AA&F

Image 0: Gharr Dalam caves (pronounced Ar Dalam). Thousands of prehistoric bones were excavated. A shingle bed of a river trapped animals as the crossed including hippos, deer, bears, pygmy elephants etc. The shingle and bones were carried into the cave system the river eroded into the limestone.
Image 1: Me at the entrance to the main Gharr Dalam cave. Amongst the bones where those belonging to a giant dormouse!
Image 2: The Hagar Qim temple. Constructed about 5000 years ago during the Copper Age.
Image 3: The entrance to the Hagar Qim temple. Constructed with globegerina limestone.
Image 4: One of the huge slabs of limestone used to construct the Hagar Qim temple - now extensively weathered after 5000 years
Image 5: The Mnajdra temple. Older than Hagar Qim, and constructed with harder wearing and rougher coralline limestone.
Image 6: The entrance to the Mnajdra temple.
Image 7: One of the inner altars of the Mnajdra temple.
The slabs are decorated with lots of small pits.
Image 8: One of the 17th century watch towers which are dotted around the coast, viewed from the Mnajdra temple.
Image 9: Legs of a fertility statue in the Tarxian temple. About 5000 years old.
Image 10: St Thomas' Tower
Built by the Knights of St John, who came to Malta after being ousted from Jerusalem and Rhodes. This was many forts built by the knights to protect the Maltese people from attack by the Turks. This was our view from our hotel window in Marsaskala.
Image 11: The interior of the Grand Palace in Valletta, built by Knights of Malta.
Image 12: A monument to the Knights of Malta in Valletta, overlooking the Grand Harbour.
Image 13: The defences in the Grand Harbour in Valletta.
A chain across the harbour entrance stopped the Turkish incursion into the harbour during the Great Siege of 1565.
Image 14: The church at Mosta.
Image 15: The Mosta dome. One of the largest free standing domes in world. Almost as big as the Pantheon in Rome
Image 16: The Mosta dome.
Image 17: The Blue Grotto - a natural arch.
Image 18: Maltese countryside, taken from the Mdina battlements.
it's more green than usual, seeing as it's winter.
Image 19: St Julian - the coastline of modern Malta
Image 20: The Grand Harbour in Valletta.

Image 21: Marsaxlokk harbour
The brightly coloured fishing boats, called luzzi boats, all have eyes painted on their prow to ward of evil spirits.
Image 22: Marsaxlokk harbour
Image 23: The fish market at Marsaxlokk
We had some of the freshest fish and chips we've ever had here...
Image 24: A watch tower on Comino, the small island between Malta and Gozo.
Image 25: The inside of the old walled city in Victoria. Now mostly ruined.
Image 26: Look - weathered limestone!
In the old walled city of Victoria.
Image 27: The Azure window on Gozo.
Not very Azure in November!
Image 28: The Inland Sea on Gozo.
A cove fed by a natural tunnel.
Image 29: Anne doing some washing in the old communal washing basins in Victoria, Gozo.
Image 30: Maltese buses. The really old ones are no longer on the road as the introduced an MOT a few years back!
Image 31: Salt pans cut into the foreshore. Many are still used today...