The recently renovated Penny Black bar at the Victoria Hotel, The Palace’s sister Hotel has been given a new lease of life.
Dark wood furniture, buttoned Chesterfields sofas and the traditional pub décor add to the lively atmosphere at the Penny Black bar as well as adding authenticity to the venue. The bar itself is lined with bar stools and offers a range of beers.
Apart from an extensive drinks list, the Penny Black’s menu offers a wide variety of taste including deep pan pizza and pasta, to suit any palate with pub fare. Homemade Burgers, Bangers and Mash and the Fish n’ Chips will transcend its clients into an authentic British Pub.
There are 2 TVs in the bar allowing customers ample viewing pleasure including all live major sports events. Penny Black bar is ideal if one is looking for a unique place to enjoy a glass of wine or simply if one is an expatriate and want to visit somewhere familiar.

One of these gems to be discovered is the Citadel in Victoria. Archaeological remains revealed that this promontory was already inhabited during Roman times. Subsequently, during the Medieval era, the castrum, as it was referred to at the time, formed with Rabat the main proper settlement of Gozo. It is mentioned in documents as from around 1240AD and was the only defence the Gozitans could enjoy, up till additions (albeit limited) by the Knights of St John in the 16^th century.

In fact, the Knights of St John, who came to the Maltese Islands in 1530, were not really interested in the small island of Gozo. At first, anything outside the harbour area was too far away from their headquarters to merit defence or building projects. Eventually this started to change and we know that by the late 16^th and early 17^th centuries modernizing works started on the citadel which included building more fortifications as well as equipping the defenders stationed there with more weapons and ammunition.

Nowadays the citadel has two entrances. The largest one which leads to the open space in front of the cathedral was opened in the twentieth century.  The original entrance is situated further to the right and is much smaller, leading the visitor to a narrow street and a building with a highly ornate balcony. This seventeenth century building, Casa Bondi, houses the Gozo Museum of Archaeology managed by Heritage Malta. Exhibited are archaeological artefacts from all over the island of Gozo, from prehistoric times up to the early modern period.  Other interesting museums set up within the walls of the citadel include the Museum of Natural Science and the Folklore Museum (both managed by Heritage Malta). The cathedral also deserves a visit, especially due to the trompe l’oeil by Antonio Pippi which creates the illusion of a dome in a fantastic manner.

It is still a special experience even if one opts to just walk along the fortification walls and through the narrow streets of the city, encountering particular architectural features, some of which reflect the Arab occupation of the island. The area at the very back of the city is particularly fascinating as it is truly a ruin of the medieval city, still unexcavated and hiding so much information about the mysterious medieval era.  One hopes that future excavation works in the area will reveal details about the history of the Gozo citadel to add to the intriguing timeline of the Island.

If you would like to spend a day in Gozo and visit the Citadel, it is necessary to reach the Cirkewwa harbour and catch a ferry to Gozo’s Mgarr harbour. There are regular busses from Qawra (Seashells Resort at Suncrest) and St. Paul’s Bay to Cirkewwa. From Mgarr it is easy to reach Victoria/Rabat using public transport. From Victoria/Rabat one simply walks up towards the fortified promontory overlooking the market area (referred to by locals as it-Tokk).

References and further reading

Malta – The Medieval Millenium: A “Malta’s Living Heritage” publication, written by Charles Dalli (2006)

Malta  – The Order of St John:  A “Malta’s Living Heritage” publication, written by Thomas Freller (2010)

The official website for the Gozo Cathedral Parish: www.gozocathedral.org.mt

Heritage Malta’s official website: www.heritagemalta.org

For reservations, call now on 21 333 444.  Complimentary parking is also provided.

