October is always hectic: children back to school or university, several national day receptions, the world of culture is ready with its programme and we are slowly getting our energy back after the heat and humidity of the summer months. We can look at our wardrobe and enjoy wearing clothes. The summer months are mostly for undressing and let's face it some of us are better hiding our assets which are no longer so.

This year for the first time, I managed to be in Malta for the National Day of the Slovak Republic reception. This was preceeded the day before, on 10 October, by a recital at San Anton Palace. Mr Godwin Bencini, Honorary Consul General of the Slovak Republic relishes organizing these events and does it extremely well. This year we had the pleasure of listening to two gifted and experienced musicians - pianist Daniela Varínska and cellist Ján Slávik both at San Anton Palace and at the Casino Maltese before the reception the following day. It was obvious to the audience that they must have been playing together for a long time. At San Anton they played Beethovan's Variations in E Flat Major for cello and piano. Beethovan liked to claim that the 'van' in the middle of his name meant that he came from noble stock (a fixation which a number of Maltese suffer from as if this is going to make you a better person).  In fact this genius of a composer was descended from a perfectly normal family which originally came from Holland. He was already having problems with his hearing in his twenties and by his forties he was completely deaf. And yet he went on creating beautiful music without being able to hear a single note played. If that is not achievement enough then what is.  He would not be human if this enormous disability had not made him angry. He refused to be defeated by his deafness but he found it very difficult to come to terms with it. Not only did he become increasingly difficult to be around but drank heavily. His wild hair and scruffy clothes, we are told, are a result of his alcoholism and having to cope with such a huge handicap. His final symphony - No 9 - was his biggest triumph and includes the last movement, the 'Ode to Joy' which has been adopted by the EU. I hope he is having a good laugh in heaven.

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The following day there was a celebration recital by the same musicians at the Casino Maltese. Playing to a packed hall with its huge and glamorous chandeliers keeping sentinel, the musicians played Beethovan once again but this time the Sonata for cello and piano No 5 in D Major. This was followed by Chopin's Ballade No 4 in F minor. Chopin, the ultra romantic composer who died young - just 39, of tuberculosis, in 1849. He dedicated his life to the piano. Born of a French father and a Polish mother he was a fixture in Paris society teaching rich people how to play the piano. His relationship with the much older famous writer George Sand is well documented and an example of how people fall in and out of love.

Before the concert started Mr Bencini introduced the musicians and thanked the sponsors.  He told the audience that this year is the 70^th anniversary of the Slovak National uprising against German occupation during World War II as well as the 25^th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution which brought an end to Communist rule. And mentioned another  two more anniversaries: the 10^th anniversary of the accession of Slovakia to NATO and also the 10^th anniversary of the accession of the Slovak Republic to the EU. "Slovakia is a high-income advanced economy with one of the fastest growth rates in the EU and the OECD. It is one of only three former Communist states to be part of the EU, the Eurozone, the Schengen Area and NATO, simultaneously." This was the ninth time that the Slovak National Day was being celebrated in Malta. Mr Bencini was last year decorated by the President of the Slovak Republic and awarded the Order of Merit. In addition he was also awarded the Certificate of Appreciation by Mr Miroslavi Lajcak, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign European Affairs.

During the reception which followed the recital both our President and ambassador Maria Krosnahorska addressed the guests. "I would like to underline," she said, "the high level of our bilateral relations, confirmed by the visits of our heads of state. Emeritus President George Abela paid a reciprocal state visit in Slovakia in January this year. The excellent relations between our countries are validated also by yesterday's and today's visit of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, H.E. Miroslav Laycak, in Valletta. I can confirm that the dialogue with his Maltese partners was very friendly, constructive and very useful." The ambassador spoke of the upcoming first-ever Slovak and Maltese Presidencies of the Council of the EU in 2016 and 2017 respectively and said it is a unique moment for shaping European policies within the framework of the Trio programme what should focus more on the social aspects of its citizens. "The citizen needs to be put back at the heart of the EU...we are aware that migration pressure in the Mediterranean is increasing due to the situation of instability and poverty in the countries of origin." She pointed out that Slovakia forms the Eastern border of the EU "and we face the impacts of the complicated situation in this region. These challenges can only be addressed comprehensively, through the adoption of both short and long-term measures, jointly within the European Union. Let's work together for protection of the European values, restoring growth and creating jobs. We have to prove that Europe is here for people."

After toasts were proposed a lively reception followed. It was a most enjoyable evening.