Malta
Malta
consists of two large islands, Malta, Gozo and five much smaller islands. My earliest
connection with the country was the large number of Maltese children who were
in my class at primary school in Merrylands. Their parents had migrated to
Australia after WWII and about 30% of the class had names like Borg, Mifsud, Micallef,
Azzopardi, Sultana and so on. I have been curious to learn more about the
country and had assumed that it was effectively some sort of mini Italy.
Part of the wall around Valetta
However, it is actually influenced by several regions- Tunisia/North Africa in
the south west; Turkey in the east, and Italy/Sicily in the north. Due to its
strategic location it has been settled over the centuries by the Phoenicians, Romans, Moors, Normans, Sicilians, Hapsburgs, Spain, French and the British. It had been a British Colony for
several centuries. The language is a product of this mixed heritage and street
signs in Maltese are difficult to comprehend and written language is
unintelligible although there are some English language newspapers.
Sunset on the west coast
When I tried
to enter St Paul’s Bay in the GPS it did not register and I spent a few
frustrating minutes before realising it would be San Paulo!
The Queen
lived in Malta for a year or two in the late 1940’s as her husband, Phillip,
was a naval officer and there was a large British naval base at Valetta. This
was before her coronation in 1952.
The
population is about 500,000 and there have been periods in the late 1940’s and
1960’s when there were significant exoduses as the size of the country limits
opportunities. As a member of the EU, the locals have freedom to work elsewhere
and many British appear to either live here or have holiday lodgings.
Ancient Foundations
4000 year old temple ruins
Malta has been
an important trading and strategic military post for millennia. There was a
stone-age civilisation resident 5000 years ago and archaeological digs abound. In
1900 while constructing some homes, workers accidentally dug into a large vaulted
underground structure.
It is known
as the Hypogeum and it is thought that these chambers were for burial rites. They
are remarkable in that they look like quite elegant temples with columns and
beams-but they have actually been etched out of the soft limestone rock. They
would not have had iron or brass and would have used stone and antlers for the
task. That particular civilisation died out and there is no record of what
happened to them – or why.
At various
vantage points there are ruins of forts, lookouts and gun batteries. Valetta
itself is heavily fortified by a massive wall and a wide moat system. The
Crusades against the Turks used Malta as a staging post in the 1200’s.
The Church
is very well established and while only a relatively small landmass, large
churches/basilicas are dotted around the countryside. The farmland is terraced
and most holdings appear small with stone fences.
Typical street scene dominated by a church
Malta was a
key strategic base in WWII and suffered an incredible amount of bombing during
the war as the Germans were worried that it might have been used as the
springboard for an allied invasion later in the War. I noticed quite impressive
memorials and acknowledgements from the Allied leaders attesting to the bravery
of the Maltese.
One
afternoon I was at a waterside rural area and noticed families collecting what
I thought must have been berries. However, on closer examination I discovered
they were collecting snails which are cooked in a traditional fashion and are
regarded as a delicacy.
Bayside scene Valetta
People you Meet
My children have
observed that it would be unfortunate to be assigned a seat alongside me on a
flight- due to the inevitable flow of communication that would occur. On the
flight from Malta to London I met my match when I was seated with a London
Cabbie who was highly entertaining and had a lively interest in military history.
He is also very involved in charities that support veterans. In May each year
about 60 London Cabs go to Arnhem in The Netherlands conveying WWII veterans
who were based there. The Dutch hosts make them very welcome and there are well
attended parades as this convoy of cabs move through the city.
My fellow
traveller on this annual expedition usually takes in his cab a Scots veteran of
the Black Watch who is now in his early 90’s but is very alert and in reasonable
health. It turns out that he is the person who identified Heinrich Himmler (head
of the SS) at the end of the War. Himmler tried to merge with the thousands of
displaced military. He was wearing low ranking uniform but the Scotsman, who
was assigned to an intelligence unit, thought that Himmler’s spectacles were
way too fashionable for a low ranking soldier. He was pulled out of the crowd of
soldiers for further interrogation and Himmler subsequently admitted his
identity but used his cyanide pill and suicided in front of this (now) veteran.
London
Regents Park
It is always
great to land in London which in my view, is one of the best cities in the
world. Christmas preparations are underway and the weather is mild for this
time of the year. The mood is buoyant and the UK appears to be moving on from
the GFC. Hyde Park and Regents Park are looking colourful as the last of the
autumn leaves glow and fall making a thick matting that crunches under foot.
Hairdressers
Business names
for hair dressing salons are often creative and amusing – eg Hair Apparent etc.
Yesterday I saw ‘Jack the Clipper’!
Theatre
I saw a West
End play, Neville’s Island, which is based in a jungle and deals with a team of
four executives who are lost in a team building exercise. It was hilarious and
the story line had lots of potential. Adrian Edmondson (Vivienne in The Young
Ones) was outstanding.
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is
well known as an iconic songwriter and a very average singer. But I had not
realised he was also an accomplished artist and I saw some of his work at a
gallery in St Christopher’s Walk. He apparently has received a Pulitzer Prize
to recognise his contribution over the last four decades. I think he is
probably a much better artist than he is a singer!
Rennes
Gar, Greg and Paul at Orgeres
On Sunday I
flew from London Southend direct to Rennes where I was met by Gar. It is always
great to visit Brittany, Gar, Paul and Gregoire. Paul is in the last phase of
High School and Gregoire is in junior high school. Gar and I did some walks
around Orgeres and a nearby village as well as visiting Rennes which I had not
really explored before.
They are at
some very early stages for planning a possible trip to Australia in July 2016.
River near Orgeres
Regulations in France
Orgeres
is a pretty village-one of many surrounding Rennes, the capital of Brittany.
The area was originally settled by the Celts and the modern day villages are
set up on the site of former old villages. There are often ruins of small
communal ovens used centuries ago (probably for making those famous French
baguettes!). These modern villages offer a close community in a rural setting
but no more than 10km from a big centre- a bit like having a rural village at
Strathfield.
The
various layers of government ensure that housing meets a whole range of regulations
including permissible colours and pitch of roof! But the effect is very
pleasing. All amenities are well thought through and I saw this contraption
near a bus stop on the outskirts of the village.
Bicycle Locker
It is a
lockable bicycle locker. You hang up your bicycle inside one of the doors and
you leave a euro and take the key - making public transport that much more
accessible.
Realising
that the families who moved into Orgeres in the 1970’s and 1980’s are now at a
stage where less children are using the schools, the planners are releasing
more land for housing so that more younger families can move in and enjoy the
facilities. Planning regulations have changed and now there is radical use of
bright colours of colorbond in lieu of the cream coloured established housing.
