Mellieha - City of Malta

Mellieha in the northwestern part of Malta. It is a popular tourist destination during the summer months. Mellieha as a village developed under British colonization after the British encouraged people to settle in the area by giving leases to the population. For two centuries previously, the area was abandoned due to fear from attacks of corsairs and Saracens. Before that, only a few villagers lived in the area. After the British encouraged Maltese to settle in Mellieha, the village flourished. Nowadays, the village includes a large number of villas. Even foreigners choose to settle in Mellieha.

Ruins and tombs show Mellieha to have been inhabited from Neolithic times to the Byzantine era, but the area was deserted after the Arab conquest, likely due to frequent raids by Muslim corsairs. In 1530 the island was handed over to the Knights of Malta, and Mellieha was one of the many settlements they established, complete with fortifications and a church: The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Mellieha, which became one of the island's most venerated places.

Mellieha is now a tourist resort, featuring Malta's largest sandy beach, Ghadira. Another popular attraction is the set of the 1980 film Popeye. A short drive from Ghadira, the set is a collection of various ramshackle buildings that made up the city of Sweethaven. The 'town' was originally built using several thousand planks, eight tons of nails, and 2,000 gallons of paint. To this day the set draws a considerable amount of tourism, with daily Popeye-related shows taking place for the tourists.

Each village in Malta has its own festival. The festival in Mellieha, the feast of Our Lady of Victories, begins on August 30 and culminates on September 8, commemorating the repelling of the Great Siege in 1565. This feast celebrates the victory the Maltese people had over the Ottomans, a victory that many believe saved Europe's Christianity.