The excitement was building as we were getting ready to head on up to the roof to watch our first festa fireworks in Lija. All the neighbors in our building were on their parts of the roof, having parties, having a good time. After all, this festa happens only once a year. Can you believe how huge an event this is; especially when you realize that Lija has only 3,000 residents.

The fireworks lasted over two hours! A real first for us. And it was everything everyone said it would be…… and more. Afterwards, I headed back down to upload the pictures and video. Tomorrow and tomorrow night is the last day for the festa. More bands, a religious procession carrying the statue of “Our Savior” from the Lija parish church (The Parish Church of the Transfiguration of Jesus) throughout the entire village, taking two hours. And, of course, another fireworks display.

Should be ready to publish our blog on the festa in a few days. In the meantime, enjoy this unique display from the fireworks. Never saw one like this before.

Waking up on a Monday, we decided to finally see what Gozo was about. Many Maltese citizens take their holidays on Gozo due, in part, to the bounty of sandy beaches, unlike Malta. And the fact that there are many fewer people and vehicles. Malta is small at 316 KM sq. (about the size of Seattle). Gozo is about 67 square KM. We decided to go for a day, focusing on one point of interest: the Citadel.

The history of Gozo goes back 5,000 years, first being populated by farmers from Sicilly. And, from Greek mythology, it is associated with the nymph Calypso and Odysseus.
By ferry, it takes 25 minutes. On the way, you will pass the uninhabited island of Comino, with its incredible blue waters, before docking in Mggar. From there, you can hop on one of the local busses. In our case, it was to Victoria (population of 7,000).

Our objective for the day was to visit the Citadel, a very imposing “fort” that protected Gozo from all many of enemies, including the Turks in the mid 1500’s. The Citadel is a self-contained village, with battlements with canon, super thick walls, a cathedral, a prison, shops dwellings, and blessed with a superior view of everything around it for several kilometers. Like in Malta proper, every direction you turned to, there were imposing churches. From the ramparts, we saw the Rotunda of Xewkija. It can seat 3,000, people, the same number as the village of the same name.

 

At the very heart of the Citadel is the imposing Cathedral of the Assumption. The present-day church was constructed, starting in 1697. It replaced an earlier church that was built in 1299. Over the years, it was damaged and partially destroyed by many enemies, including the Ottomans in 1551. While we were there, the church was being prepared for the upcoming Festa.

While the church was truly beautiful, I was more interested in their food making skills. So, we wandered through their living and working quarters. Quite the eye-opener. We took a break from looking over the ramparts, and had some cool refreshments, sitting next to an old canon. Then it was off to see the old prison, designed to house convicted members of the Knights of Malta.

Finally, on the way back to the bus terminal, we passed a lunch shop, with a couple of menu items that I was not expecting. Fearing the worst, I did not order one, either. Our next visit to Gozo will be for a few days, in a hotel on one of its many sandy beaches.

If there is one thing that we really like, it is a good food festival. No better way to understand a country than through its food and wine. From the Water festival in Stockholm in 1998, up to the various festivals in Seattle like the Bite of Seattle, Folklife Festival, and the very fun and quirky Solstice festival in Ballard. And of course, the Feast of San Genaro in Little Italy in New York City. You never know what you will see and taste.

So, it was with great pleasure that we went to the Malta International Food Festival, held in the “ditch” at Mdina. The ditch is the former moat that surrounds the fortress town. Only now, it is filled with grass, not water and alligators. Nothing like sampling great food with the surroundings being a 1,000-year-old fortress/town, the original capital of Malta. A totally different world from 20^th century surroundings.

Getting used to portion sizes in Malta will take some doing. I am used to acknowledging that the United States values portion size over many other qualities of food. We were not prepared for the very large portion sizes here. There was an interesting booth at Mdina that graphically portrayed nutrition. A very good display. But when I wondered about portion sizes, I was met with an almost blank stare. The Maltese portions are large, even by U.S. standards. But it looked so good!

