Countries visited: Cyprus, Malta, Italy
Cycled mileage in March: 774.9km
Cycled mileage per country: 360.7km Cyprus, 187.8km Malta, 226.4km Italy
Total cycled mileage incl. March: 48,449.9km
March mileage not cycled 159.7km (Bus, Walking, Ferry) - Flight not included!
Days per country: 14d - Cyprus, 14d - Malta, 3d - Italy
Days cycling: 12d
Technical failures: 2 Punctures, 1 Inner Tube, 1 Bell
Link to this month's route
After a longer bad-weather-break we had continued from Limassol to Paphos last month. The weather was supposed to be sunny for two days before there was more rain to come. We figured it would be a good idea to use the sunny weather to cycle across Akamas Peninsula to the Baths of Aphrodite and back to Paphos – a nice 100 kilometres-round. We managed to get an early start and quickly left Paphos behind. For the first few kilometres we followed paved roads but eventually we passed the last village and from there on it was gravel and dirt. The rainfall from the previous days had created lots of puddles and mud but mostly the way wasn't too bad. We took it slow enjoying the spectacular views of the coastline. The difficult terrain with steep ascents, heaps of rocks and roots slowed us down even further and in the end it wasn't until the afternoon that we reached the Baths of Aphrodite. Essentially just sort of a cave with a pond in it and with water dripping from the ceiling. The setting was undoubtedly beautiful, though. Initially we had thought about cycling back to Paphos on the same way but we figured it would take us too long to get back in daylight. Instead we opted for taking an inland route. Luckily there wasn't too much traffic and wouldn't it have been for dark clouds gathering over the mountains it would have probably been a nice ride. As things stood we tried to speed up to get back to our hotel before those clouds delivered their loads. We succeeded and just after 4pm we reached town. We quickly got our shopping done and then we retired into our room.
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| Akamas Peninsula |
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| Rocky roads! |
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| Baths of Aphrodite |
The forecast had been for continuous rain the next day but actually it didn't look that bad. After breakfast we went for a walk along the seafront. Inevitably it did start to rain in between but not for long. When we got to Agia Kyriaki church it was back to sunny. It took a while to explore the archaeological excavations around the church with the site apparently dating back to the earliest days of Christianity. When new dark clouds appeared we decided to call it and returned to the hotel.
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| Agia Kyriaki church |
The next day the weather was too bad to do anything outside. We stayed indoors and got some admin stuff done.
We were woken by bright sunshine the day after. Rain was expected later in the afternoon but we figured it would still be a good day to visit Paphos Archaeological Park. The park was a vast area with dozens of Roman ruins along the coastline. The stars of the park were some ornate mosaics. In fact we found the mosaics to be the only real attraction. As for the other excavations there were hardly any explanations and so it was more enjoying the walk through the park than getting a glimpse of the Roman period on Cyprus. The mosaics, however, were amazing. Both in their craftsmanship and in how well preserved they were. By the time we left the archaeological park it started to rain and we headed for a cafe to pass the time until the shower would finish. An oversized cafe latte later the sun was back and we continued to the Tombs of the Kings. Despite the name no kings are buried here but the 4th-century cave-cut tombs are still stunning. In fact so stunning that we left the site only when it was about to close for the day.
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| Paphos Archeaological Park |
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| Tombs of the Kings |
The next morning we got an early start. It was supposed to remain sunny for the next few days and we were itching to get back on the bikes. For now it was cycling back to Limassol. With all the bad weather the past weeks we had to abandon the plan of cycling through the Troodos Mountains. Instead we would only cut through the foothills from Limassol to Nicosia visiting some mountain villages along the way.
When we had cycled from Limassol to Paphos last month we hadn't particularly enjoyed the ride just because the headwind was so strong. With no headwind and with ample sunshine it was so much nicer on the way back! We also found the time to stop at the Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates and the mythological Birthplace of Aphrodite. Just before nightfall we rolled into Limassol.
