It is really disappointing to see that Malta, with its heritage, did not qualify with the 77 top places of the modern seven wonders of world. It is most shameful that no one knew about this competition since it was launched about five years ago.

In my opinion, if we only nominated the balconies of Valletta and Mdina, these could have made it to the finals!

Our islands are like a beehive full of heritage that dates back to 7000 years ago, and as recent as the bastions and buildings of the Knights of Malta a few hundreds years ago.

In my opinion, when the tourists who visit us are on the decrease, we should aim to bring over those tourists who appreciate this heritage. It is not right to keep exposing Malta as an island of sea and sunshine. After all, during the past few years, we heard quite a lot about the dangers of UV rays and so on!

We should be proud of Ggantija, Hagar Qim, Mnajdra and Tarxien Temples, including the jewel of the Hypogeum – an underground replica of the temples. We should be proud of the old city, Mdina, and our present capital city Valletta.

We are obliged to show the world the beauty of our architecture, the masonry of the Maltese stone through the ages. An English friend who was on his first visit to Malta last summer told me that these islands are a showcase of heritage!

I have nothing to complain about the choices and votes for other buildings in various bigger countries. If those who voted for them did not have our heritage to examine, it is our fault.

Remember that our temples are the oldest free standing megalithic structures in the world. To confirm this, one might check Colin Renfrew’s books Before Civilisation(1976)and Megalithic Monuments in Western Europe (1981).

In my last publication, Malta fdal Atlantis (2002), I did my best to expose the richness and the vast archaeological remains on such a tiny island!

Year after year, we hear a lot of arguments about the local tourist industry. Governments vote lumps of sums of money to attract tourists to visit our islands, since tourism is one of our main industries. So, once again I say that we have missed one of the best opportunities to put our heritage in the limelight.

Francis Galea

Zejtun