Summer has officially ended, which means so have most of the traditional Maltese feasts. But this year came about a little differently (thanks COVID-19), not to mention the pandemic has ruined and cancelled pretty much everything (besides my bills), and that includes the celebration of Maltese feasts.
And with that said, here are 5 things we did (and didn’t) miss about the traditional festas this year, because like anything else, Maltese Festas are some sort of a double-edged knife.
We Surely Missed…
The Food
If there’s one thing Maltese people absolutely love, it’s their food – and who can blame them? You can find pretty much everything at a Maltese feast; fresh donuts (that taste like heaven), burgers, hot dogs, nougat, candy floss, popcorn…basically anything that is delicious with that super-special ability to clog your arteries!
The Decorated Streets
Whenever a Maltese village has its feast, the streets and local church are decorated with colourful lights and grandeur décor, bringing in a certain liveliness to town, especially the embellished church inside and out. While some towns and villages gave us a hint, we missed the full-on festa decorations!
Cikcifogu – Giochi di Fuoco – Nar ta’ l-Art
No festa is complete without the traditional cikcifogu, aka mechanised ground fireworks. These are made up of contra-rotating mechanisms and structures that move inwards and outwards to create an illuminous show which typically takes place around midnight. Nothing compares to watching the cikcifogu whilst eating some freshly warm sugar donuts.
The Week-Long Party
Another festa “tradition” is the party feeling, and lots of it. A Maltese feast is normally celebrated across 5-6 days, and people dedicated to their hometown feast will take all of those days off from work and well, will drink, eat, and parade their way through the festa!
Watching the Fireworks
The art of fireworks is a much celebrated one here in Malta. There’s nothing quite like hanging out with your family or friends to realise the fireworks are on, so you go watch them from your roof or balcony as you watch the sky light up. What can I say? Everyone loves a good show…
…But We Definitely Didn’t Miss…
Road Closures and Annoying Diversions
Church ceremonies and marching are a staple to the Maltese feasts, but some roads must be closed for them to happen (and for the food vendors). This leads to the main square to be closed off and inaccessible, making parking way worse and daily routes longer (yippie!)
Loud Marches and Bands interrupting your lay-in
For many people, Sunday is a holy day – for me, I take sleeping in on a Sunday quite religiously myself if I’m honest… But there’s nothing worse than being woken up by symbols, drums, and trumpets on your most cherished lay-in day.
The Testing of the Fireworks
This goes hand in hand with the previous one, as fireworks are also tested throughout the day, further interrupting the precious time of sleep, and not to mention petrifying our pets.
The Ringing of the Bells
Okay, so clearly, Maltese feasts can get pretty damn noisy, so for the duration of your local festa, you will probably be woken up by a concoction of fireworks, marches, bands, and bells for about a week…
Confetti……EVERYWHERE!
As people drink and march their ways through, confetti are thrown around…but it will remain there for weeks to follow. Don’t get me wrong, most of it is cleaned up (and rightly so, as most towns don’t use biodegradable confetti yet), but somehow, you’ll still manage to spot one or two in the most random corners of your hometown.
What about YOU? What did YOU Miss, or Not Miss?
