Mġarr ix-Xini Bay

Brothers, we stand at the shore of a bay whose very name is a scar.

Xini — Ships

"Xini" means "ships." Not merchant ships. Not fishing boats. Those ships. On 26 July 1551, an Ottoman fleet under Sinan Pasha and the corsair Dragut attacked Gozo. The Citadel in Victoria fell after a brief siege. What followed, the Order remembers to this day. Approximately five thousand Gozitans — men, women, children, including Governor Gelatian de Sessa — were driven across the island to this bay. Here, on the pebble beach where tourists now spread their towels, they were loaded onto ships. The convoy departed on 30 July. Destination: Tripoli, then the slave markets of Constantinople. About forty elderly people remained on the island. Gozo was depopulated for years. The Order of Maltazar observes a minute of silence at every passage through this bay. Not because regulations demand it. Because some places demand it themselves.

Water from Stone (1897)

Three hundred years later, British engineer Osbert Chadwick noticed something strange: lush vegetation grew at the canyon floor. In a place where there should be no water. He ordered drilling. Found underground springs. In 1897, the Mġarr ix-Xini Pumping Station was built here — Gozo's first stable water supply installation. Powered by a coal-fired steam engine, it pumped water to villages across the island: Nadur, Ta' Ċenċ, Xewkija. Modernized in the 1920s (new engines), in 1949 (electric pumps), it operated until the late 1960s. Today it stands as a forgotten gem of industrial heritage. The Order suggests this is alchemy: extracting water from stone.

The Canyon Today

Today the bay is a diver's paradise. Caves at depths of 6 and 16 meters, with air pockets for surface recovery. Seahorses, pipefish, stargazer fish. Perfect for night diving thanks to its sheltered position. The water is so clear that Squire Bartholomew claims he could see the bottom and "it looked sad." The Commander told him to stop philosophizing and put on his fins. The canyon that swallowed five thousand souls now gives them back — as silence.