Another day of high winds today, making any activity outside rather unpleasant. Is it the xlokk (sirocco) or the majjistral (mistral)? Based on temperature and direction, its the majjistral. In spite of this, we decide to venture from Xlendi on foot around the cliffs to the east, to Ta’ Cenc,the most spectacular section of cliffs on the island.
And they are spectacular, alternating bands of honey coloured soft rock, with a hard cap of conglomerate. Some of the soft rock has been weathered to form huge wave shaped rocks, with large flat platforms that have been carved into salt pans. Everywhere, there are little paths along the tops or around fields which have just been harvested. A great walk, even if we are a little windblown by the end. (We don’t see any Maltese falcons though).
Malta lies on the flight path of many species of birds migrating between Europe and Africa, and a traditional pastime of the Maltese has been to shoot them as they go by. We see many small hides built of stone, with empty shotgun cases strewn about.
Home for lunch and and to get out of the wind for a while. As we walk back into Xlendi, I notice that the waves are breaking over the wall at the end of the inlet onto the tables set out in front of the restaurants and cafes, so no nice, quiet, sun soaked lunches or 5 o’clock drinkies tonight.
Mid afternoon, we head out for our last foray on Gozo, to Rambla Bay on the northern coast. It is meant to be a famous beauty spot, a beach of red sand, but I am disappointed. There are lots of cars and people, even some people swimming in the “surf”, in spite of 2 red flags flying, signifying a dangerous undertow, but to me, it just looked like red dirt, with lots of rocks and pebbles. Some people had even built stone shelters of the local rock to give them some protection from the wind!! It does look better from a distance, though.
We only stay for 5 minutes, so have plenty of time to head elsewhere, and choose to explore another area on this side of the island, near the main resort town of Marsalforn. I don’t think this will be very interesting, as Marsalforn is a big resort, meant to be all about partying, but we find a lovely walk to do along the coast, out of the wind (mostly), and along an area of soft rock platform where extensive salt pans have been chipped into the rock platform for a stretch of more than one kilometre. The sea was quite high, so waves were crashing over the platforms with spray splashing out for meters around. 
The walk finished at an inlet slashed into the rock - narrow, pebbly and very picturesque, but definitely not somewhere you could swim with the weather and the wind today.
Home to pack up for out next location, Valetta.
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