MALTA AND GOZO 2
All photo's are from 2007
Two WW2 gun positions at the Grand harbour. My Grandfather served for three years in Malta during WW2 as a gunner, he manned the AA guns around the Grand harbour, so he may have used these positions?
The old Floriana barracks
The Siege Bell memorial to Malta and her allies war dead. It is rang every day
The war museum at Valletta showing the Gloster Sea Gladiatior N5520. Malta had three of these planes against the Italian air force in the first few weeks of WW2. They where called Faith, Hope and Charity. This is "Faith" the only survivor. Also pictured is the Jeep used by General Eisenhower
An AA Gun at the war museum
The George Cross awarded to Malta, and the Sign On The Parliment Buildings In Valletta
The church of St Marija Assunta in Mosta. On 9th April 1942 a German bomb crashed through the roof during a service, yet a disaster was avoided when the bomb failed to go off. The church is amazing and its dome is one of the largest in the world
The Mosta Dome. Count seven squares up from bottom right hand of photo and just to the left you will see where the bomb penetrated the dome. Also shown is a replica of the bomb
A land mine and sign at Salina. Notice the grooves in the side of the mine saft for the fuse wire
A Gun Position At The Tiny Harbour Of Weid Iz-Zurrieq, Close To The Blue Grotto
The Island Of Filfla, Used By The British For Artillery Practice in WW2
The underground war shelter at Vittoiosa. The Maltese dug these shelters to protect thmselves from the constant ariel bombardment. Pictures are the chapel and the hospital
Birth room and dormortories. It is a very humbling place to visit
A typical room in the shelters and the air raid wardens room
Pembroke barracks
British war graves at Pembroke Cemetery
Fortifications and Gardjola tower at Senglea and Fort St Angelo
Two views of Fort St Angelo
Upper Barakka gardens and Lascaris Bastion-Operations HQ
Siege Bell with lower Barakka gardens behind and upper Barakka gardens and Valletta waterfront
The Freedom Monument stands next to the quay where the last British troops left Malta in March 1979 aboard H.M.S London. Thus ending a 180 year British military presence on the island. The figures represent the Maltese bidding farewell to a British sailor
Looking down over Valletta towards the Grand Harbour entrance
Fungus Rock. A fungus, Fungus Gaulitanus, which grows on the rock had medicinal qualities and this fungus was used by the Knights of St. John. They valued the fungus so much that they guarded the island. A penalty of death was imposed on any one trying to steal the fungus
The Azure Window above and below the lagoon next to the Azure Window all on the island of Gozo
The Azure Window and the tiny chapel next to it, this is where I chose to light candles for my father and grandfather
A hot day in Gozo and the Ta'Pinu Basilica, visited by Pope John Paul II, who celebrated outside mass here in 1990
The prehistoric Ggantija temples in Gozo. Estimated to be 5,800 years old. One of the temples is the oldest stone structure in the world, predating Stonehenge and the Pyramids by hundreds of years
The old wash house in Fontana Gozo. It used the natural spring to wash the clothes. Amazingly it is still in use and one lady takes in washing at the font
A statue and the cave at Xlendi in Gozo
Gozo cathedral at the Citedal Rabat and cathedral cannons
St George's cathedral at Rabat in Gozo and its huge and brilliant doors
The island of Comino viewed from Gozo and from the Islands ferry
The Malta/Gozo ferry
WW2 memorial to the people of Gozo