Mdina & Rabat: The Ancient Inland Heartland

The Silent City: Medieval Stronghold

Crowning a high strategic plateau in central Malta, Mdina served as the island’s capital from antiquity until the Knights of St. John arrived in 1530 and shifted maritime administration to Birgu. Known locally as L-Imdina, or commonly "The Silent City", the fortified town retains an extraordinary medieval and Baroque character with fewer than 300 permanent residents.

Entering through the dramatic Baroque Main Gate (designed in 1724 by French military engineer Charles François de Mondion), visitors enter a labyrinth of narrow, paved stone alleys engineered intentionally with sharp curves to hinder crossbow fire and cannon lines. Modern vehicular traffic inside the gates is strictly forbidden with the exception of emergency services, wedding parties, and resident permit holders, creating a unique hush throughout the day and evening.

Architectural Highlights in Mdina

Mdina’s palaces represent centuries of Maltese noble families, combining Norman-Sicilian architecture with post-1693 earthquake Baroque restoration:

• St. Paul's Cathedral: Designed by Maltese architect Lorenzo Gafà to replace a 12th-century Norman church damaged by the 1693 Sicily earthquake. Its interior features rich marble-inlaid tombstones of clergy and knights, intricate timber ceilings, and Mattia Preti frescoes depicting the shipwreck of Saint Paul.
• Palazzo Falson Historic House Museum: The second-oldest standing building in Mdina, exhibiting authentic Norman-Siculo architecture with bi-partite windows and an extraordinary collection of antique clocks, rare books, and historical armaments.
• Bastion Square Viewpoint: Located at the northern ramparts, this platform delivers an uninterrupted 180-degree view spanning Mosta Dome, the central valleys, and the distant blue rim of the Mediterranean Sea.

Rabat: Roman Suburbs and Subterranean Networks

Directly outside Mdina’s ditch and drawbridge lies the bustling suburban settlement of Rabat (from the Arabic rabad, meaning suburb). While Mdina housed the island nobility, Rabat evolved as an authentic center of craft, agriculture, and religious pilgrimages.

Subterranean Rabat is riddled with extensive paleochristian burial complexes:

• St. Paul's Catacombs: A complex of interconnected rock-cut Roman hypogea dating from the 3rd to 8th centuries AD, representing the earliest archaeological evidence of Christianity in Malta. Distinctive features include circular rock-hewn agape tables (triclinia) where funeral banquets were celebrated.
• St. Agatha’s Crypt and Catacombs: Renowned for remarkably preserved early Christian wall frescoes dating from the 12th to 15th centuries, cut into the solid rock beds.
• Domvs Romana: Located adjacent to Mdina’s outer moat, this museum preserves the excavated remnants of a high-status 1st-century BC Roman townhouse, featuring exquisite Hellenistic polychrome floor mosaics.

Excursion to Dingli Cliffs & Buskett Gardens

A short three-kilometer transit south of Rabat leads to Dingli Cliffs, the highest geological elevation in the Maltese archipelago at 253 meters above sea level. Here, sheer vertical limestone cliffs plunge directly into the churning Mediterranean waves below, framing panoramic sunset views over the uninhabited islet of Filfla.

Nestled in the valley below the cliffs lies Buskett Gardens, originally planted by the Grand Masters as a game hunting reserve and now one of Malta’s few deciduous woodland groves, filled with citrus orchards, Aleppo pines, and Mediterranean scrub.

Local Gastronomy: Pastizzi & Local Bakeries

Rabat is universally acknowledged by locals as the premier destination for fresh Maltese pastizzi. Traditional crystal pastizzerias near the main town church serve diamond-shaped pastries with paper-thin phyllo layers, freshly pulled from wood-fired ovens. Pair these pastries with Maltese tea served in a clear glass tumbler with evaporated milk for a classic inland experience.