epostcards from Europe

The Grandmaster's Palace is found in Valletta and was built in 1574. Today it is being used as the office of the President of Malta. The architect of this palace was Girolomo Cassar. It's exterior design is plain but the interior is very well decorated with affrescos, sculptures and tapestries. The palace also houses the armoury, rooms with an exhibition of the various weapons and armours used through history. by Manuel and Nicholas Photo by Ms. Jeannette:

The Grand H arbour is one of the largest natural harbours in Europe. In this harbour the Great S ieg e of Malta took place way back in 1565. In the outer area, one finds the capital city of Malta, Valletta and the three cities : Senglea, Cospicua and Vittoriosa. In the inner harbour area we find Marsa and Corradino, whereby the ex - Malta ship building and Palumbo shipyard reside. During World War II this harbour was badly bombarded by the Italians and Germans since Malta was a base of the English Navy. by Craig

St. John's Co Cathedral is located in St John's Street, Valletta. It is dedicated to St. John the Baptist. The architect is Ġlormu Cassar. It is very plain on the outside but on the i nside it is full of works of art. One of the most famous paintings is the beheading of St John himself by Caravaggio. The ceiling was also painted by Mattia Preti. by Amy St. John's Co-Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Valletta, Malta. It was built by the Knights of Malta. Grand Master Jean de la Cassiere made it the main church of the Order Of the Knights Hospitallier of St John. The Church was designed by the Maltese architect Glormu Cassar. by Lucas S

The Upper Barrakka Gardens are a public garden in Valletta overlooking the Grand Harbour. Their entrance is very near to the Auberge de Castille. It consists of two tiers within the bastion. The lower tier contains the Saluting Battery which is today used for re-enactments. The terrace area was built to offer recreation to the knights. The gardens are full of monuments and statues. From the upper terrace there is a beautiful view of the Grand Harbour, including the Three Cities. By Ayden and Matteo

Castille P alace is one of the most important buildings in Valletta , close to the Upper Barakka Garden s . It was built in 1574 for the knights of St John from Portugal and Spain. It was redecorated in 1744 by Grandmaster Pinto (adding his bust on the door) and the auberge became bigger and more beautifu l . It is linked to the Auberge of Italy with an underground tunnel. Nowadays it is used as the office of the P rime M inister of Malta. by Andre Photo by Colin: Photos by Ms. Jeannette:

Jean De Valette was born on 4th February 1495 and died on 21st August 1568. His full name was Jean Parisot de Valette. He was also a French nobleman. He joined the Order when he was 20 years old in around 1514 and he never returned to France  or his family estates from that day on.He fought and successfully won over the Turks at the great Siege of Malta in 1565. At the time of the siege he was 70 years old. De Valette has been referred to as one who never broke his oath. After the Great Siege he started the construction of the new city of Valletta in 1566. The monument of Jean de Valette A few metres away from the entrance of the capital city there is a square called Pjazza Jean de Valette. The Grand master's monument is standing right in the centre. The statue was created by the local sculptor Joseph Chetchuti to commemorate the man who has founded this city. By Lukas and Alexey Photo by Alexey

In 1873 the old Royal Opera House was built in 1866 but was damaged by fire in 1873. It was restored in 1877 but in 1942, during the World War 2, it was hit from the air by the Germans and was destroyed. After several years of being abandoned, the theatre is now functioning again as an open-air theatre. Today it is referred to as the 'Teatru Mwaqqa'' (the fallen theatre). Nowadays, the public goes to the theatre to watch a variety of local operas or other performances.                                By Kamelia Falzon Photos by William:  Photo by Ms. Jeannette:

The Parliament is located in Valletta. The parliament is a place were all the members of the parliament meet and make the laws. The cost to build this parliament building was 90 million euros. The architect was Renzo Piano. The opening of the parliament was 4th May 2015. by Jade B The new Parliament is a located in the capital city of Malta. It is found in Republic Street near the Valletta City gate. The Pairlament is used for meetings about the Laws of Malta. In  the olden days the Parliament used to meet in the Grandmaster's palace which is also located in Valletta. by Neil Photo by Craig: Photo by Ms. Jeannette: 

