Unforgettable 2004

As I write, I am watching TV pictures of Sydney's firework displays welcoming the New Year. Ten more hours to go here. The celebrations were tempered by thoughts for victims of Asia's Tsunami as several major cities cancelled parties and Australia led a global minute of silence.

From a personal perspective, two events had a significant impact this year. Primarily, the trauma that hit my family when my sister's 16 month old daughter Miriam died in a tragic accident in February. Secondly, my participation in the first European Parliament elections in Malta last June. Ironically I was only able to receive the MLP's offer to stand as a candidate because I returned to Malta from overseas engagements upon being told of Miriam's death. That was just days before the deadline for nominations.

To capture the events in Malta over the past year read the annual Malta Review for 2004 produced by the MaltaMedia online network. It covers news events, sports, obituaries, films and technology as well as links to reviews for previous years.

Malta - A year in pictures by di-ve

A Global overview of 2004 by Infoplease

Helen Pidd has distilled the past 12 months in numerical form

New Year's Day from Wikipedia