Maltese-Canadian couple Deb and Mark Gove screamed with joy when they heard that their Canadian vaccine certificate will be recognised by Malta and they will be able to leave the Mellieħa apartment where they have been cooped up in quarantine since they arrived on the island.
“We were following the press conference on our phone and, when we heard the news, the whole building could tell how we felt. I started screaming and yelling with joy in the hallway. Then I went out in the balcony yelling: The Canadian vaccine is accepted. It was very unjust and unfair but they listened,” said Deb, 65, from the apartment where she has been staying with her husband since they landed on September 4.
We called our friends in Canada and told them to book their tickets to Malta.
Although the couple will be just a day short of completing the two-week quarantine - that technically ends on Saturday at midnight - they said they were over the moon.
"We called our friends in Canada and told them to book their tickets to Malta," she said.
On Wednesday, Health Minister Chris Fearne announced the easing of some travel restrictions, including the recognition of the Canadian certifcate.
Vaccination certificates against COVID-19 are needed by all people wishing to visit Malta without having to quarantine.
Over the past months Malta started a process of recognition of certificates issued by EU member states and gradually extended recognition to include the UK, the US and Australia.
Until a few weeks ago a problem was noted with Canadian certificates because they lacked a QR code, which is needed to safeguard authenticity. The certificates remain unchanged but they are now accepted.
The first thing we will do is go to Mass to thank God that we made it so far. We will then go for breakfast and then go visit our aunties who we have not seen in two years.
To celebrate this milestone, on Friday, Deb and Mark will be heading to the Sanctuary of Our Lady Mellieħa.
"The first thing we will do is go to Mass to thank God that we made it so far. We will then go for breakfast and then go visit our aunties who we have not seen in two years,” she said.
She explained she was born in Canada to Maltese parents and her husband, Mark is also Maltese.
The couple live in Canada but have dual citizenship. Before the pandemic struck in March 2020 they used to visit Malta about three or four times a year, each time staying for about four or five weeks.
They travel to see relatives here and to see to some business matters. But in the past two years they did not come to Malta due to strict travel restrictions.
Back in Canada, they took the vaccines - two doses of Pfizer - to ensure that they and their loved ones are protected. They were hoping to come to Malta but they then heard that Malta was not recognising the certificate and anyone coming from Canada had to quarantine for the full two weeks.
Despite this, they decided to come for eight weeks to have a full six weeks out of quarantine.