Cruise-liners

The biggest harbor in Malta is known as the Grand Harbor. It was the scene of a Great Siege the Knights of Malta fought against the Turks and the Ottoman Empire in 1565. It was the scene of many battleships coming into Malta during World War II, the most important among them the SS Ohio, part of the Operation Pedestal, which brought food, relief and salvation to many thousands of people starving on August 15, 1942, including my own parents, still teenagers at that time. Many US aircraft-carriers have berthed in the harbor, but today it is the scene of scores of cruise-liners coming in every day with tourists, arriving in the early morning and leaving in the late evening. 

These photos taken over the past few years during my visits to Malta show various cruise-liners berthing at the shore, while tourists are either basking in the warm sun near the pool on deck, or walking around Valletta, the capital, visiting churches and museums, or simply shopping for the many tempting souvenirs. Three families from my parishioners will be visiting Malta on these cruise-liners, the Sweeneys, on their way soon, and the Gralls and Goffs, heading there in the fall.