Gibraltar - Take II

Posted 19.March, back dated to be in chronological order of our trip.

A few days ago, we had our neighbors, Phillip and Des over for breakfast. This morning, door open, sunshine streaming through, Dan called out to Phillip, “pancakes are ready.” He responded “thanks, but I just ate.” Next thing I see is our outside table being moved over, a different chair pulled up and there’s Phillip – he brought his own chair, silverware and maple syrup!

Pancakes and sunshine

Sunshine finally gave our energy levels a solid kick. We felt stuck at Camping Buganvilla, waiting for our LPG adaptors to arrive. The front desk alerted us that it’s a holiday in Andulacia, the region we are staying, and there will be no post, possibly until Monday.

Dan threw caution to the wind and suddenly decided we should pack up the RV and head to Gibraltar. In the end, we opted for the rental car - faster, cheaper, and less of a hassle. I can only imagine what the guys at Yellow Car must have thought to see me pull up on a bicycle and pull away with the folding bike neatly in the back of their Fiat Panda. Tiny, but functional.

About 3 hours later, we were there. The Rock of Gibralter – 6.5 square kilometers (2.5 sq mi) of British dependency. We chose to park outside and walk through “immigration” a loose term at best. I think if you just wave something at the guard they let you through. We jumped on the first bus we saw, after determining it would take us to the cable cars. Feeling slightly swindled, we agreed to the taxi sales pitch instead of the cable car – 50 Euro, but hey, we had agreed it would be a tourist day, right? And they were letting the kids ride along for free.

Monument marking the historical silver topped pillar that marked the path of safe passage.

View from the top. We like the fact that the runway crosses the main thoroughfare to Gibraltar.

Two hours later and smelling vaguely of Barbary Ape pee, we emerged from our tour with huge grins on our faces. Everyone had a different favorite point – Megan was thrilled to be on the top of a mountain and that we got to explore the caves (Saint Michael’s and the Siege Tunnels). Her disappointment was that we didn’t hike to the very tippity top peak (I don’t think they actually let you any further up than we were). Sophia liked the Barbary Apes. Dan loved the views, being able to see the tip of Africa through the clouds and getting a temporary souvenir from the ape that sat his shoulder. I loved that we were in a taxi and not walking the 9km on narrow roads shared with crazy taxi drivers. This is not pure laziness talking. We had a very grumpy Sophia to deal with and the roads on the hill are too narrow for both car and pedestrian. In some sections the pedestrians were standing flat against the mountain and the taxi was just inching by. Other sections the taxi had to do a 3-point maneuver to make it around a hairpin turn.

Barbary Ape close up.

View of concert area in St. Michael's cave.

Is that an ape on your shoulder or...?

In the town, we marveled at the narrow streets, tall buildings and enjoyed a round of beverages. Feeling refreshed, next up was to find the Morrison’s (British grocery store) and see about buying some baking powder so we could make pancakes the next morning. After a very frustrating walking tour (no one could seem to tell us where Morrison’s was, other than “it’s a long walk from here.”), we finally found it. The store was a complete ZOO. To top it off, they don’t carry baking powder. What grocery store on the face of earth does not carry baking powder? Especially one as large as Morrisons? Dejected, we bought some self rising flour and croissants as a backup (we had invited company over for breakfast after all). We tracked down bus number 10 and managed to get confirmation that yes, it would take us to Fronteria (the border) but no, our “day” ticket was not valid on this line. At this point, who cares? We’re tired, just get us back to the border and our little rental car. Megan was thrilled to be on a double decker bus and of course, we had to sit on the top. Rickety old thing, fun nonetheless.

Interesting facts we learned about Gibraltar:

• The border between Gibraltar and Spain were closed until 1985.


• The rock is all but hollow; I think the guide said there are some 4km roads leading to the peak; but inside are more than 70 km.


• St. Michael’s caves were prepared for use as a hospital, though never used for a hospital. Now the caves host concerts in the summer and tourists year round.
  
• Gibraltar natives learn “Spanglish” – a mix of English and Spanish.

We happily arrived home around 9pm. Kids to bed… busy day tomorrow. We are leaving no matter what. But first, we are treating our Dutch friends to American pancakes. =)