Valletta is a city surrounded by bastions. They were used to protect Valetta from the enemies like the T urks. The b a stions where cut in the rocks so when enemies tried to go in they couldn't. Now the b a stions are there but we don't need them because we don't have war any more. They are very high and massive and so they were impossible to climb.  By Mae and Aiden Valletta (The capital city of Malta) is surrounded with large huge walls (Bastions). These fortifications were built in 1565 by the knights of Malta and we're founded by Grand Master Jean De Vallette. These huge buildings or defensive walls were built to protect the capital city from any invasion by the enemies. Valletta's bastions are considered as the most important fortifications of Malta and they are also listed on the UNESCOs world heritage sights. by Miguel

Today’s main city gate is the 5th gate . It was built in 2014.   The 1st gate was build by the Knights of St. John in 1569 . It was called Porta San Giorgio. The 2nd gate was built in 1633 and it was called Porta Reale. T hen the gate was demolished in 1853 since it was too small and had to be widened. The 3rd gate was built by the British Rule and was called Kingsway . This gate was bom b ed during World War II and it was slightly damaged. The statues of L'Isle-Adam (the first GrandMaster in Malta) and De Valette (the Grandmaster who started the building of this city) were destroyed during th e s e attack s . The last fortified gate was demolished in 1964 and replaced by a Futurist gate designed by Alziro Bergonzo. This was very plain and had a street running above it. This gate was demolished in 2011, and it was replaced by the present gate designed by Renzo Piano . It was completed in 2014.              ...

The Triton Fountain is found exactly before you enter Valletta. It is next to the City Gate . It was designed and built between 1952 and 1959 by sculptor Chevalier Vincent Apap and draughtsman Victor Anastasi .   The fountain consists of three bronze figures of Tritons holding up a platter. Two of the Tritons are sitting, while the third one is kneeling. If you look at the fountain from the City Gate you will be able to see all the triton’s faces. In 2017 this fountain was dismantled for restoration. The bronze statues were sent to Florence, Italy to be cleaned whilst the base of the fountain was restored by a company from Rome. A new pump room was built too. The restored Triton figures were sent back to Malta and reinstalled in August 2017, and the surrounding square was also renovated in time for the kick off of Valletta 18 European Capital of Culture. By Jacob & Nicholas

This is my Christmas tree. I like to have a big Christmas tree and a white one. I also like to decorate my house in Christmas decorations like a snow man.

In Malta we have a lot of traditions and these are two of them the Nativity cribs and the vetches.The Maltese usually build the Nativity crib with cardboard or paper but the big ones are usually build with rocks and real people stay in there and they represent the Holy family an others.Usually people go and see them.We put the vetches near the small nativity crib.Before, we put seeds in soil or cotton wool  and put it in somewhere dark like in a cupboard.

These are the most traditional decorations in Christmas called the Cribs. These cribs are handmade. To do a crib you will need    paper, small statues and animal toys that were present when Jesus was born. These are called the Holy   Family. This are shown in houses. People normally puts them in window sills. Everyone makes a handmade crib in December so they keep them till Christmas time is over.

Some traditions in Malta are to light up the streets.They even light up churches. We also do the Sermon of the child where a chosen boy or girl which replace the priest. After that we also do the Midnghit Mass.

In Malta we decorate a Christmas Tree, but this is not a Maltese tradition. The Christmas tree is a Christmas tradition that started in German in the 16 th Century. They used to build pyramids of wood and decorate them with grass and candles. Once there was a man who was going through the forest and when he saw the stars shining through the trees he wanted to reproduce this scene at home to be appreciated by the whole family. So he put a tree in his hall and decorated the branches with candles.

The Maltese Christmas street lights are very nice, the big building in the picture is in Valleta. For me my favorite decorations is in Paola. There are a lot of decorations in every city in Malta.

This is the Maltese traditional Christmas food. They are called imqaret. Imqarret is made with pasrty and dates.