Calling it a day... a very interesting one indeed!

Now that we were ready from lunch, we found ourselves in St. Paul's square once again and we decided to walk up to St.Agatha's catacombs. In the same street, we came across a lace store. We entered and found a middle-aged lady which immediately greeted us. She explained how the traditional lace and clothes are all hand-woven. Back in the days, the drapes used to be woven in the upper floor. From this shop we walked down the main street and to Triq l-Għerixiem where we were amused by the breathtaking while heading up to the Roman Villa. The mosaic pavements in the Domus Romana rank among the finest and oldest mosaic compositions from the western Mediterranean. We spent around half an hour going round and admiring the old remains on display. After that we went to relax on one of the benches in Howard Gardens which offers a nice view of the Mdina bastions as well as the newly inaugurated Mdina ditch. While walking through St.Paul's street in the morning, we saw a casual local band club which offers both lunch and dinner in a stunning atmosphere. Before going to Palazzo Xara for dinner we decided to have a look at the church next to it. Entering the building, one could hear perfect silence except for the footsteps of an old man who was going round the church and saying a prayer in front of some the statues which characterise this church. After admiring the artistic architecture and paintings which decorate the interior of the St.Joseph's parish we ended the day with a mouth-watering dish from Palazzo Xara as we chatted on this wonderful experience which the village of Rabat offers.

 

The Wignacourt Museum and Cafe

From the main street of Rabat we then crossed the pedestrian lights, walked to the other side of a small bridge and found ourselves in a small square. “In this small square you are in, there used to be several coffee shops during the World War II, and all of them managed to carry on with their business even during those difficult times”, a villager quickly mentioned. He also told us about a new museum which opened recently at the end of the road. We walked down the road next to it, on the right, which now leads to St.Paul’s church and met the owner of a confectionery which specialises in traditional nougat. He explained how the square in front of the church has changed and then he offered us to taste some of the traditional sweets he had on display.
We walked a few metres and in the corner we found the Wignacourt Cafe, which we learnt it hosts a museum, catacombs and World War II shelter. We went in and got really interested in the place as we started touring around. We got lost in the shelters, got a bit scared in the catacombs and admired the paintings in the upper floor. We got hungry by that time, so we sat down on a table in the yard inside the same building, to have a quick lunch.

Exploring the streets

We decided to roam around these old streets and we observed the versatility in each wooden door and balcony, which were all beautifully built many years ago. These streets offer a very interesting route which lead us to Triq ir-Rebħa. We entered in a small grocery store, unfortunately the owner has been in Malta for only a couple of years and hence it was difficult for him to recall some facts about Rabat. However he told us that the store was one of oldest grocery store in Rabat and we bet that the shelves were still in their original state, which really complimented the shop's ambient. we continued to walk up Triq ir-Rebħa and we entered a modern stationery, where we met two locals. They were very happy to share with us some information about this street and how it got its name. We then walked down a couple of stairs and found ourselves in the main street. This busy road includes a lot of shops, still the loud music coming from the fishmonger's shop can be heard very well, even from across the road! This happy-go-lucky middle-aged man does not reside in Rabat, still he only had good things to say about it, especially about its villagers. He told us, "The people who live here are the nicest you could find on the island, here you'll find people who will be willing to help you for sure!". He points to an old woman sitting on a chair in front of a 'pastizzeria' listening to her pocket radio which she holds closer to her ear. We got near her and asked her about how she saw Rabat change throughout the years, and she told us all about the washer's spring at the end of the road, and how women used to go to the spring to wash their clothes and since the water was always fresh, many filled their buckets for drinking.

Our first experience

The weather was not bright and sunny, but still our enthusiasm to explore Rabat was not going to be let down by the grey cloudy winter sky. We arrived in Rabat at about nine in the morning and we were craving coffee by that time. We decided to go to this traditional little bar, opposite the parking lot, known as "Serkin" with the villagers. As we entered, we were greeted by a loud atmosphere, many rushing in for a quick tea or coffee and a cheesecake while others spending the morning there discussing local affairs. A quick breakfast was enough to keep us going till lunch, so we set down and got 2 pea-cakes and two black coffees, which were served in the small typical glasses. Something that  we got to know from a local was that the parking area opposite the bar used to be a field, and in 1972, when a small earthquake hit the island people got out of their houses carrying all their money and televisions thinking that another earthquake was going to happen.

We then walked up the street and a small shop on the side of the road caught our attention. We went inside and found an old man wearing a vintage grey cardigan over a rolled up shirt. We asked him about his business and about that area in Rabat. He explained that this old ironmonger shop is 150 years old. He is the fourth generation in his family business, having his great grand father as the first ironmonger in Rabat. He showed us a vintage scale complete with its original measurements, which he still owns, although he now uses metric weights. He also mentioned that the streets opposite his shop are the oldest streets in Rabat. 

What we're up to

Hey, we are 2 students from MCAST Art & Design Institute in Malta. Following our design brief in the module for Design Communications in which we were asked by the Malta Tourism Authority to produce an Itinerary for a locality in Malta, we started off by choosing Rabat as a locality to work on. Rabat is mainly known amongst tourist just for the Roman Villa and St.Paul's Catacombs, however we thought that Rabat could be more widely explored, since it distinctively blends its history with today's culture. After doing some research, we thought we could give the opportunity to the tourist to experience Rabat in a different manner; from the eyes of its villagers. In our blog you can find our own journey through the streets of Rabat. 

Exploring the streets of Rabat on Vimeo.