We are delighted to welcome you to the Sixth Malta Regency Weekend, which will run from Friday the 27th to Sunday the 29th of April, 2018. Booking forms may be requested by mailing me, Nicky Bianchi, on villafort@gmail.com. Please indicate whether you prefer to pay in Euro or Pounds Sterling. If you haven’t already done so, you should secure your air tickets and accommodation as soon as possible. We recommend that you stay in or near to Valletta. Transport will be provided for any activities which do not take place in Valletta. Please let me know if any of your friends would like to be added to our mailing list.
Program of Activities
Friday 27th April, 2018
Building on the success of last year’s Wine Tasting experience, we’ve arranged a visit to Emmanuel Delicata, one of Malta’s leading wine producers. Delicata entered their first international wine competition in 1995, receiving four awards with five wines entered. Since then, Delicata has amassed well over 100 international medals and awards. These include Silver medals from the Concorso Enologico Internazionale in Verona, and the prestigious International Wine Challenge in London. At the Chardonnay du Monde in Burgundy, France, Delicata’s Chardonnay wines have received both Silver and Bronze medals, and at the home of Cabernet Sauvignon in Bordeaux France, Delicata’s Grand Vin de Hauteville won a Gold and a Silver at the International Challenge du Vin. The Delicata cellars are situated near the Grand Harbour docks. We will assemble, in modern clothes, in front of the Phoenicia Hotel which is just outside Valletta, at 1030. A coach will take us to Delicata, where we will enjoy a welcome drink of sparkling wine, learn about Delicata’s history and current production and taste another four wines, discussing their different characters and what makes them unique. A selection of canapés will be served during the wine tasting. This should be a lively and informative morning. At 1300 our coach will take us back to the Phoenicia, allowing time for a rest before the dance workshop.
The Dance Workshop will start at 1700, in the under croft of St Paul’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral, which has been completely refurbished. The door to the under croft is half way down the steps, which are the lower end of Old Theatre Street. Valerie Webster will be our caller and the music will be provided by Cuerdas String Quartet. Homemade lemonade and biscuits will be served in the break. Please arrive early, to allow yourself time to chat with friends. We would like to start the workshop on time.
At 2000, a buffet supper will be served at the De Robertis Restaurant on top of the Castille Hotel (easy walking distance), which has a stupendous vista over the Grand Harbour. There will be a large selection of salads, followed by a choice of pasta dishes. Bottled water is included but all other drinks, coffee and desserts must be paid for there and then.
By special request, we have a treat this year. Vincent Zammit, TV & radio presenter, author, lecturer and tourist guide, will lead us around the capital, seeing it as we have never seen it before and discovering its dark secrets, stories of murder, robberies from churches, executions and fraud carried out by important people. Many of you will be tired after the workshop but we really couldn’t fit it in any other time. Those who opt to go on the Dark Tour of Valletta will meet Vincent outside the Castille Hotel at 2230. The tour will end by midnight.
Saturday 28th April, 2018
At 0845 we will assemble, in Regency attire, at the Belvedere of the Upper Barrakka Gardens, to admire the view over the Grand Harbour and the old walled cities on the other side. We will be guided to Casa Rocca Piccola in Republic Street where we will divide into three groups, which will rotate so that everybody will experience each activity on offer.
There will be a tour of the historic Casa Rocca Piccola, still lived in by the Marquis de Piro and his family, and full of wonderful furniture, paintings and ornaments.
There will be a talk about Maltese late baroque/Regency costume and the opportunity to examine some of the extant garments in the collection (and which are not usually available to view).
There will also be a visit to the Oratory of the Blessed Sacrament (just across the street) to see the chapel and its fine paintings, silver, etc.
