The locals call it Gib. (Pronounced “Jib.”)
Gibraltar is an odd place. Owned by the Britain. Surrounded by Spain. And only a few dozen miles across the Strait to North Africa. (Morocco, to be exact.)
Since the 1700s, it has been one of the most strategically important chunks of land on the planet.
Some believe that the fact Hitler was never able to get his hands on it helped shorten the war. Gibraltar was also the command and control center for Operation Torch, the Eisenhower-led invasion of French North Africa by American and British troops.
Today, it’s home to 30,000 people and God knows how many monkeys (that are fed and cared for by the government). The main industry is tourism, obviously. Followed by shipping and, apparently, monkey management. They have an airstrip that was built during WWII, extended and maintained, and can handle most small jets. The daily flight to Morocco is in the Guiness Book of World Records as the shortest international flight: Just shy of 20 minutes.
A few take-aways from Gibraltar:
“Solid as the rock of Gibraltar” is a misnomer. It’s riddled with caves, including a natural amphitheater that holds up to 500. (They have regular concerts in the caves, from classical to rock, and even some live theater performances.) There are also several tunnels, initially dug out by hand and used during the Great Siege in the late 1700s when Spain and France tried to capture Gib from the British. Later, the tunnels were expanded by the British and American military and armed with massive cannons during WWII to protect the Strait. Oh, and it’s mainly composed of limestone and quite porous.
Gib has its own currency: the Gibraltar pound, which can’t be spent anywhere else in Europe. They also readily accept the British Pound Sterling. And, more begrudgingly, they will take Euros, but the exchange rate is a bit shady.
I was part of a guided tour to the top of the rock and got up there using a cable car packed to capacity with bodies. (In terms of irrational fears, the cable car experience was the Daily Double: Claustrophobic and acrophobic.) The views were stunning, but I really enjoyed hanging out with the monkeys. (See my photos below.)
During my travels, I’ve spent a fair amount of time observing and interacting with primates. Most monkeys will NOT look you in the eyes. And, generally, if you stare at them, they take it as a sign of aggressiveness. But the Gibraltar monkeys, I assume, have been interacting with humans for so long, they’ve more or less lost that trait. That doesn’t mean they’re “tame” by any stretch. One girl on our tour was mugged as we exited a tunnel because she evidently had some snacks buried in her backpack. Her bad: We had been warned to ditch any food before we got on the cable car.
(Click on any image to open up a nice image viewer.)
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