Today I will be telling you about the capital of Gozo, Victoria and its Citadel. It is always nice to be visiting Gozo, visiting a beach, walk and a coffee in the capital city always a great idea.
Short History
The old name of this city is Rabat. Even today many people still use that name. But Victoria came to be the new name in 1897 in honour of Queen Victoria. The Citadel is dating since Neolithic times and it served as a sanctuary. The Barbarians used to take the Gozitans in slavery. Today the capital is made of the ancient city Citadel, and its suburb Rabat. Rabat is by the way an Arabic word for suburb.
Location
Victoria is situated in the heart of the island, and it is connected to all the other places. Over there is the main bus station, but even walking to some other place can sound like nothing else, but a wonderful idea. Citadel takes a wonderful high.You it can be seen from almost everywhere on the island. What is even better is that from the top people can almost the whole island, and the view is really nice. All white and yellow.
Attractions in Victoria
The centre of the city is Pjazza Indipendenza and everything around it. In the mornings there is an open market, where you can find many interesting things. The best one will probably be the products coming from Gozo and Malta.
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| Local products |
There are some open air cafes, where we noticed a lot of older Gozitans enjoying their morning coffee. Dominating there is St George’s Basilica church dating from 1678. We went inside the church, there were many design details, it was nice to be seen, but I was not impressed.
I will highly recommend that you take a walk around the street in the city. Everything seems so small and tinny, the streets, the balconies… Everywhere arylide yellow walls with many different decorations and flowers.
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| Antique things sold on the streets |
Visit the Citadel
The Citadel has a long history. From the Neolitic, developed by Phoenicians and Romans. This city used to be a centre of the administrative, military and religious life. One of the main events for Citadel and the whole country, was the attack of the Ottomans. Many people begged for their lives, and all of the Gozitans were captured, chained and taken to slavery. Believe it or not the re-population of the island took 50 years, so as the rebuild of the Citadel.Personally, The Citadel reminds me on Mdina, and they really look alike. Have a walk around the ruins, enjoy the highest point on the island, buy something from the shops around or simply enjoy the Citadel’s coffee. Around there are some museums and other attractions.
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