Due to history and location, there is much in the way of both seafood and pasta. We are blessed with having some seriously good Italian food. And the seafood is wonderful. But, being a destination resort for people from so many countries, Western foods have managed to take a large portion of the food business. Fast food, yes, but some of it is very tasty.

So, if you happen to be in Malta next July, make sure to attend the Food Festival.

Ever since we moved to Malta, everyone we met told us to make sure we attend as many Festas (religious and social events for every village, town and city) in Malta that we can. Little by little, we were educated on what they are. They are religious feasts commemorating the various saints throughout Malta. Religious services, songs and carrying around very heavy statues of the myriad of saints here. And it goes without saying, that they are huge social events as well. Marching bands, much food and drink, and some of the very best fireworks in the world. The Maltese absolutely go bonkers over fireworks. You see and hear them all year, day and night.

Most of the activities take place at night. As each Festa can go on for four or five days, nighttime works best for people who must work by day; also, since most Festas occur in the summer, when it can be very hot and humid. Concerts and band marches through villages usually happen after 9PM, ending up around midnight. And they end with fireworks displays that can last around one hour.

Unlike other parts of the world, Festas are complete family affairs. No matter the hour, the very old and the very young take part. After that, more talking and drinking with your village neighbors until 1AM or later. Only to do it for four more nights.

Ħal Balzan has two very good band clubs: Socjeta Filarmonika Marija Annunzjata (founded 1890) and Kazin tal-Banda San Gabriel (founded in 1920). (See my earlier blog on band clubs to learn more about them.) They work very hard all during the year to put on this really great festival. But, it’s not all work. Both have great bars and restaurants, serving wonderful food, good drink, and even better conversations.

On some nights, the bands will be marching throughout the narrow village streets, with their sounds resonating all over the village. People come out of their homes, to watch and cheer on the bands. Certainly, too noisy to sleep.

Preparations for the Festa take place almost a year. They start to put it all together a few weeks before the event. Lights are strung up across many of the village streets. Later, very colorful banners will be strung up, giving off a very festive feeling. Also, the band clubs will place wooden statues along way. And as the festival is about to start, vendors will set up all manner of food stalls along the routes of the marches, as well as in the town square. Bars and restaurants will put out extra tables in the square, welcoming their neighbors to have a seat, a drink and some seriously good pizza. (As Malta is next to Sicilly, great Italian food can be assured.)

 

The fireworks in Ħal Balzan are not your ordinary aerial fireworks. A few years back, the Ħal Balzan fireworks factory went up in fire. Due to many factors, they have not replaced it. In its place, they put on what is called ground fireworks. Using metal frames of differing shapes, they wrap explosives around the frames. When lit up, they cause the frames to spin around in wonderful shapes and colors. Not having the sound of aerial fireworks, they nonetheless have great appeal because you can get very close to them. And the colors and movement are quite spectacular. They work very hard to put on the very best show possible. I think there is a bit of jealousy as Ħal Lija’s fireworks are considered world class. 

We really enjoyed our first Festa. Can’t wait to attend the Ħal Lija festival in early August. They are reputed to be the Maltese masters of aerial fireworks! 

Enjoy our experience through these pictures.

We were just sitting on our balcony, after dinner,  enjoying the night. And it dawned on us that the moon was starting to disappear, without any clouds. After a quick check, we found out that it was a partial lunar eclipse. Surprise. It was to take about an hour and a half. So, I grabbed my camera, and started shooting. The first  picture of the full moon was taken the night before.
For those of you in North America, who couldn’t see the eclipse, enjoy, too! And remember, this eclipse was 50 years to the day of the Apollo 11 launch to the  moon.

