The first stop takes us to one of the most important sites in Marsaxlokk, the parish church.
It all started in 1888 when the villagers held a meeting and discussed the need of a church to cater for their spiritual needs. They decided to present their proposition to the bishop of the time who agreed to the plan.
At the time the villagers were very poor and needed lots of financial help to fulfill their wish. The first help was provided by the noble family Zammit Gauci from Ħaż Żebbug who donated the land on which the church was eventually built whereas Dun Ġużepp Diacono, a Gozitan chaplain, designed the architectural plan of the building. Another source of great help was provided by the Marchioness Rosalia Sabbatini who married Giuseppe Apap Viani Testaferrata in 1887 and resided in the village.
A couple of years before her marriage she had a terrible experience when the ship she was sailing on along the west coast of Italy was involved in a very violent storm. She feared for her life but somehow managed to make port in Corsica. The incident took place around midday when special prayers known as suppliki were being recited to Our Lady of the Rosary at Pompei. To this end the Marchioness attributed her miraculous survival to her divine intervention. In recognition to Our Lady's benevolence Rosalia promised to build a church in Malta in her honour.
When she learned about the villagers' wish to build a church she offered to make good for half of the expenses required in its building if they agreed to dedicate the church to Our Lady of the Rosary at Pompei to which the villagers consented.
The foundation stone of the church was laid on the 7th of December 1890. The actual building which was supervised by the expert master mason Karmenu Vella took more than two years to complete however it must be noted that the original church was far smaller than the present one and consisted only of the present day nave.
The church was blessed on the 25th of September 1892.
Nowadays, the church which has since been elevated to the state of a Sanctuary, can be admired in its full glory. Between the bell towers of the facade, one can admire the beautiful sculpture of Our Lady of Pompei on board a traditional Maltese fishing boat to reflect the village's long standing tradition.
Moving forward to the next site is the statue of Saint Andrew positioned just a few meters away from the Parish church.
