The Monkeys of Gibraltar

This week we're driving. Like my dad, I love public transportation especially riding on trains. But this gives one a different view and a bit of freedom. We'll have the car until we leave Granada next Monday. Last night we stayed in a wonderful B&B on the Mediterranean coast.

Yesterday we spent part of the day outside of Spain in the city of Gibraltar. To get to Gibraltar (which is a British territory), we parked in a little town in Spain and walked through customs. Gibraltar is a narrow peninsula and its airport is between customs and the town which means you have to walk or drive across the runway which runs the width of the peninsula. There is a sign at each end asking pedestrians to please remember that this is a working runway and don't litter because any piece of litter could cause an accident. Here is Doug on the runway with the Rock in the background.

The town itself is rather nondescript, hardly worth the time. We went for the fun of taking the cable car to the top of the rock and walking down. There is a type of ape that lives on the rock that is called the Barbery Maqaque. It is the only wild monkey population on the European continent. They are everywhere at the top of the rock and quite used to people. We were warned many times not to carry plastic grocery bags and to watch our backpacks as the apes are known to grab them hoping for food. We had no problem with them, but then we weren't carrying anything.

Because of its strategic location where the Mediterranean flows into the Atlantic Ocean and being just a few miles from the coast of Morocco (we could easily see it from the rock), it has had an interesting history. It is a mix of Spaniards, Brits, Moroccans, and us ubiquitous tourists.

In this photo we're looking down on the town and north into Spain. The runway is visible on the left near the center of the photo.