No one ever forgets their first sight of the Rock of Gibraltar, a monolithic limestone promontory located in Gibraltar, off the south-west tip of Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. It’s 426m high and 1.2km long and can be seen from miles away. Everywhere we went after our arrival, the Rock dominated our views, towering above the town. It also has a cable car that runs all the way to its summit with a stop on the way to enjoy the view.
I’ll never forget my surprise at my first sight of the town either. It was just like walking along any English suburban High Street because it was full of the same shops and chain stores, but with one important exception – all goods are VAT free. All the British banks were represented as well because the currency is the Gibraltar pound alongside the English pound – although the euro is also acceptable everywhere except in the Royal Gibraltar Post Office. Britain also has a naval dockyard there: it is the home of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment and a squadron of the Royal Navy, and there is also free healthcare.
But there were even more surprises. The town is patrolled by police wearing helmets like the regular British bobbies and has the world’s second oldest English newspaper to be in continuous print. English is also the official language, though most locals are bilingual and speak Spanish as well. But that is where the similarity ends! Everyone drives on the “wrong” side of the road and instead of solid earth beneath us, we were walking on millions of small shelled sea animals because Gibraltar is built on an ancient seabed that separates Europe from Africa.
This most impressive rock face also contains some of its most ingenious and extensive fortifications. Because the Straits of Gibraltar is the only link between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, it is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, so an attack was believed to be imminent throughout the World War II.
The result is that the Rock was turned into a fortress and is honeycombed with an extensive network of caves linked by dozens of Great Siege Tunnels, 140 of which have now been documented and are open to the public. The other effect of the war was equally dramatic. The entire civilian population was evacuated, mostly to the UK and western Ireland, although a few families were sent to Jamaica and Madeira.
Olive and pine trees predominate on the Upper Rock, which has not a single natural source of water apart from wells and a huge reservoir deep within the ground.
In spite of this, it has 500 different flowering plants including candy tuft, which has become the symbol of the reserve since this is the only place in Europe where it grows. A large area is also a game reserve for the Barbary apes or Macaques, the only wild monkeys found in Europe. They have lived there for centuries – and most of the locals hope they will continue to do so because there is a legend that when the apes go, so does the British influence. This is taken so seriously that, during the war, they were under the care of the army.
Today there are approximately 300 of them living in five different troops and, since they are such a major tourist attraction, they are used to humans and regularly approach them for titbits. Few could resist them and invariably gave them all kinds of delicacies. However, when we were there this was deemed illegal because they were becoming too dependent on humans.
Apart from the apes, there is also plenty to see in the sea, which has many schools of dolphin easily visible from the shore and also a variety of flying fish.
Gibraltar is one of the most densely populated areas in the world with an established Jewish community and a Moroccan Muslim and Hindu population, so with a land area of 6.8km2 there is a regular demand for space with the result that approximately one tenth of the present land area is reclaimed.
Food is a mixture of Mediterranean and British and the bread is great. Calentita is a locally baked pancake made with chickpea flour, water and olive oil and bollo do borasso is a sweet bread originally eaten at Christmas, but is now a year-round favourite, particularly with tourists. The weather is sub tropical with mainly dry summers.
Apart from exploring the Rock, the tunnels, the Alamed Wildlife Conservation Park, watching the apes and visiting the beaches and marinas, there is plenty more to see. The Moorish occupation of Gibraltar, which began in 8AD, lasted for over 700 years and so have several of their important buildings, including the Tower of Homage (the upper part of the tower housed the former occupants’ living apartments and Moorish bath) and a Moorish Castle with a massive gatehouse.
There are also several large colonial homes now used as civic buildings, and some Regency terraces and buildings, including the Garrison Library and the City Hall, which was originally built by a friend of Admiral Nelson as his family home on a prime site overlooking the city.
Tourism is obviously Gibraltar’s main source of finance, but it is also a leading manufacturer and distributor of products for the building market.
Just as Gibraltar was in a strategic position during the two World Wars, it is in an equally strategic position today for travellers, particularly for young travellers on a shoestring budget.
Apart from having a land border with Spain, there are regular ferry links with Tangiers in Morocco just a short distance away, and there is also an excellent bus service to Malagar 120km to the east. Another bonus is the variety of VAT-free goods, especially tobacco and alcohol. - Sunday Tribune