Strawberry Festival at Mgarr

This was the third edition of the Strawberry Festival held in Mgarr, Malta. Yesterday Mgarr Square was full of activities for 'Festa Frawli' (strawberry feast).

The activity was organised by the local council and the Resources Ministry.

There was brisk business at stalls selling freshly picked strawberries and gourmet dishes such as strawberry risotto and strawberries with novel dressings.

Drinks included a variety of refreshing smoothies, milk shakes as well as strawberry wine.

Taking part were folk dancers and singers and other local talent.

Bir Miftuh Chapel - Gudja

Gudja (English: Gudia) is a village in Malta with a population of 2,901 (Nov 2005). The village is located on a small hill south of the city of Valletta overlooking Malta International Airport.


Gudja also has a famous 500 year-old chapel of Bir Miftuħ (which means "open well"). Bir Miftuh was already established as a parish prior to 1436 and so it is one of the first twleve parishes of the Maltese Islands. This chapel was built in around 1430 and is one of the best preserved examples of a fifteenth-century parish church in Malta. It has some interesting frescoes, the Chapel is free standing and shows a growing confidence in the handling of stone structures. It has a plain rectangular plan and measures about eleven by fourteen metres.

Mdina Festival weekend

For this weekend Mdina is taking a Medieval look for a festival of flowers and pageantry. There's Medieval Music, singing, street performers and historic re-enactments. Parts of the city are decorated with flowers. There are also Medieval food, games, trades and traditions at a small market set up in one of the squares. Medieval kinghts battling with swords and also Falconries from around the island displaying their birds.

San Girgor Feast

Traditionally held on the first Wednesday after Easter, the feast probably started off as a thanksgiving pilgrimage though some differ on its exact origins.

Some maintain the pilgrimage was held to thank the Lord for freeing Malta from the plague of 1519. Others believe it was a vow made after Malta emerged victorious against the Turks in the Great Siege of 1565. Others still insist it was a sign of thanksgiving for the Lord's protection during a heavy storm in 1343. When the religious part of the feast is over people go to Marsaxlokk for the traditional outing with some opting to open the swimming season.

more photos from Good Friday and Easter Sunday.....

Here are some photos showing this year's resurrection feast in Cospicua and Good Friday procession also in Cospicua. The boy who is on the left hand side wearing the blue outfit is my dear friend Laetitia's son Gedeon who has been taking part in this procession for the last 3 years. Photos taken by Laetitia.

Rough Seas around the Maltese Islands

This photo showing the crossing of the Gozo Channel Ferries from Gozo to Malta, was taken yesterday by Adrian Camilleri and posted on the timesofmalta.com

Resurrection

Romans 1:4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.

Good Friday......

Yesterday was good Friday and in the morning my kids and I went to see a last supper live display. It was organized by a band club in Lija.

Mary Magdalene narrated her story on how she had met Jesus, then came Martha who told us the story of her, her sister Mary and their brother Lazarus. After this came Mary mother of Jesus and also Pontius Pilate. After that we were taken upstairs into another very well prepared room where there was the last supper's table prepared with food and all. Here we were presented with what happened during the last supper.

Last Supper / Maundy Thursday

The Last Supper was the last meal Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles and disciples before his death. The Last Supper has been the subject of many paintings, perhaps the most famous by Leonardo da Vinci.

According to what Paul the Apostle recounted in 1 Corinthians 11:23–26, in the course of the Last Supper, and with specific reference to eating bread and drinking from a cup, Jesus told his disciples, "Do this in remembrance of me". Other events and dialogue are recorded in the Synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John. Many Christians describe this as the "Institution of the Eucharist" .

Visiting seven churches

The tradition of visiting seven churches on Holy Thursday is an ancient practice, probably originating in Rome, where early pilgrims visited the seven pilgrim churches as penance. They are Saint John Lateran, Saint Peter, Saint Mary Major, Saint Paul-outside-the-Walls, Saint Lawrence Outside the Walls, Holy Cross-in-Jerusalem, and traditionally Saint Sebastian Outside the Walls. Pope John Paul II replaced St. Sebastian with the Sanctuary of the Madonna of Divine Love for the jubilee year of 2000



Photo taken from the Times of Malta online newspaper.

New President for Malta

Dr. George Abela will take the oath of Office as President of Malta today at noon in a special sitting of Parliament in the Grand council chamber of the President's Palace. George Abela will be the eighth President of the Republic of Malta.