“In the bustle of a city… the peace of a sanctuary.”

These words, from a documentary that is shown at the Shrine of Remembrance, are perhaps the best description of this unique memorial to the men and women who have served Australia in armed conflicts and peacekeeping operations since World War One.

Spanning 13 hectares, the hushed atmosphere of the Shrine was the site of a solemn ceremony yesterday morning, as Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi placed wreaths at various significant monuments and memorials, including the Malta George Cross Memorial.

Shrine guards, dressed in the WW1 uniform of the 4th Australian Light Horse, assisted with the ceremony. The guards keep watch 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

Each year on 11 November (Remembrance Day), at 11am, a natural ray of light shines from an aperture in the roof onto the Stone of Remembrance, to illuminate the word “love”. World War One ended at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.

Precise astronomical and mathematical calculations have ensured that the sun will pass at the right time in this spot for the next 5,000 years.

A meeting with the Premier of Victoria was next on the schedule. However, it so happened that a few days before the Maltese delegation arrived in Melbourne, Premier Steve Bracks had just resigned. The new Premier, Mr John Brumby, was literally being sworn in at Parliament House as we were arriving at our hotel nearby.

As his first official duty as Premier, Mr Brumby came straight from his first Cabinet meeting to welcome Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and the rest of the Maltese delegation for a state luncheon.

Mr Brumby spoke highly of the Maltese community, all of whom have contributed greatly to the multi-cultural nature of Australia through their successes in the fields of business, sports and the arts. “It all started with Antonio Azzopardi in 1830, the first Maltese settler in Melbourne, who went on to become a successful businessman. Since then, the Maltese have continued to flock to Melbourne, proving that it is one of the world’s most livable cities.”

In the afternoon, Dr Gonzi gave an exclusive interview to Mr Cameron Stewart, associate editor of The Australian newspaper, followed by a press conference that was attended by various members of the Maltese-Australian media. Giving a round-up of his visit so far, and in particular on the recurring issue of the need to keep the Maltese language alive in Australia, Dr Gonzi told the press that a University of Malta Professor had emailed him to point out that an on-line programme called Sisien already existed.

“We are also looking into how we can use iPods to teach the language to youngsters, so there is a lot of work in the pipeline. Although you don’t have enough qualified Maltese teachers here, we can use teachers based in Malta to carry out long-distance learning. Children will not need to be driven for miles to community centres to attend a lesson, because they can access everything from their computers at home. I intend to set up a special unit of four or five people who can focus on this,” he said.

While some of the media representatives harped back to old issues such as the need for more Maltese programming to be sent to SBS to transmit on its ethnic channel, Dr Gonzi appeared impatient that the Maltese community was not embracing new technology fast enough.

“If Australia had better broadband access, we would not need to send you news through a courier service by which time it’s 10 days old. You should have better facilities to download what PBS is transmitting,” he said.

Not for the first time he pointed out that, during his Australian visit, he has been listening to radio news bulletins streamed live from Malta, a concept that has apparently not yet filtered through to those who are so anxious to know exactly what is happening in their mother country.

Frank Sargeant, representing the only remaining Maltese language newspaper The Maltese Herald, bemoaned the fact that after 46 years, the paper was in danger of folding through lack of interest. Dr Gonzi replied that while its demise would be a disaster, his recommendation was that it should become an online newspaper – “You have to reach the new generation and computer technology is the only way to do it.”

The paradox of a community that is so obsessed with keeping in touch with the country it has left behind and yet seemingly unable to keep up with the progress Malta has made, was brought home forcefully yet again at the final stop for the day.

About 400 members of the Maltese Association of Hobsons Bay turned out in full force to welcome Dr Gonzi. It was not just the cute children decked out in folk costumes which made it seem as if we had stepped back in time. The venue, usually used as a bingo hall, was crammed with long wooden tables and decked out with makeshift decorations as robust Maltese-Australians clapped, cheered and waved small Maltese flags. The association even has its own song, for which we were thoughtfully provided with the lyrics to so we too could sing about the men playing card games while the women played bingo.

Somehow, I think it will be a long time before Maltese podcasts reach Hobsons Bay.

Today the Maltese delegation leaves Melbourne for Canberra where it will spend three days before moving on to Sydney, the final leg of its visit.