftentimes interrupted by steps, driveways and sideview mirrors of cars parked as close to the edge as possible. Fortunately blind curves feature concave mirrors to assist the drivers avoid head-on collisions and it is common practice to sound one's horn to warn oncoming traffic. We plot our course, attempting to follow as many small streets, alleys and - best yet - walking trails. But sometimes major roads are unavoidable to get to where we want to go. We passed by a decrepit building that once must have been impressive as the limestone in the front had unique carvings. Then onto a very busy road that, thankfully had a parking area designated on one side. We turned off onto a less traveled street and passed by a fairly large dairy operation with the dairy parlor under what looked like an abandoned overpass project: large concrete pillars supporting a mostly flat concrete roof, with no walls. As we climbed out of the valley we noted several dairy operations with the same structures, most with solar panels atop. It was a very beautiful day. As we neared the coast we had a clear view of the islands of Comino and Malta as well as the channel ferry making its crossing. The Ta' Ċenċ Cliffs, also known as Sanap Cliffs are extraordinary; projecting vertically out of the Mediterranean Sea at heights up to 120 meters (394 feet). The trail follows the coastline, revealing wonderful flora - some we couldn't identify - and several limestone and rubble rock huts for shepherds who tend their sheep and goats. In exposed sections of the trail the wind was powerful, once making it difficult for Jo to move forward. It is an interesting trail. If one focuses solely upon the trail and the gorgeous views of the cliff and Sea then it seems that one is in the wilderness. But, shifting your view inland it is clear that "civilization" is very close, complete with the sound of construction. The trail is sometimes very manicured and other times rather rough, requiring you to look for the red paint circles on the rock marking the way. Suddenly, after enjoying a long trek along the coastal cliffs, we were at the end, signified by the jarring vision of contemporary high-rise apartments in Xlendi, what was once a fishing village transformed by capitalism into an upscale resort community. The bay was filled with scuba buoys demarking areas where divers were active. |