INTERVIEW WITH ANNE MONSERRAT

Charmaine Attard goes down memory lane and talks to the widow of the late celebrated author Nicholas Monserrat, famous for The Cruel Sea and The Kapillan of Malta. A former journalist of the Daily Mail, currently on the board of St. James Cavalier, she is a great advocate of Gozo, and a very kind hearted and generous person. Anne has been living in Gozo since 1969, in a comfortable house in St. Lawrence, with a large picture-window overlooking her gardens.

Q: Who discovered Gozo first, you or your husband?

A: We came to live in Gozo because both my husband and I liked the idea of living in a small island.  Although my husband was in the navy in the war, he did not actually come to Malta – he was mainly on the Atlantic convoys. The history of Malta is known all over the world and we thought we would come and have a look at it. We were then living in Guernsey – one of the Channel Islands off the coast of England.

Q: What was the deciding factor for living in Gozo, rather than Malta?

A: We thought Malta was too big, there were too many people.  Someone told us that there was another, much smaller island called Gozo – but so small, you could not possibly live there.  A week later we came and decided it was just what we were looking for! We fell in love with it.

 Q: How easy was it to integrate into the Gozitan society?

A: It was extremely easy! We did really wonder if they would like us here as there were not many foreigners then.

Q: Did you experience any cultural shocks, migrating from a large country to a small village, in a small island?

A: No, as it was just exactly what we were looking for and never thought we’d find.

Q: What do you miss from your life before you migrated?

A: I cannot say I miss anything, as there is really everything I want here. When we first came it was certainly not the same. For instance, we wondered where we could go shopping, because most of the shops were in Victoria, and they were really nothing more than ground floors of old houses with big wooden doors, looking like warehouses.  We thought everyone is eating so there must be somewhere we can get food from. 

Q: What major differences do you see between Gozo of 1969 and how it is now?

A: It was very simple and quiet, but we loved it. It was an extremely poor island too.  We hardly had electricity, but it was very beautiful and peaceful with donkeys and carts a common occurrence in the streets, of which you do not see many anymore. 

Before, with a little breeze all the electricity would shut off.  The wires were artistically draped around everything. You had to be sure that candles and paraffin lamps were always handy.  It was very hard but no one knew anything else. 

There was a wonderful old woman in her nineties, just up the road, who died a few years ago. She had a well and fields, and she dressed like something from an illustration for a children’s book with seven petticoats, a scarf around her head. She looked after herself completely and still pulled the water from the well. Very picturesque and lovely. There still was the village pump when we came here, where we used to get drinking water from.

However, now it is much easier to live of course, although I miss the simplicity… but you cannot have that forever or the world would just pass you by!  I think that Gozo is a beautiful island… yes, there still are so many parts of it that have not been touched.  One can feel its ancient history. 

Q: What bothers you most in this small island?

A: There is nothing which bothers me in Gozo… not even the flies!

Q: What do you think of the Maltese language or the Gozitan dialect? Did you learn any words or phrases during the years you've been living here?

A: I did try very hard to learn Maltese; however, I did not get anywhere.  Everyone has a different dialect and every time I used to open my mouth, they used to tell me “you don’t say it like that”. Then I go to another village and they say the same; another village and they say “no, we use a different word”.  It does amaze me now because there were some people who could not speak any English.

In Maltese, I know how to say bongu!  I recall an interesting experience when we first came here.  There was a man with a donkey and cart on the main road to Victoria.  We stopped and very carefully asked, “Could you please tell us the way to Xaghra?” He replied in perfect English, “Yes, you take the first bleedin’ little lane to the right, up the bugger of a hill.”  He had just come back from Australia.  We came to Gozo at a time when many immigrants were returning, so lots of people had learnt English in Australia. Probably, if it had been ten years earlier, we might have had more problems.  Moreover, people like the chemist and the banking people spoke English as well as anyone in England.

Q: What do you think of the Gozitans?

A: I think that they are wonderful.  They are very enterprising, and the people in this village are particularly enterprising.  They had Amateur Dramatics during the Second World War – wonderful pageants. I think in every village there are people who help in anything going on within the community. It is a very good, supportive thing. 

Q: What made you grow fond of Gozo?

A: The island itself made me grow fond of it.  It is extremely beautiful, and although it is so small, it has got everything you need including this vast area of undeveloped  scenery, which I hope will last longer, and the cliffs, the rocks, and the history of it.  Walking around one can feel its history… It is a good size; plenty of space; but at the same time it is one community.

Q: Are you interested in the cultural events and happenings in Gozo?

A: I like the music in this small island, and I do not know where it all comes from – all kinds of singers and some really top class opera singers. St George’s Basilica put on this huge Music Festival lasting a month and a half, bringing in top people from all over the world.  It is too amazing for the size of the island – and they do it without any fear… it is really extraordinary. 

Village Feasts then are always great occasions! Although, unfortunately, now it is all about who can do the biggest and longest bang. When it was a bit simpler I liked it better. I remember the Fjakkli – church lighting with small candles in tins: that was charming. Catherine Wheels (Gikgifogu) are very clever and beautiful, but in a very confined space, packed with people, it is a little bit worrying. Thankfully, so far no great tragedy has happened!

Q: Why did you decide to stay here when your husband passed away?

A: When my husband passed away, my friends came over to my place and said that I should go back to England. But I said “It’s home and       I love it, I have no intention of going back!” 

Q: Your husband was buried at sea. Would you like to be given the same treatment?

A: Yes. He was buried at sea off the English coast. I would like to be treated in the same way, but it is not something I dream about. My husband was steeped in the sea. He was fond of the sea since he was a little boy when he learnt to sail, and even owned a yacht for a while. But  I think it was the war thing – his most famous book was The Cruel Sea, about the war. He did have a very special feeling for the sea.

Q: How do you see Gozo in ten years’ time?

A: I hope that Gozo will not get too crowded in the future. We should keep it as it is if we possibly can, although it is not always possible for things to remain the same for too long.  Lots of Maltese and foreigners got a house here.  It surprises me that all seem happy seeing these foreigners coming in, but I never heard anyone having any complaints. It is very generous of you all. 

The fact that there does not seem to be any hostility towards foreigners is a tradition from the time of the knights.  There has always been peaceful integration of foreigners in Malta. You sense it in the history of the place, which is still living today.