Marsaxlokk

After completing the three sites by the Tas Silg temple, we still had some extra time before our van was scheduled to come pick us up so we took the opportunity to walk down to the nearby fishing village of Marsaxlokk. It is a fairly small town but is mentioned in many of the guidebooks as a place to visit for the many colorful fishing boats and general fishing atmosphere there.

We were not disappointed. Once we got through the tents set up selling souvenirs to tourists, we saw the many colorful wooden boats in the harbor set against the beautiful blue sky and typical Maltese style architecture.

It was also fun to observe the fishermen at work, tending to their nets, painting their boats and going about their daily routine. Before we headed back up to the temple site, we stopped at a small café for coffee and cake. In addition to the tasty food, it provided a good opportunity to spend some time together just soaking in the peaceful atmosphere and reflecting on our time in Malta (which has been busy and amazing and sadly coming to end).

Valletta - A Cultural Experience

As part of Jane’s last day in Malta, we spent the morning exploring St. John’s Co-cathedral in Valletta and briefly around the city. St. John’s Co-cathedral is dedicated to St. John the Baptist and was originally commissioned in 1572. It has gone through a number of redecorations and restorations (particularly after bombing attacks in WWII) but there is certainly a lot of history to soak up among the highly ornate walls.

As part of the admission, we were given audio guides that explained a lot of the history and significance of different parts of the church, which definitely helped in appreciating the smaller details. There was also a museum part with old church robes, choir books, tapestries and several famous paintings, including 'Salome with the Head of John the Baptist' by Caravaggio. I found it particularly interesting to see the old choir books with a very different method of depicting the musical notes and rhythms than I am used to seeing. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed in that area though. Below is a view of the highly decorated front of the church.

Afterward, we took some time to wander around Valletta briefly. It's a very interesting city and I love the look of all the narrow streets and old buildings.

Another view of Valletta below. The gates open up to the harbor and a spectacular view across the water.

As we were leaving the city to catch a bus to our next destination, we found the entrance somewhat blocked by a group demonstrating for peace in Libya. It was a fairly small group and their demonstrations were not wild or dangerous, but there were Maltese police there just in case to watch over the event. It was interesting to witness a current event play out firsthand as opposed to just reading it all in the news. A link to an article about it: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110224/local/anti-gaddafi-demonstration-set-for-saturday-in-valletta

Karnival ta Malta

We were fortunate enough to be in Malta for Carnival (il-Karnival ta' Malta in Maltese). Carnival is a period of festivities before Lent and is most common among Roman Catholic communities. According to one of the people we talked with here, the Carnival festivities in Malta are the 5th largest in the world. Pretty impressive for such a small country. During Carnival, there are parades with colorful floats, dance events, various booths set up and many people dressed in costume.

Valletta (the capital of Malta) has one of the bigger carnival festivals in Malta so we made our way there on the old buses. Upon arrival near Valletta, we noticed lots of very brightly colored floats by the entrance to the city in preparation for the big parade that evening. Our group wandered around the town some, taking in all the sites and interesting costumes and stopped at a restaurant for an early dinner. We decided to try some traditional Maltese food including rabbit. I only tried a small piece, but we all agreed that it was not that different tasting than other meats like turkey or pork. It was interesting to see the whole chest cavity and some of the internal organs though.

After our meal, we watched the parade briefly as it began to pass by. All of the floats (and a number of the costumes as well) were bright neon colors and it was interesting to see, although definitely not what I was expecting initially.

Our group split up and continued exploring around Valletta. We talked for a while with several guys who had an adorable puppy. They were very friendly and offered a diverse perspective -- one was from France, another from Spain, another from England, and the puppy was from Malta. We took turns holding the puppy and listened to their stories and advice about things to see and places to go.

We finished our evening adventures with some more exploration of Valletta including sitting in on part of a Catholic church service, trying some Maltese desserts at a small cafe that was recommended to us, and more observation of the Carnival parade. Overall, a very full evening and an interesting insight into Maltese culture.

Mmm... Rabbit Season!

