What most people call simply "the island of Malta" is, to be accurate, a group of islands consisting of Malta, the largest, Gozo and the smallest, Comino.
The existence of these smaller islands was quite unknown to most holiday-makers - their discovery was dismissed as "a pity". Even the Gozitans, the friendliest of people, sometimes feel that they could do with a little less "tomorrow". Gozo, they feel, should stay as it was or as it is now. The tourist who decides to visit the island will profit from the above because he will find himself in a little paradise. The voyage by ferry from Malta to Gozo takes only about thirty minutes. He will find himself back in history, away from the hustle and bustle of modern life transposed into a world of peace and serenity and cleanliness.
The Farmers and Fishermen are Tough, Hard-working and Friendly. This also applies to the countryside: the simple and clean villages and the little towns, but especially to the Gozitans themselves.
 
Whereas the Maltese have always been in contact with the rest of the world and made a living from trade, Gozo was always an island of farmers and fishermen. The hard and merciless fight with the sea and the poor soil has formed the character of the people. In order not to waste a single foot of valuable ground, they have cultivated the terrace-field system to perfection. This, however, prevents, to a large extent, the use of powerful agricultural machinery. Up to the present time and even today the work has had to be done with hoe and scythe and donkey cart which is still the most effective agricultural vehicle, although some mechanized equipment is also in use. Even more astonishing is the result of that hard work: the visitor to Gozo finds many more green fields and flowering plants and wild flowers than he does in Malta. Concern over the preservation of the sparse soil explains why the Gozitans, throughout the centuries have built their villages and small towns on the tops of the rocky hills. Apart from saving the valuable soil in the valleys this afforded protection against the frequent attacks of pirates who until well into the 18th century used Gozo as a base for their marauding. Less protected than the Maltese, time and time again the Gozitans paid ransom to the Arabs and the Turks. When in 1551 the Turks under Sinan Pascha attacked Gozo, the island was almost depopulated. The older people were put to death and the younger sold into slavery. The island's reserves of food and other necessities were seized. Over the centuries, the island could only offer a chance of survival to the toughest and the most able.

Due to the harsh living conditions many Gozitans have had to emigrate. They went mainly to Australia, the USA and to Canada. However, they have never lost their identity and many of those who emigrated have returned, bringing their substantial earnings with them. Many returned Gozitan emigrants have enhanced the wealth and reputation of the neighboring island of Malta. The Maltese are sometimes said to have regarded the Gozitans as "simple peasants". In reality, as one can hear in "confidential" talk in the bars, "it takes only one Gozitan to put ten Maltese in his pocket"!
The proof of this seems to be that many of the leading personalities in Malta, such as an Archbishop and a Chief Justice, actually came from Gozo.
There are many other jokes and anecdotes which characterize the difference between the Maltese and the Gozitans and by which they make fun of each other in a friendly way. Nevertheless, if one digs a little deeper into the history of Gozo one will find out that the Maltese and the Gozitans, despite being so near, are not exactly similar.

The History of Gozo - Arabs and Knights
The history of Gozo is closely related to that of Malta and as such, strongly determined by the influence of the Arabs and the Knights of St John. The names of the villages and many words of the language are of Semitic origin.
The influence of the Knights becomes very obvious from the many beautiful churches always located in the center of the hilltop villages and towns over which their influence dominates. This is the Gozo scene.
A very good example is the Cathedral in the Citadel in Victoria. The view from the massive walls embraces the island and the sea, filling every visitor with reflection and respect for the place on which he stands.
It is assumed that the Citadel was built in the middle of the 15th century for the protection of the Gozitan people against the constant attacks of the Turks and the North African corsairs.

A Gigantic Church, a Gigantic Temple and a Hero as First Tourist
Despite their common history, and notwithstanding pride, the Gozitans like to pin-point some of the wonders of their island.
Not only do they take pride in having one of Europe's largest Cupolas and Ggantija 5,500 years old, as one of the largest Megalithic temples of the Maltese islands, but they also hold the firm belief that Gozo existed long before Malta - and never forget to mention that although sixty years after the birth of Christ, St Paul the Apostle spent three months in Malta, much earlier Gozo had an even more prominent visitor: Ulysses., who was kept prisoner in a little cave near Ramla I-Hamra bay for seven years by the nymph Calypso.

The Gozitan's "Gbejniet".
The greatest pleasure for the Gozitans is without doubt their cheese called "gbejniet", a real delicacy to be eaten with crispy bread, a must for any real lunch or indeed dinner eaten in Gozo. The Maltese use the word "gbejniet" as a joke against the Gozitans. They suggest that the small white goat's cheese bound with peppercorns be incorporated into the Gozo coat-of-arms, because it plays such a large part in their lives. The Gozitans' argument against this is that large quantities (if not the larger) of the home-made "gbejniet" are consumed by the Maltese themselves.

Gozo - The Secret Remedy Against Stress at any time of the Year
Gozo is a world of its own. A place to take a breather from the hectic world of today and a place to get in touch with another culture and different customs. Even tourists spending their holiday on Malta will find an excursion to Gozo is more than worthwhile.
There can be no other place where the visitor will find the people more friendly than Gozo, and there is nothing finer than sailing back to Malta by ferryboat late in the evening under a southerly starlit sky after a day filled with new delights and experiences - and after a fine Gozitan dinner in one of the many welcoming restaurants. Gozo, an unforgettable experience to be enjoyed at any time of the year.

Comino - Azure Blue Waters, Caraway and the Humming of the Bees
For those who find Gozo still a little to hectic, there is Comino, the small caraway island close to Mgarr, only 2 square kilometers in area. The humming of the bees and the gentle murmur of the sea are the only sounds to be heard. There is a sportshotel and a holiday complex for snorklers, surfers, and divers. Comino is a paradise for watersports.

Back to aboutmalta.com: Gozo & Comino