International Fireworks Festival

The weekend started with public holiday in aid of May Day/Worker's Day celebrations.
Valletta had various outdoor concerts going on and the Grand Harbour hosted the first day of the International Fireworks Festival.
There were stalls selling food and drinks and we had a perfect view from the roof of the Deaf Club. There were even 'subtitles' - text was projected onto the bastions across the Grand Harbour.
On our way home we met some other students from the residence and went to Zmerc pub in Balzan before heading home.

EFSLI Spring School and Ta'Marija, Mosta

With colleagues from Finland and Greece at Ta'Marija

Ta'Marija's resident musicians

Last weekend I attended my first EFSLI (European Forum of Sign Language Interpreters) event - a Spring School held here in Malta where Kyra Pollitt, an extremely experienced and well-respected interpreter from the UK delivered a wealth of training relating to voiceover skills.

It was a fantastic opportunity to meet other sign language interpreters from all over Europe and to learn about how the profession is developing in different countries.

On the Saturday evening we went to Ta'Marija restaurant in Mosta (www.tamarija.com) for a sumptuous buffet of traditional Maltese fayre followed by dancing!

I'm already saving up for the next one and looking for an excuse to go back to Ta'Marija!

http://www.efsli.org/efsli/efslischools/

St Paul's Catacombs and Cannoli

On Saturday afternoon I visited St Paul's Catacombs in Rabat with my friend Jodi from the US. We just caught the last entrance at 4:30pm. Afterwards we went for a cup of tea bil lumi (with lemon) and cannoli (sweet ricotta filled-pastries) at a cafe in the village square.

Visitors from Sicily

District Governor Mattia with Mr George Vella the President of the Deaf Association (Malta), Perit Etienne Fenech President of Rotaract Malta La Valette and Rotaractors from across the district at the Deaf Association (Malta) in Lascaris Wharf, Valletta.

At Fusion 4 (Valletta)

Last weekend the District Governor and his team came down to Malta to visit the club. On Saturday night we went to 'Fusion 4' - an outstanding restaurant hidden in Valletta bastions and enjoyed a modern take on Maltese cuisine. The staff made us feel so welcome. There was a set menu with 3 choices per course but I ate:

Home made rabbit filled ravioli in a creamy Parmaggiano sauce.
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Oven roasted nori wrapped salmon fillet served with wasabi infused mashed potatoes
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Home made banoffee pie
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Coffee

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Gozitan Limoncello

I am already trying to think of an excuse to treat myself with another visit...

Do you fondue?

As the exam period is ending and the first semester of 2008/9 is drawing to a close, some of my fellow students (who came to Malta as Erasmus students for one semester) are packing and preparing to leave Malta.
Yesterday evening a large group of us went to 'Fra Giuseppe' a restaurant/wine bar close to Balzan church to enjoy a 'last supper' together. We ate various platters of cheese, cold meats, traditional Maltese dips and cheese fondue. This was enjoyed with a side order of cheesy jokes and picture taking: "Say cheese!"...

A Saturday in Gozo

One of the posts at Gigantija with 'May Peace Prevail On Earth' in many different languages.

On Saturday I was invited to join some friends from the European Student's Union (who were visiting Malta) on their day trip to Gozo.


After a smooth ferry crossing we went for some lunch at Marsalforn where I had some delicious swordfish. Our next stop was Gigantija - the megalithic temple at Xaghra which is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Just outside the gate to the temples was a stall run by Gozo's only certified organic farmer selling Gozitan honey and jams. I bought some honey with thyme in and some carob syrup which is used locally to soothe sore throats.


The weather was bright and dry despite it being January and the surrounding fields were lush and green. We rounded off the day with trek on horseback organised by the stables in Ghajnsielem where the owner kindly showed us his other animals and even allowed us to have a go at milking his sheep!