Filed under: City Hotels, Wine & Dine Tagged: Hotels Malta, TemptAsian Restaurant Malta, The Palace Malta ]]> http://axhotelsmalta.wordpress.com/2012/02/12/taste-asia-in-all-its-elements/feed/ 0 0.000000 0.000000 0.000000 0.000000 Temptasian2 axhotelsmalta images TA+ DEFINITIVE(LY) GOOD GUIDE Microsoft Word - Water.doc http://axhotelsmalta.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/sean-azzopardi-wins-mipp-competition-sponsored-by-ax-hotels/ http://axhotelsmalta.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/sean-azzopardi-wins-mipp-competition-sponsored-by-ax-hotels/#comments Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:01:43 +0000 AXHotels Malta Blog http://axhotelsmalta.wordpress.com/?p=2000 Continue reading »]]> Click to view slideshow.The Malta Institute of Professional Photography (MIPP) recently announced the winner of its photo shoot competition, which focused on the AX Hotels properties. The Palace, Victoria Hotel and Palazzo Capua have signed a sponsorship agreement with the MIPP to hold a photo competition for members of the Institute. The participants were asked to unleash their talent and creativity to capture images of AX Hotels, Malta’s leading hotels. The winner is Sean Azzopardi and Joe Herbert placed second. On her part, Rosalie Spiteri won the single image competition; Martin Agius and Rosalie Micallef placed joint-second. In its support for the MIPP Photography Competition, AX Hotels not only provided the venue but also sponsored a range of great prizes for the winners and runner-ups in the different categories. These prizes included a voucher of €700 worth of products and services provided by AX Hotels for the participant who won 1st Place for Best Portfolio and a similar voucher of €400 for the participant who achieved the 2nd Place in the same category. On the other hand, the participants who achieved 1st and 2nd Place for Best Image received €200 and €100 worth of products and services provided by AX Hotels respectively. Speaking about this latest cultural initiative by Malta’s leading Hospitality Group, Kevin Callus, Hotel Manager at The Palace, Victoria Hotel and Palazzo Capua said: “We have a long tradition of supporting local talent in various spheres. Indeed, the MIPP Photography Competition followed the immensely successful Vodafone Upcoming Artist Competition, which were hosted at The Palace. Also, here at The Palace we set up monthly art exhibitions through which we regularly support the creativity and vision of local artists.”

Discover Malta’s Carnival, which goes back hundreds of years. We find that already in the 16th century a jousting tournament was held as part of the celebrations. Maltese folk used to celebrate Carnival as did the Knights of St. Johnas from one week prior and up to Ash Wednesday. The origin of the name Carnival derives from the Italian phrase ‘Carne vale’, which means literally ‘meat is allowed’ due to the fact that during the forty days of lent, the consumption of meat was forbidden according to Roman Catholic religion. Therefore, Carnival was to be celebrated just prior to the fasting period in Roman Catholic countries.

Nowadays, Carnival is celebrated in numerous towns and villages but especially in Valletta, Floriana and Nadur Gozo. It is indeed a kind of explosion of colour in the way of decorated floats and costumes. Carnival serves also as means of merriment and a time when individuals also dress up in all sorts of weird or funny costume and just go out in the streets to join the fray.

The Malta Council for Culture and the Arts organise the official Carnival festivities that take place in Valletta from Friday until the following Tuesday. Some of the events are held inside an enclosure and may be attended against a nominal fee. On the last day, a big Carnival defile ends in the main street of Floriana with a fireworks display.

In Gozo, the Nadur Local Council organises what originally started out as an exclusively individualistic and spontaneously acted Carnival celebration that verged on the weird, hilarious and the macabre. Even though today the Nadur Carnival has become more structured, it is still true to its origins. The individual spontaneity which is still alive and kicking runs parallel to other organised events such as local band performances on stage that are held in the town’s square. These events are free of charge.

All the above vie with numerous private programmes organised by promoters indoors. Carnival is definitely worth participating in when in Malta and Gozo.

Malta International Fireworks Festival – 29.04.2012 – 30.04.2012

Mdina Grand Prix 2012 – 11/10/2012 – 14/10/2012

Mdina Grand Prix 2012, the popular classic car street race, now established as a staple of Malta’s national events calendar. Mdina Grand Prix conjures up images of stunning classic cars, international celebrity drivers, glamorous stars, global brand owners and visiting journalists. The Valletta Grand Prix Foundation have set the 11th and 14th October 2012 as the dates for the 2012 Mdina Grand Prix. The 2 days of racing will now be extended to 4 days of activities given the quality of the Mdina venue and racetrack, culminating on Sunday October 14, 2012.
The 2012 Mdina Grand Prix and Classic Car Event organised by the Valletta Grand Prix Foundation will feature races and exhibitions of historic and classic cars and incorporates a racetrack stretching from Mdina through Marfa and into Rabat, over a distance of 2.2 kilometres. This street race is the only one of its kind in this part of the Mediterranean and attracted huge crowds of local and international visitors in 2011 to the racing heart of Malta. The Mdina Grand Prix, is a classic car event like no other with action, drama and full speed to thrill the large crowds.
The 2012 event will include the Concours d’Elegance where all qualifying cars will be on display for the enjoyment of the public. The main timed sprint runs and demonstration runs will be held throughout Saturday and Sunday.