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| Birthplace of Aphrodite |
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| Sanctuary of Apollo Hylates |
The next morning we got another early start. We were planning to go to the historic village of Pano Lefkara and there was quite some climbing ahead. As soon as we had left the coast the landscape changed quickly from flat to tree-lined hills. There weren't too many villages along the way and so there wasn't much traffic either. The villages we passed through were mostly picturesque with historic churches and old stone houses. Just before we reached Pano Lefkara the wind picked up and suddenly clouds appeared. We hurried up as we expected another rain shower. Luckily no came and after a while the sky cleared up. We checked in to a guesthouse and then strolled though the village. Even though Pano Lefkara appeared fairly touristy there were a lot of abandoned houses giving the village a morbid touch.
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| Cycling throuogh the Troodos foothills |
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| Picturesque villages along the way |
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| Pano Lefkara |
We slept in the next morning and got going even later. Some metal debris had punctured Simon's rear tyre and overnight it had deflated completely. There was no point in rushing anyway. The forecast was for sunny weather all day and except for two climbs the way to Nicosia didn't look too challenging. The first half of the ride was amazing. We followed small, quite roads through amazing mountain scenery. Around noon we reached Politiko village. After a quick lunch-break we visited Tamassos Archaeological Park. Given the park derives its name from a namesake ancient city-state there weren't too many excavations – and even less explanations. Still the underground tombs were fairly impressive. From the archaeological park we continued pretty much straight to Nicosia. The way into town was a pleasant surprise and without much hassle we reached the old town in the late afternoon. We checked in at a hostel and called it a day.
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| Tomb in Tamassos Archaeological Park |
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| On the way to Nicosia |
The next two days we spent exploring Nicosia. Quite a fascinating place. Not only is it the world's only capital with a militarized border running right through it, it is also a fascinating melting pot of so many different cultures. A myriad of churches and mosques alike, a cross-over of Greek, Turkish and Middle-Eastern cuisine and reminders of all the different empires that controlled the island throughout the centuries.
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| Nicosia old town |
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| Nothing better than a cold Retsina! |
On day #3 it was time to get going. With only four days left until our flight on to Malta we figured it was about time to return to Larnaca from where we would fly out. It was quite a pleasant ride. We had opted for a route that led us right along the UN buffer zone and the border to the Turkish occupied part of Cyprus. The peaceful scenery felt surreal while we cycled past signs warning of minefields. In the afternoon we were back in Larnaca and checked in to a guesthouse.
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| On the way back to Larnaca |
The next few days went by rather uneventfully. We had emailed some local bike shops to make sure there were bike boxes available. We had received a confirmation but naturally there were no boxes when we went to the shop. For 1.5 days we checked out all bike shops in town but the only thing we found were two way too small boxes. Eventually the owner of one of the shops mentioned he could have two boxes shipped in from Nicosia. And so finally we got the boxes sorted the day before departure – Thanks to Cycle Love for their support! We used the rest of the afternoon to pack the bikes and rounded of the day with a visit to a nearby restaurant.
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| Getting our bike boxes sorted at Cycle Love |
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| Packing the bikes |
We reached the airport the next morning just after 10am. As always we had miscalculated the weight of our luggage and ended up paying extra charges. Bummer! Despite some extraordinary thorough security checks we made it to the departure lounge in time. To our surprise the plane was a massive Boeing 777. Quite unexpected for the rather awkward direct flight from Cyprus to Malta. The flight took only about 2.5 hours and just after 1.30pm we reached country #33 on this journey. Due to its small size Malta isn't exactly a natural choice for touring cyclists and so we were even more surprised to find there were a few Maltese hosts on WarmShowers, a hospitality community for touring cyclists. We had contacted some of them in advance and Margit and Jeff had invited us to stay with them. When we wheeled our boxed bikes to a quite corner of the airport Margit was already waiting for us. We felt a bit bad to have her waiting while we hurried up to unbox and reassemble our bicycles. Eventually they were just about roadworthy and with Margit in front we cycled to their house in Qormi. After a delicious dinner and some good conversations we went to bed early. For some weird reasons flying always seems to leave us tired even though it obviously isn't physically exhausting.
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| With Margit and Jeff |
Apparently the last few days had been stormy in Malta and the next morning there was still some gusty wind. At least it was mostly sunny. After breakfast Margit and Jeff took us for a walk through the old part of town. Both have been living in Qormi for more than a decade and they seemed to know pretty much everyone in town (and probably beyond). Sort of a weird thing for us given we came from the most densely populated part of Germany where people wouldn't necessarily know their neighbours.