 

 

Immigration, taxes, health care, trust, nice. Are Maltese taught helpfulness and nice, or is it baked in? Being surprised is obvious. Getting hit with a velvet pillow is astounding. We landed in Malta, excited and looking forward to our life in retirement. We knew and expected that things would be different here. Perhaps, nothing at all like life in the United States.
It all started here the first time we took our daily mode of transport- the bus. It was crowded, with nothing but standing room. Sort of what a sardine must feel like, looking out of its can. Then, almost immediately, three people stood up, offering me their seats. There is a rule that seniors should be offered a seat. Never heard about much of that happening in Seattle, especially with everyone’s head stuck in their phone or tablet.
As I wasn’t feeling old, I was about to turn them down, but realized that they genuinely wanted to offer me their seat. Every single time we got on a full bus, with standing room only, someone always offered me their seat. Welcome to Malta. Knock, knock, can I come in? The answer was a resounding yes.

The first order of business when we unpacked was to apply for our resident card. With my wife being an EU citizen, she is entitled to move here to live- to work or retire. As her husband, I am entitled to get my residency as well. So, off we went to Valletta to apply. The immigration department is in the Evans Building, a massive old structure at the lower end of Valletta. Being me, we got there at 7AM, with business beginning at 7:30AM. We were about first in line. By the time processing started, with several lines going to different offices, there were several hundred people waiting. Score one for being early.
The man behind the counter asked how he could help us. Help us? Wow! And he meant it. After a few minutes reviewing the paperwork we had filled out in advance, he gave us a number, and told us to wait for our interview. After 20 minutes, we were called into another office. We answered a few questions, signed some papers, and had our pictures taken. Must have taken at least 15 minutes. She handed us some prelim papers and said we will hear back in about a month. Five weeks later, we received a letter informing us to pick up our residency cards. Just like in the States: NOT. When she moved to the States, we both filled out reams of paperwork, had multiple interviews, and waited almost a year. The Maltese really welcomed us here. And in five years, I will be able to vote in local elections, since I am a taxpayer.

Want to talk about nice, polite and friendly, let’s talk about the Maltese Tax Authority. Yes, you heard me right. Before I talk about nice, let me show you the mission statement of the Tax Authority:

Mission Statement:
To collect, in a timely and efficient manner, the fair amount of taxes, to ensure that funds are available for Malta’s public services.

We strive to achieve this by:

• helping taxpayers understand and meet their obligations in accordance with the law;
• simplifying procedures and minimizing compliance costs;
• maximizing voluntary compliance together with a fair control system
• developing a skilled and motivating workforce within a modern and adaptive organization.

Just like the IRS!!

We showed up at their office to register with them. We took a number. There were about 125 people ahead of us. Fortunately, my wife noticed a another, higher set of numbers that were periodically called as well. She asked the woman sitting next to her what is was; and was told that it was for older people. We got a new number and were called in about ten minutes.

The woman who met with us welcomed us to Malta; and hoped that we were getting comfortable. We then went through the paperwork. I noticed other workers were filling out tax forms (their tax month is June) for taxpayers, exactly like the IRS. In a few minutes, we were done. She wished us well, and to call back any time we needed assistance. Yes, they actually do answer their phones.

I could go on like this all day. Healthcare in Malta is rated in the top five countries in the world. And because my wife has a pension from an EU country, per EU rules we will receive same healthcare as the Maltese.
If you ask anyone in Malta a question, they will stop what they are doing and answer. And not in any rushed way. And, if you even look lost or about to ask a question, they will stop and ask how they can help us. Everyone is like this, without exception. What is it about a country where people believe the government is there to help them? They pay taxes, but they also get real services in return. They get health care, even if they can’t afford it. They get an education, even if they cannot afford it. And they are not left to starve in retirement.

I believe that there is something different about Western Europe, including Malta, from the United States, that enables this belief in themselves and their country. Europe was largely destroyed by two world wars, and after the wars ended, they were left to rebuild their countries and lives. To do that, everyone’s help was needed. To ensure a better future, education for all, healthcare for everyone, as well as a belief that government was part of the solution, the people were asked and gave their consensus. New institutions were created instead of just going with the same old ones. People pulled together and lobbying and special interests were minimized. The people come before government or business.
It works for us. We love it here. People and government.