About this festa

Marsaxlokk is Malta's main fishing village, built around a spectacular bay in the southeast of the island where brightly painted traditional fishing boats called luzzijiet bob on the water year round. The Sunday fish market is one of the most visited attractions in Malta. The festa of Our Lady of Pompei in August is celebrated with the warmth of a genuine working fishing community, where the boats in the harbour are decorated for the occasion and the procession winds through streets that still smell of the sea. Our Lady of Pompei is venerated through a devotion that originated in the Italian city of Pompei in 1875, centred on a painting of the Rosary that became the focus of miraculous cures. The devotion spread rapidly through the Italian diaspora and maritime communities, making it a fitting dedication for a parish in Malta's most famous fishing village.