Later that day we continued the sightseeing at San Anton Palace, the presidential residence. Usually it doesn't seem to be accessible to the public but FAA, a heritage preservation NGO, were offering private tours through the palace. Our hosts were FAA members and so Margit kindly invited us to join her. What a great start to the Malta leg of our journey! The tour was pretty amazing and we felt privileged to see a real presidential palace. Also the clever architectural features outlined by the tour guide were impressive.
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| San Anton Palace |
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The next morning Margit left for Switzerland. Jeff would follow a couple of days later. They invited us to stay in their absence which we happily accepted. There was some work to be done on the bikes, the forecast was for a few rainy days ahead and there was still so much to explore. For the next three days the weather was supposed to be sunny before those dark clouds would return. We decided to make good use of the good weather and after breakfast we took a bus to Valletta. It was a Sunday so one of Valletta's main attractions was closed, St. John's Co-Cathedral. Still there was enough to explore. Rather aimlessly we wandered through the old town, took a look at the Grandmaster's Palace, St. Elmo Fort, the National Library and eventually found ourselves in the Upper Barrakka Gardens. Not only were the views over the Grand Harbour stunning – coincidentally we had arrived just before noon hence just in time for the midday salute. Great! From the Barrakka Gardens we walked down to the harbour and took a ferry to the so called Three Cities. Located just across the Grand Harbour the cities Vittoriosa, Senglea and Copiscua are older than Valletta. Only after the Great Siege, the failed Ottoman invasion of Malta in 1565, Valletta was built as a stronghold against new attacks. Hence the chessboard-like layout of Valletta while the Three Cities have more the feel of organically grown towns. A very interesting contrast and strolling through the narrow alleyways definitely made for a worthwhile afternoon.
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| Valletta old town |
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| Midday salute |
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| Grand Harbour |
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| Three Cities |
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We were quite surprised when Jeff told us that Malta was home to some of the most ancient religious sites on Earth. There are about half a dozen sites all over Malta and Gozo but he recommended to visit the temples of Hagar Qim which are apparently the most impressive ones. After the lazy day off the bikes yesterday we opted for cycling to the temples. A good decision. As soon as we had left Qormi behind it became a really nice ride. The roads were a tad bumpy in parts but the landscape was stunning with lush green meadows and fields, all surrounded by dry stone walls. Despite taking heaps of pictures we reached the temples in no time. After all Malta is only about 15 x 30 kilometres in size! There was a small museum at the site of the Hagar Qim temples but the exhibition seemed to rather aim at children and didn't give too much insight. The audio guide and the explanation boards at the actual temple were way more interesting. Except for their age – roughly 5,500 years - not much seems to be known about the temples. Their actual function, religious significance and even their original shape is shrouded in mystery. Still it is an impressive sight in a truly spectacular setting. The sheer size of some of the stone blocks even led 17th century historians to believe it was erected by Giants.
From Hagar Qim we continued along the Dingli Ciffs to the namesake village. A beautiful ride with spectacular views and apparently the highest point on Malta at around 250 metres. From Dingli village it was only about 2 kilometres to Rabat. Now a city on it's own Rabat started as a suburb of the nearby old capital Mdina. Aptly 'Rabat' means 'Suburb' in Arabic – also a good indicator of how many cultures left their traces in Malta. Today Rabat is famous for its catacombs, the most famous of which are the St. Paul Catacombs. Despite their Christian name the catacombs also show evidence of Roman and Jewish burials. In recent history there were even air raid shelters at the very same site. From Rabat we continued to Mdina. The town lost its status as capital city in medieval time and today there are only about 300 residents left within the city walls. Tourists certainly far outnumber locals – and for a good reason. The city walls are intact as is the architectural heritage inside. Definitely it made for a good last sightseeing stop for the day.