After hearing of some of the local dishes, some of the group were very excited to try one in particular: Rabbit. Figuring this is an opportunity that very few Americans will have in their lifetime Jeff, Tyler, Jane, and I all decided to try it while in Valletta yesterday for lunch. Not knowing what to really expect, we were served almost an entire rabbit cut into several pieces (including the lungs, heart, and liver) in a thick, brown sauce. Jeff immediately dug in with both hands and cleaned the bones like he hadn't eaten in months (and might have eaten a couple of the bones as well). Tyler joined suit. I held out for a little while, but my knife and fork did not handle the small frame of the rabbit very well, so I caved in and started using my fingers for eating like my companions had. At first the rabbit seemed rather meatless, but once passed the ribs I realized my mistake. It took a few bites for me figure out the taste, but I eventually got it. The rabbit actually tasted a lot like pork to me. It was a very tasty lunch, and although I was not a fan of the organs I would definitely try it again.

I once heard of an ancient legend that long ago Timmy Gambin smuggled rabbits to Malta in his beard in order to feed the island.

Taste of Maltese Culture

We had our first set of cistern explorations at Gomerino Palace on Tuesday. While waiting to get into the area though, we got a chance to walk down the road and explore a little. In addition to the beautiful landscape and lots of old rock walls and structures, we met an elderly Maltese man who invited us into his garden to show us the statue of St. Paul we had seen from outside earlier.

Beautiful Maltese countryside. There were walls like this all over

Lots of beautiful flowers in bloom and no shortage of interesting buildings.

Shrine/statue of St. Paul in the Maltese persons garden. He saw some of us looking over the low, stone fence and he invited us into his garden to get a better look. Most of the group went to Gomerino to go look at the cisterns as we had just got access to the site, but Brig and I stayed behind briefly to see what the guy had to share.

Side of the shrine. There is a small door (can be seen here somewhat) which leads inside to a small circular room

Inside there were several shelves of religious items set up. It was very interesting to see and brought to mind the statistics we had learned about the large religious presence in Malta.

Talking to the Maltese man. He was very nice but spoke next to no Engligh (only Maltese). It made communication a little hard but with some hand gestures and a charades-like guessing of meanings, we were able to understand the general idea. It was great to meet some of the locals already and it was encouraging to be treated so nicely by someone who was a complete stranger not long before.

Reading Response #1

Brig Bagley

Reading Response #1

Engineering in the United States has a very distinct image: white collar, male, smart, technology, and innovation are all terms that often go synonymously with the term engineering. The process of engineering also has a well defined sequence of actions: see a problem or need in society or in an item, find a better solution, test the solution and throw it out into the public, repeat. To those of us in the United States, it is almost accepted that all of these terms and sequences are true for the majority of engineers and engineering in general. Few, if any, realize that engineering does not mean the same thing around the world. In fact the different views of engineers across the world differ so much that some may not even consider the other view to be engineering at all. Because of the differing perspectives of engineering, it is imperative that engineers are aware of the conflicts between cultures to be successful. In addition, engineering must not be labeled or categorized for certain types of people, backgrounds, or even defined as one distinct and particular process.

Engineering has a very bare minimum of universal ground. Although the perspectives may be different, engineers in near all countries are looking to better the world. Needless to say, nearly all professions hope to better the world. This makes engineering seem as uniform as the countries of the world. But it is true. According to the article, “The Globally Competent Engineer: Working Effectively with People Who Define Problems Differently,” by Downey and others, “engaging ways of thinking and understanding that differ from your own can refer either to ways of solving or of defining problem” (2). The very core of engineering depends on how people define problems and identify solutions to those problems. If engineers of differing cultures cannot agree on whether a problem is a problem, or determine if a solution is a solution, how can we expect any progress? Engineers must be aware of certain cultural differences to maintain common ground as well as respect the differing needs within that culture.

Society (especially in the United States) often labels every part of life and puts images on top of all aspects of the world. Women are refined and classy. Men are strong and dominant. Nurses are female assistants to doctors. Engineers are white-collar men. We as human beings are very aware of their social status and where they lie in all of these labels. We are also aware of where we fit into these patterns, and where we do not. As expected, we tend to move towards the labels that society associates with us. According to Lucena, “dominant images create expectations about how individuals in that location are supposed to act or behave” (5). Why would someone try to swim against the current? It’s much easier to go along with the direction things are going. Because of this mindset, the diversity and individuality that could benefit all of these different aspects of life is lost. To overcome this loss, it is imperative that people, (and in our case specifically, engineers), remove the social labels and barriers that confine the possibilities within the realm of engineering.