As some of the lockdown restrictions start to be eased, and the weather begins to move through spring and hint at the hot summer to come, those residents who can are starting to clean down their yachts and take advantage of the open waters of the Mediterranean as a more relaxing way of maintaining social distance.
Of course, Birgu has always been a maritime city, and for parts of its history the Grand Harbour was one of the most important ports in Europe. This is reflected at the seaward end of the peninsula by the buildings from the era of the Knights of St. John which still line the waterfront: the Palaces of the General of the Galleys, the Captains of the Galleys, and the Superintendent of the Order’s Arsenal, as well as the Order’s Bakery and Treasury. Further along the creek is the Bakery of the British Royal Navy, which now houses the Malta Maritime Museum.
Nowadays the maritime presence on the water adjacent to these buildings is less historic. As well as the yachts of local people, berthed close to Dock One in Bormla, much of the creek accommodates a modern marina filled by yachts registered around the world. The combined wealth floating on the water is readily apparent, even without taking a look at the multi-million euro superyachts moored in the shadow of Fort St. Angelo.
The marina is, however, relatively new, only officially opened in 2005, and its presence has not managed to remove more typical Maltese boats, such as the traditional luzzu, or fishing boat.
Even though the luzzu is more characteristically found in places like Marsaxlokk, where fishing is a more significant industry, many can still be seen around Birgu, both on the water and on dry land.
The design of the luzzu was developed in the early 20thcentury and was based on Sicilian fishing boats. They are brightly painted in primary colours, and often have an eye painted on either side of the bow to ward off evil spirits. Nowadays the luzzu is considered a symbol of Malta, and is an important feature of the tourist industry. Benches in Marsaxlokk and elsewhere are painted in the luzzu colours, and I even have luzzu socks.
Whilst the luzzu is found in the waters off Birgu, it is not the most popular Maltese boat here. For this we have to look to the dgħajsa tal-pass, the traditional Maltese water taxi.
The dgħajsa has been used as a ferry in the Grand Harbour since the Knights of St. John built Valletta, although now they are typically powered by small outboard motors when they are used to taxi tourists between Valletta and the Cottonera.
Traditionally they would have been propelled by oars, as they still are in the two annual regattas, which celebrate Freedom Day on 31 March and Victory Day on 8 September. The original dgħajsa, used both as a water taxi and in the competitions would have had one man standing and using two oars, but the modern regattas tend to use lighter and faster variants. Built to strict specificiations, these either have two oars pulled by two people, one sitting and the other standing, or four oars and four people, two sitting and two standing.
Such is the importance of these regattas to the people of Birgu and other cities around the Cottonera, that a walk along the Vittoriosa waterfront towards Dock One will take you past the Bormla regatta club and many dgħajsa stored on trailers and waiting to be launched. If you walk the other way around the city at sea level, you will find the Birgu Regatta Club underneath the Belvedere, and looking across the creek you will see the Kalkara Regatta Club. Training sessions in the creeks and in the Grand Harbour are commonplace, particularly in the weeks immediately preceding the regattas.
In contrast to the luzzu, the craft of building the dgħajsa has not died out. As you pass through the inner gateway of the Couvre Porte, if you glance inside the doors to the workshop you will see a new dgħajsa being built by the Tunanu Boat Builders.
Much as I would love to be the proud owner of a dgħajsa, I cannot forget the advice of a friend and local resident: ‘rather than keep a boat yourself, it’s much better to keep a friend who has a boat’. My own trips across the Grand Harbour use the much more prosaic Valletta Ferry.
Introduced as a trial service in 2012 with a twelve-seat boat, the current catamaran was brought into service in 2015. (For more information on the history of the Grand Harbour ferries take a look at https://vassallohistory.wordpress.com/the-harbour-ferries-il-lanec-tal-pass/). For all its relative lack of romance compared to the dgħajsa, I can’t wait until lockdown is over and this ferry once again forms part of my commute to work.