Europe, with an Arctic cruise, a Balkan tour and bits of France and Malta

[Seat0B]

Norwegian Star,

Ooh that's my ship for our upcoming cruise in September.

 

[RooFlyer]

Ah there you are @RooFlyer - I've been missing my geology education!

All part of the service ma'm

St Paul's catacombs, a must see. Located in the town of Rabat. Wikipedia:

St. Paul's catacombs are part of a large cemetery once located outside the walls of the ancient Roman city of Melite, now covered by the smaller Mdina and Rabat. It also comprises the catacombs of Saint Agatha, San Katald, St. Augustine, and many others.

The cemetery probably originated in the Phoenician-Punic period. As in Roman tradition, Phoenician and Punic burials were located outside city walls. The many tombs discovered in areas outside the known line of the Roman city suggest that the city of Melite was close to equal size.

The early tombs consisted of a deep rectangular shaft[clarification needed] with one or two chambers dug from its sides. This type of burial was used well into the Roman occupation of the islands, but the chambers grew larger and more regular in shape over time. It is probable that this enlargement joined neighboring tombs and led to the creation of small catacombs, which became the norm by the fourth century CE.

The catacombs were in use until the seventh, possibly eighth century. Some of the catacombs were used again during the re-Christianization of the Island around the 13th century.

Per the sign, there are 23 separate entrances; about 2/3 were open when I visited. The first is the largest accessible. As I went on, I realised that they were mostly variations on a theme. Some contain bones (and these are marked by the sign at the entrance); some are pagan, some Christian and some Jewish.

The lighting isn't conducive to good photography - orange, often shining up to the viewer. I didn't see any sign about not using flash, so as no-one else seemed to be using flash, after my first pic, I went with the ambient light.

The first catacomb has branching and some circular pathways and it wasn't until I was a fair way in that I realised this - that there wasn't a 'one way' route. Had to find my own way back to the start!







Some of the openings are very low and I've still got the graze when i scraped my head a couple of times.



These circular features are called triclinia and are tables and reclining 'couches' fir the funerary meals.





It was hot again and it was good to duck into various catacombs to see what was there. Its spread over a large area.





These are tombs with remains in place- they were re-covered over in abt 2018



This is a Jewish tomb, marked by the stylised menorah.

 

[RooFlyer]

It was then only a 10-15 minutes walk to the Mdina - another must-see.

Mdina is a fortified city in the Western Region of Malta which served as the island's former capital, from antiquity to the medieval period. The city is still confined within its walls, and has a population of 250.

A natural redoubt, the area of the city has been inhabited since prehistory. A Phoenician colony known as Ann was established around the 8th century BC, sharing its name with the island and presumably acting as its capital. During the Punic Wars, the town was acquired by the Romans and renamed Melita after the Greek and Latin name for the island, probably taken from the Punic port at Cospicua on the Grand Harbour. Greco-Roman Melite was larger than present-day Mdina. It was reduced to its present size during the period of Byzantine or Arab rule. Following a 9th-century massacre, the area was largely uninhabited until its refounding in the 11th century as Madīnah, from which the town's current name derives. Mdina then continued to serve as the capital of Malta until the arrival of the Order of St. John in 1530, who used Birgu instead. Mdina experienced a period of decline over the following centuries, although it saw a revival in the early 18th century during which several Baroque buildings were erected.

Streets of Rabat along the way








First, the dry moat, walls and fantastic entry gate





This gate was constructed in 1720 by the Order of St John and was originally served by a wooden drawbridge. The original gate is walled off to the right.

 

[FlyingFiona]

Those catacombs are so cool! I gave a talk on religious relics recently and researched catacombs as part of the talk. I have a new found appreciation for them and am dying (no pun intended) to visit some on my next European trip.

 

[RooFlyer]

Those catacombs are so cool! I gave a talk on religious relics recently and researched catacombs as part of the talk. I have a new found appreciation for them and am dying (no pun intended) to visit some on my next European trip.

If you are planning to visit the Paris catacombs, watch the booking page very carefully. They open up time-slot tickets a week ahead and they go very quickly. I tried to get a ticket 7 days out, maybe 7 hours after sales opened and all gone!!

 

[FlyingFiona]

If you are planning to visit the Paris catacombs, watch the booking page very carefully. They open up time-slot tickets a week ahead and they go very quickly. I tried to get a ticket 7 days out, maybe 7 hours after sales opened and all gone!!

Actually, not interested in seeing them becuase they aren't original (in as much as the remains in them were relocated not interred there.)

I know someone who is an expert in the unofficial (i.e. illegal to enter) catacombs of Paris. There is a whole network of "catophiles" who go down sometimes for days on end. He tells fascinating stories of it all.

Anyway, I shan't hijack your trip report with it any further! (I'm just loving being on the trip with you - thanks so much for sharing it all.)

 

[RooFlyer]

St Paul's Metropolitan Cathedral in Mdina.

The first cathedral which stood on the site is said to have been dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, but it fell into disrepair during the Arab period[3] (the churches in Melite [Malta] were looted after the Aghlabid invasion in 870). In Arab times, as revealed by excavations, the site was used as a mosque.

Following the Norman invasion in 1091, Christianity was re-established as the dominant religion in the Maltese islands. A cathedral dedicated to St. Paul was built in the 12th and 13th centuries. The cathedral was built in the Gothic and Romanesque styles, and it was enlarged and modified a number of times.

In particular it was partially rebuilt after an earthquake in 1693 - around 1700.





Inside, completely OTT, as you'd expect





Looking up into the dome

 

[RooFlyer]

Like ST John's Co-Cathedral in Valetta, the nobles and worthies of the Mdina are buried within the Cathedral, with their tombs marked by elaborate marble covers.

 

[RooFlyer]

Some general views around the Mdina. It was blazingly hot, and everything being made of limestone, everything was radiating heat.









Not everyone appreciates the tourists. Apparently to live within the Mdina its likely your place has been in the family for generations. An 'old money' thing,



Uber back to the hotel, passing the aqueduct on the way. Not Roman, but Order of St John and commissioned in 1615.



And at the hotel, happily sat in the cool of the lobby for a while with a complimentary Tanqueray G&T.