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| Hagar Qim temple |
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| Cycling along the Dingli Cliffs |
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| St. Paul Catacombs |
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| Church of St. Paul |
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| Mdina |
The next morning it was still sunny but the forecast was for rain later in the day. We got an early start and cycled to Marsaxlokk in the south-east of Malta. Supposedly there is a big fish-market on Sundays but as things stood it was Tuesday and so we had come just to see a traditional fishing village. In fact there wasn't much sightseeing to be done other than just soaking up the tranquil atmosphere and enjoying a cafe at the seafront – which we happily did. From Marsaxlokk it was only a short, if steep, way to St. Peter's Pool, a natural pool surrounded by limestone cliffs. In the meanwhile dark clouds had gathered and so the supposedly deep blue swimming pool didn't look too inviting. In fact we got into a rain shower on the way back to Qormi. Luckily distances on Malta are rather short and so we weren't drenched too badly.
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| Marsaxlokk |
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| St. Peter's Pool |
The next morning started with grey weather. Initially we were planning to work on the bikes to service them for a last time for the final leg of our journey. We had ordered most of the spare parts from back home as Margit and Jeff had kindly let us use their mail address. When we had looked through the spares we had found that the new cassettes we had ordered were not included in the delivery. Bummer! With the help of the local Bike Advocacy Group we had tracked down the required parts. From the bike shop it would only be a short ride to Valletta and so we decided to combine the bike shop with a visit to St John's Co-Cathedral. We successfully got the cassettes sorted and around noon we entered the cathedral. The facade hadn't looked all too interesting but the interior was truly stunning. Apparently finishing the exterior had taken 4 years while the interior took them 100 years to finish! We could definitely see why. Actually we spent a couple of hours admiring the extremely ornate church with its nine chapels. In the oratory there were even two Caravaggio masterpieces on display. Both were created when Caravaggio lived in Malta and his work 'Beheading of Saint John the Baptist' is considered Malta's most famous painting.
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| St. John's Co-Cathedral |
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| Caravaggio's 'Beheading of Saint John the Baptist' |
With all spare parts together and with the weather too rainy for any outdoor activity we used the next days to work on the bikes. After close to 50,000 kilometres in total and about 20,000 kilometres since the last major service there were quite a lot of parts to be changed, cleaned or repaired. The headsets had developed too much play for pleasant riding, the drivetrain was beyond worn out, the hubs screamed for fresh grease and three out of four tyres needed replacing.
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| Last service hopefully! |
When the weather finally cleared up the bikes were just about roadworthy again. We wanted to go to Gozo anyway and so we decided this would make for an excellent test ride. We got an early start and after 25 hilly kilometres through stunning landscape we reached the ferry terminal in Cirkewwa. Naturally we just saw a ferry leaving. Well, it could have been worse, they run every 45 minutes. The ferry ride took just over 20 minutes and offered some nice views of the third Maltese island, Comino. From the ferry terminal on Gozo it was a ride of not even half an hour to get to Victoria, the island's capital city. We kicked off the sightseeing with a walk through the old town with a maze of narrow alleyways and a picturesque town square. Next was the citadel 'Il-Kastell'. It seems the site has been continuously inhabited since the bronze age even though much of today's fortress dates back to medieval times. The fortifications are mostly intact and similar to Mdina they contain sort of a complete town with an own cathedral. We took it slow and wandered around the citadel for quite a while. In the late afternoon we continued to the nearby village of Xlendi. Set at a spectacular bay the village could have been a major attraction but unfortunately ugly modern buildings destroy the magic of the setting. We had booked a night in a guesthouse to give us more time to explore the remaining sights of Gozo the next day. We spent the rest of the evening in a restaurant on the seafront where we indulged in some fresh seafood, rabbit stew and Maltese wine.
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| On the ferry to Gozo |
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| First glimpse of Victoria |
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| Strolling around Victoria |
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| Il-Kastell |
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| Sunset at Xlendi Bay |
After breakfast the next morning we cycled the hilly road back up to Victoria before we turned west to get to Gharb, the westernmost village of Gozo with a picturesque town square and a beautiful baroque church. From Gharb we continued to Dwejra Bay. A nice downhill with the prospect of cycling the very same road back up again. The bay is a popular diving destination. It features a lagoon called 'Inland Sea' sheltered by a large rock formation and connected to the Mediterranean sea via a cave. From the bay we huffed and puffed the way back up to Gharb before we continued to Xaghra. Another nice village with another picturesque town square. We enjoyed the scenery from outside a cafe sipping a coffee. In the afternoon we returned to the ferry terminal and after a short wait we boarded the ferry back to Cirkewwa. After another 25 hilly kilometres and a taste of Maltese rush-hour we were back in Qormi and called it a day.
