| Harbour Cruise | |
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On the 15th of June 2007, our school council worked very hard to organise an interesting harbour cruise for all our students and their parents alike. Our cruise left from Marsamxett Harbour, passed through Manoel island, Ta' Xbiex and Pieta'. We then sailed along the Floriana and Valletta lines, entered the Grand Harbour and headed towards the three cities, namely, Vittoriosa (Birgu), Senglea (Isla) and Cospicua (Bormla). We also caught a glimpse of Kalkara and its surrounding spectacular views. All of us were astonished with the beauty and history of our island. The different historical fortifications and towers of Malta could be seen and a detailed explanation was given by the well-informed guides. Below one finds several pictures taken during our cruise. So we invite you to have a look and appreciate the historical beauty of our Mediterranean island.
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| Students and parents boarding the boat. | |
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| Marsamxett Harbour: Manoel Island Yacht Yard (left) and the bomb disposal unit (right). | |
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Fort Manoel was built by the Knights of Malta. This fort has a pointed star formation and is thus known as a star fort. It has been badly damaged during the second world war. At present it is being restored and work is still being done on its main gate as shown above (right). |
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Lazzarett Hospital, situated at Marsamxett Harbour previously used as an isolation hospital (left). The Manoel Island Yacht Marina (right) has a capacity to berth about 400 yachts. |
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The black sailing boat in the photo above (left) named Black Pearl was used in the film Popye the Sailor Man. The filming was shot in Malta. Today this boat is used as a restaurant. On the right hand said is a picture of the Msida Yacht Marina. It consists of 15 pontoons providing berths for about 700 yachts. |
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These two photos show the historical fortifications along the Floriana lines. These were built during the 17th century so as to strengthen the island's defence. |
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Our boat is now heading out of Marsamxett Harbour and entering the Grand Harbour (left). Fort Saint Elmo is a star fortification in Valletta. It was built in 1552 by the Knights of Malta, then completely destroyed during the Great Siege of Malta (1565). Eventually it was rebuilt as shown in picture (right). |
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Above is the Valletta Waterfront (left). The Waterfront was recently restored. It consists of warehouses built by Grand Master Pinto. We continued our cruise heading towards Senglea, one of the three cities. The city walls of Senglea together with what is known as the Vedette may be seen above (right). Through the Vedette one has beautiful views of the Grand Harbour and Malta's capital city, Valletta. On the exterior walls of the Vedette, one finds the sculpture of an 'eye', 'ear' and 'fleur-de-lys'. |
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The 'fleur-de-lys' and the 'ear' can be viewed on the Vedette (left) in Senglea. On the opposite of Senglea we could see the picturesque views of Vittoriosa surrounded by its yacht marina (right). |
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