Another early start! We had to be ready for the coach at 8.15. Breakfast - my usual fruit but today I had a croissant with honey. J had scrambled egg and haddock. It was a dull morning, quite cloudy so I wore my fleecy lilac jumper. The coaches today were small, only 21 passengers, but there were 5 of them. We soon found out why! Our Guide/Driver, Dave, was a jovial character and it proved difficult sometimes to know whether he was giving us truthful facts or whether he was in fact joking!! The first area we visited was the land which had been reclaimed and had many blocks of flats built there. Here is the Royal Naval Dockyard and the Naval Base HMS Rook. There was also a large storage area of vehicles awaiting use by NATO and we saw the frontier gateway to Spain! Gibraltar was conquered by the British in 1704 and totally ceded by Spain in 1713 with the Treaty of Utrecht. Defence walls were rebuilt in 1714 to repair the ones built by the Spanish in the 1500s. Our first stop was at the 1841 lighthouse from where there would have been spectacular views had it not been somewhat misty!
Nearby is a mosque donated, at a cost of 5,000,000 GBP, to the Muslims of the area by a Sheikh, who having had his boat damaged in the Mediterranean and repaired in Gibraltar was eternally grateful.
From the coastal plain we now began the ascent up "the Rock", travelling through several narrow tunnels and equally narrow roads even when not in tunnel mode. Now we knew why small buses were in service. It would be impossible to negotiate the tunnels in anything larger. There are 32 miles of road tunnels through the rock. The excavated rubble was used to build the runway for the airstrip which stretches out to sea. Our first stop on the Rock was at St. Michael's Cave. Which was used as a Military Hospital during the war. The caves are quite extensive with massive and intricate stalagmites and stalactites. The largest area has tiered seating and serves as a concert hall. Having climbed up to the top of the auditorium we had to go down a hill back to the coach.
After this we approached the area where the Barbary apes are to be found, or the Gibraltar monkeys as they are more commonly known. The current estimate is 205 living there in the wild. There were large ones, small ones, cheeky ones, solemn ones and greedy ones. They are ready to grab any tit-bits that visitors might proffer. There was a splendid view over the harbour and the reclaimed area.
The apes also invaded the bus! The wing mirror was a favourite perch for the small ones.
There is a cable car, installed in 1966 which facilitates an easy ascent up the Rock. It seems that these function even during times of maintenance! See the man standing on the outside of the lower one! See enlargement on the right.
From the next viewpoint we could see the runway and the level crossing!! A main road runs right across it! The runway was constructed by using the rubble excavated from the tunnels.
Now we were to descend to the plain! On the way we passed the Moorish castle. The Moors occupied Gibraltar for over 700 years, from 711 until the 1400s when it was taken over by Spain before being conquered by the English in 1713. The population comprises 4 main religions, Christian (mainly Catholic but other denominations are catered for), Jewish, Muslim and Hindu. We saw several places of worship, the mosque already mentioned near the lighthouse, and the others in the town, The Catholic Cathedral, the Anglican Cathedral (being the seat of the Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe), several synagogues, Church of Scotland etc.
Water is provided by desalinated sea-water which is held in reservoirs high on the Rock, and the town is then gravity fed. The population is 30,000 and there are 20,000 vehicles. Why so many? Petrol is 46.5p per litre, half the price in the UK. The English pound is the currency used although coins are issued in Gibraltar and are not legal tender elsewhere. On arrival in the town we were dropped off for half an hour's shopping.
Just a few bottles constituted our purchases! Average about £5 per litre!!! Shopping and shop viewing complete we were to return to the ship.
Lunch! We were ready for this! I am writing this on Saturday as there was so much happening yesterday I did not have time to do it and its hard to remember everything. If I wasn't doing this soon everything would be just a vague memory and there would be no record. Yesterday's lunch, smoked salmon and salad for me, meat and salad for J. Desserts chocolate mousse and bananas with Grand Marnier and Ice cream. We sailed then from Gibraltar to Morocco to visit the Spanish town of Ceuta. Ceuta is to Morocco as Gibraltar is to Spain! A promontory/peninsular which does not belong to the mainland to which it is attached.
In the afternoon I had booked for a tour round Ceuta (pronounced Theeoota) but J opted not to do this.