What happens during Easter
Easter is full of activities on Gozo. Local people and also residents from the main island of Malta travel to Gozo for Easter. Processions, reenactments, and Easter food are quite popular.
Gozo, as an Easter destination, has become popular in recent years. International visitors spend the Holy Week on the island. Even those of different religion, travel to Gozo to see our way of celebrating Easter. It is important to accept diversity in all aspects and learn different customs and traditions while travelling.
Palm Sunday marks the beginning of the Holy Week. It symbolize the day that Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. Celebration at the church is popular and expect some crowd. People will have palm leaves in hands as the tradition dictates.
Processions take place in almost all villages around Gozo. Processions take place on different days, like the one of Our Lady of Sorrows, in which it is a local custom to walk after the statue with bare feet.
One of the best processions to attend is the one on Good Friday. Many different statues are exhibited during this procession. Participation from the village residents is strong. Each and every person wears his own costume representing a biblical character. Others walk along the procession with chains tied to their feet. This is done for a grace that they would have received from a Saint.
Maundy Thursday brings a lot of movement in the late evening and at night. The local churches remain open all night long and are transformed with special decoration just for this particular evening. The interior of the church will be in the dark except for one place where Christ sepulchre will be found. The heavily decorated corner would include flowers as well as fragrant with balm and incense. It is tradition to visit and pray at 7 different churches during this evening before the next sunrise.
The last procession will be on Easter Sunday depicting the Risen Christ. Jesus would be risen from death and goes to heaven. This particular procession takes a positive note and is celebrated with great joy. In some villages, at the end of the procession the statue is raced along the street and enters the church. Although it is a nice spectacle to witness….sometimes accidents happen.
Exhibitions
Many exhibitions will be on display in various locations. Local artist in sculpting and paintings will show their talent in arts about Easter and about the stations of the cross. Some exhibitions are brought up by organisations, while others are from private individuals.
Some villages organize pageants in the church for young adolescents. In Victoria, a yearly pageant takes place along the streets. The professional organization of this pageant gathered so much fame that it is attended by people from all over the island.
Opposite Ta’ Pinu Church you will find t’Ghammar Hill. Along the steep winding route, there are big statues of marble showing the stations of the cross. It is custom to walk up the hill, especially during this time of year.
Food and Sweets
During the Holy Week, many will refrain from consuming meat. Instead local vegetarian dishes are cooked. These would include cheese and pea pies, and dishes with artichokes and potatoes. Easter Sunday lunch is celebrated with family and friends, where meat dishes are prepared.
The most popular sweet for Easter are the Figolli. The almond taste sweet is simple to prepare, having two layers of sweet pastry with almond filling in between. It is a local custom that families bake their own Figolli and share them with family and friends.
Other sweets are the Apostle’s rings, and Kwarezimal. You ought to try some while visiting Gozo.
On Easter Sunday noon, an egg hunt is organized at Victoria’s main natural park, Villa Rundle. The park would be decorated for Easter and children can search for Easter chocolate eggs. In some villages local sweets are distributed to children, mainly after the procession with the statue of the Risen Christ.