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| Dwejra Bay |
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| Xaghra |
There was still some admin stuff and some planning to be done before we were ready to leave Malta for Sicily. The weather was rather changeable anyway and so we didn't feel too bad spending a couple of days indoors and getting those chores done. Eventually we booked a ticket for the ferry to Pozzallo on Sicily on 29th and so it was time to say farewell Malta! A mere 200 kilometres cycled but a lot of memories made!
The ferry left at 6.30am. Passengers were requested to check in 1.5 hours in advance. Subsequently we got up at 4.30 – just to find that it was raining. Great! We quickly packed our stuff up and off we went. Luckily the rain wasn't too bad and we reached the ferry terminal without getting drenched. We pushed our bikes onto the car deck and made sure they were secured properly, then we sat down in a lounge at the front of the ferry. Apparently the ferry had only been put into service two month ago and everything still looked brand new. By all accounts the ferry ride to Sicily was mostly smooth and the sea looked calm while we were still in the sheltered harbour. As soon as we had left the harbour, the waves set in. And high waves they were! Dominik who is prone to sea-sickness had popped a anti-nausea pill and slept for most of the 1.5h long ferry ride while Simon – and the majority of the passengers – made a beeline for the bathrooms. Finally we reached Pozzallo just after 8am. We had been among the first to board the ferry but we were the very last passengers to leave the boat. The weather looked much nicer on Sicily than it had done in Malta. Pozzallo isn't a particularly interesting place and after a quick breakfast in a city park we set off. There was a pretty strong headwind and some hills which both made the riding pretty exhausting. A lack of sleep and the rough ferry ride probably didn't help matters either. In the early afternoon we reached Noto where we stopped for a coffee and for some sightseeing. Noto's baroque old town is UNESCO-inscribed and we enjoyed exploring the pedestrianized Corso Vittorio Emanuele which is considered one of Sicily's most beautiful roads. From Noto it was another 30 or so kilometres along quite back roads and through citrus orchards. In the late afternoon we reached a campsite in the outskirts of Syracuse where we retired into our tent early.
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| On the ferry to Sicily |
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| A first glimpse of the rough sea ahead... |
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| Sicily! Strolling around Noto |
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| Cycling along citrus orchards |
The morning sun on our tent woke us up – the best way to wake up! We faffed about like most mornings and didn't get going until 10. It only took a few minutes to reach the historic part of town on the Ortygia Peninsula. We spent most of the remaining morning walking our bikes through the narrow alleyways, admiring the cathedral and the Castello Maniace. In the early afternoon we continued towards Catania. The riding was rather uneventful. We followed a secondary road for most of the way and except for some glimpses of the Etna, Europe's highest and probably most active volcano, there wasn't too much to see. We called it a day when we reached a campsite in the outskirts of Catania.
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| Exploring Syracuse |
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| Cathedral |
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| Castello Maniace |
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| Nothing better than fresh arancini (deep fried, stuffed rice balls) |
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| Camping near Catania |
We managed to get a slightly earlier start the next morning and reached Catanias's Piazza del Duomo just after 10am. The piazza is not only home to the cathedral. In it's centre also stands Fontana dell' Elefante. As the name implies a fountain built around a smiling elephant dating back to Roman times and cut out of black lava stone. After strolling around the historic centre of Catania for a while we continued inland. Again we followed quite back roads for much of the way and for the first half we even had a pleasant tailwind. Just when the fist ascent started the wind shifted and for the rest of the day we were battling unrelenting headwind. In the early evening we finally reached Caltagirone and called it a day. We checked in to a guesthouse and then used the last daylight to explore the old town. We rounded off the day – and the month of March – with a delicious pizza. What else!?
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| Catania old town |
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| Fontana dell' Elefante |
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| First glimpse of the Etna |
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| Traffic jam?! |
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| Caltagirone |
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| PIZZA!!! |
