Dear Diary.....Hagar Qim and Mnajdra Archaeological Park + Blue Wall and Grotto viewpoint (Malta)

Dear Diary,

The second highlight of our Malta tour brings us to the Hagar Qim and Mnajdra Archaeological Park, a place that we had identified as one of the must-go places for this trip. So what is the deal with this park? Well, a quick goggle revealed that this park is an archaeological site that comprises of the Hagar Qim and Mnajdra megalithic temple complexes, built out of massively large stones. What is fascinating about this site is that these prehistoric temples had been claimed as the oldest free-standing structures on Earth (dated as far back as possibility between 3600 - 3200 BC) and that they are still so well preserved. Furthermore, it had been discovered that one of the prehistoric chambers of the Hagar Qim temple complex holds an elliptical hole which is in alignment with the Summer Solstice sunrise - on the first sunrise of the summer, the sun’s rays can pass through this hole and illuminate a stone slab inside the chamber.

Hagar Qim temple complex

On our arrival to the actual site, we were glad to be able to seek refuge from the hot summer sun at the ticketing office. There were hardly any queue and we managed to purchase our admission tickets (which allowed access to the two temple complex sites and the visitor center) in no time. Happily, we were ushered into one of the air-conditioned theater where a 3-dimensional animation gave us a brief history and hypothesis of the functions of the temples. Walking out from the theater, we were allowed to roam around in the visitor center which provided posters with more written facts and miniature models of the temples. Our relief from the blazing sun was short-lived as we made our way to the first site - the Hagar Qim temple complex, located a short distance from the visitor center, on a hilltop that is to the south-west of the village of Qrendi and overlooking the sea and the islet of Fifla. Although the open-sided shelter protecting the site provided some shade from the harsh sun rays, the smoldering heat of the summer sun could still be felt. However, despite having to deal with the unwelcoming weather, my husband and I were in awe by what we saw - the neat formation of the gigantic stones created a very majestic aura and we could only imagine how grand it must have been back then when it was still a functional temple. We spent quite a bit of time at this site, appreciating and marveling at the ingenuity behind the creation of the different areas of the temple complex.

Miniature model of Hagar Qim temple Complex

Huge stones of Hagar Qim temple

Entrance of Hagar Qim temple

One of the chambers of Hagar Qim temple

The long passageway to Mnajdra temple complex

After we are done exploring the Hagar Qim temple complex, we made our way to the Mnajdra temple complex that lies just 500 meters away, at the bottom of the hill. The two sites were connected by a long passageway and although we could have easily paid a small fee to hitch a ride on the buggy to the entrance of the Mnajdra temple complex, we decided to make our way there by foot. Bad idea! It was literally the worst decision made as we felt every bit of our body melting under the hot sun with each step that we took. After what seems like an eternity, we finally reached the Mnajdra temple complex. It had a much simpler design as compared to Haga Qim temple complex but it was still awe-inspiring nonetheless.

Miniature model of Mnajdra temple complex

Entrance of Mnajdra temple

Overview of Mnajdra temple

One of the chambers of Mnajdra temple

Large stones of Mnajdra temple

Walking through these two archaeological sites, it was as if we were taken back in time and we cannot help but marvel at this wonderful creation while at the same time pondering over who, how and why were these temples built for. We finally understood why this park has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the reason for its fame as one of the more popular places to visit in Malta!

One of the view seen from the Blue Wall and Grotto viewpoint

Still in a daze from the visit to the Hagar Qim and Mnajdra Archaeological Park, we proceed to make our way to the Blue Wall and Grotto viewpoint, a short 10 minutes bus ride from the park. However, the supposedly shortest journey of the day turned out to be the most frustrating one. The unbearable heat in this super hot afternoon had already drained away most of our energy and we were so looking forward to feeling the cooling breeze of the air-conditioning on the bus but for some reason that day, the bus was delayed. After 1 hour of wait, some of those waiting with us for the bus decided to take the 30 minutes walk under the hot sun to the Blue Wall and Grotto viewpoint. My husband and I decided to follow suit after waiting for close to 1.5 hours and bid farewell to those who continued to wait at the bus-stop. But as we walked towards the halfway mark, the bus which we had waited for so dearly suddenly appeared and we could only watch helplessly as the bus zoomed past, with those passengers whom we had left behind at the bus-stop waving at us with huge smirks on their faces. It was at that moment that both of us wanted to beat ourselves up for not enduring it and waited for a bit longer for the bus. But nevertheless, we decided to press on with our walk and we were greeted with a wonderful and gorgeous scenery when we reached the viewpoint - a small consolation to our weary hearts and a huge relief to all the frustrations that we faced to get there!

View from the Blue Wall and Grotto viewpoint

It was also at this point that we realized it was going to be quite difficult to cover all the touristic sites that we have planned to do on this short trip to Malta. Why is that so, you may ask? Well, it all boils down to the fact that the bus journey to and fro these places takes up far too much time (duration ranged from a minimum of 30 minutes up to 2 hours) and any delays in the arrival of the public bus is going to further lengthen the commute duration. We would have to think through our itinerary again for the next few days and be selective about where to explore. But for now at the end of this day, all we want to do is to have a nice shower and a good night’s rest....

Yours Truly,

Claire


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