Whereas it was Laurie being hoisted onto the shoulders at last week’s Feast in San Lawrenz, this Saturday night it was Mary’s turn at my ‘local’ Feast in Victoria, Gozo. The Feast started on Thursday, which means fireworks from 7am to 2am for the last few days. It saved me from having to set an alarm clock 🙂 I think by the end of my stay here in Malta, I’m going to be suffering from some type of combat-related PTSD, such as the noise of continuous fireworks. And because all the buildings are made of stone, the sound just ‘booms’ and ‘ricochets’.
At the conclusion of the street march, Mary was returned to the Cathedral of the Assumption inside the fortified Cittadella. The origins of the Cittadella, also called the Castello, date back to the Bronze Age around 1500 BC, however much of the imposing structure we see today was built by the Knights of Malta. In 1551, the Ottoman forces invaded Gozo, and the Cittadella fell quite easily. The Ottoman Empire emptied the island and enslaved much of the population. It was only when the Knights took control that new defensive positions were installed at the Cittadella. Right up until 1637, it was illegal for the Gozitans to sleep outside of the Cittadella walls, so high were the fears of future raids. They could work the fields on the island during the day, but had to retreat to the safety of the fortress by sunset.
On Sunday night, the island’s festivities continued with a lively beer-and-food festival in Sannat. It was great to go out and try a couple of craft brews and local Maltese treats before walking the 4kms home. Speaking of walking, I’m looking forward to doing a little bit of the Gozo coastal trail in the coming week. There is a defined walking trail that circles the entire island, about 65kms in total. And whilst I have been keen to do that particular walking trail, I did promise myself before I left Australia that I would only do it if the weather was ‘favourable’ for such an endeavour. And the reality is that it’s not – it has been 32° every day since I arrived a few weeks ago (but drops to a cool 30° at night…haha), with the daily weather guide indicating that it feels more like 39°. It’s just not safe. So, I will do 7-10kms early one morning from the start of the walk (near the Gozo ferry terminal), before taking in a swim at one of the beautiful, secluded beaches on the path.
And I’m happy to report that on the work front, goals continue to be kicked. I have just finished up my third journal article – that makes three in the last three weeks. I will be spending the next week trying to make as much progress as possible on my first journal article that I’m co-authoring with the University of Malta crew before I welcome a couple of weary Aussie travellers (Dr Kit and Jackie) who will be visiting me on the island for a few days.
The street procession at the local Feast for St Mary
