This was a fun city. took the best tour. a taxi tour to the top of the rock, pillars of hercules, st. michael's caverns, seize tunnels, and the barbary apes. all for 25 euro. best euro spent. i ate good steak and kidney pie.


NOTE: beware of the barbary apes. they will take your hat and purse. they belong to gibraltar, they have their daily shots and vaccines.

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar. The territory shares a border with Spain to the north. Gibraltar has historically been an important base for the British Armed Forces and is the site of a Royal Navy base.

The name of the territory is derived from the Arabic name Jabal Tāriq, meaning "mountain of Tariq".It refers to the geological formation, the Rock of Gibraltar, and the Berber Umayyad general Tariq ibn-Ziyad, under the orders of Caliph Al-Walid I who led the initial incursion into Iberia in advance of the main Moorish force in 711. Earlier, it was known as Mons Calpe, one of the Pillars of Hercules. Today, Gibraltar is known colloquially as Gib or The Rock.

A one-year investigation and analysis of 235 countries and territories by Jane’s Country Risk listed Gibraltar as the top stable and prosperous British Territory, in 5th position overall.

Gibraltar was ceded by Spain to Great Britain in perpetuity in 1713 under the Treaty of Utrecht though Spain requests its return. The British Government has stated it is committed to respecting the wishes of the Gibraltarians[3], who strongly oppose the idea of annexation along with any proposal for shared sovereignty with Spain.

The territory covers 6.843 square kilometres (2.642 sq mi). It shares a 1.2 km (0.75 mi) land border with Spain. On the Spanish side is the town La Línea de la Concepción, a municipality of Cádiz province. The part of Cádiz province next to Gibraltar is called Campo de Gibraltar, literally Gibraltar Countryside. The shoreline measures 12 km (7.5 mi) in length. There are two coasts (sides) of Gibraltar – the East Side, which contains the settlements of Sandy Bay and Catalan Bay, and the West Side, where the vast majority of the population lives.

Having negligible natural resources and few natural freshwater resources, limited to natural wells in the north, until recently Gibraltar used large concrete or natural rock water catchments to collect water. Fresh water from the boreholes is supplemented by two desalination plants: a reverse osmosis plant, constructed in a tunnel within the rock, and a multi-stage flash distillation plant at North Mole.

Gibraltar is one of the most densely populated territories in the world, with approximately 4,290 inhabitants per square kilometre (11,100 /sq mi). The growing demand for space is being increasingly met by land reclamation; reclaimed land currently comprises approximately one tenth of the territory's total area.

The Rock itself is made of limestone and is 426 metres (1,396 ft) high. It contains many tunnelled roads, most of which are operated by the military and closed to the public.

The Barbary Macaque

The Barbary Macaque population in Gibraltar is the last in the whole of the European continent, which, unlike that of North Africa, is thriving. At present there are some 230 animals in five troops occupying the area of the Upper Rock, though occasional forays into the town may result in damages to personal property. As they are a tailless species, they are also known locally as Barbary Apes or Rock Apes despite the fact that they are monkeys (Macaca sylvanus). Forming a double paradox, locals simply refer to them as monos (Spanish: monkeys) when conversing in Spanish or Llanito (the local vernacular).

The Barbary Macaque is considered Gibraltar's unofficial national animal.

Origin

Some scientists believe the Barbary Macaques were first introduced to Gibraltar from North Africa by the Moors (who occupied southern Iberia, including Spain and Portugal, between 711 and 1492), to be used as pets. On the other hand, it's possible that the original Gibraltar macaques were a remnant of populations that had spread throughout Southern Europe during the Pliocene, up to 5.5 million years ago.[1]

One thing that is certain is that the macaque population has been present on the The Rock long before Gibraltar became British in 1704. In 1610 Portillo wrote:

    "But now let us speak of other and living producers which in spite of the asperity of the rock still maintain themselves in the mountain, there are monkeys, who may be called the true owners, with possession from time immemorial, always tenacious of the dominion, living for the most part on the eastern side in high and inaccessible chasms."

In 1782 Ayala, a Spanish historian like Portillo, wrote of the monkeys:

    "Neither the incursions of Moor, the Spaniards nor the English, nor cannon nor bomb of either have been able to dislodge them

Navy Story:

Packed up our tent at Tarifa and spread the damp washing over the gear in the van.  The van has been leaking oil from the left hand front so it is a daily routine to check it in the morning.  The owner at the car hire firm knows about it but the mechanic doesn't know from where it originates.  If the oil pressure switch is over on that side, then I would hazard a guess it has something to do with it as it only leaks when the van has been travelling so it appears to happen under pressure!  Maybe that is too simple and is why I am not a mechanic!

Plan is to visit Gibraltar for the morning and leave the car in Spain, walking across.  Again, we get in the wrong lane and we are on our way via a queue we can't get out of.  There are many very, very narrow streets and many one way systems.  Pay a visit to St Michaels's cavern - a huge limestone cavern which has had uses such as a safe place during the 1779-1783 seige and now a section of it has been carved out to house a theatre stage.  Stallactites and mites and we meet up with Keith and Nicole who tell us they were four cars behind us in the queue and watched Andrew leap out every so often to rearrange the damp washing!  The famous Barbary Marques are all over the road, the babies so cute.  Finding a radio station in English we learn that tomorrow (29th April, Saturday) the local regiment are celebrating a huge anniversary of their inception and are taking part in a charity cannon pull and there is to be a ceremony where their traditional blue berets are to be exchanged for khaki ones.  Here, while squeezing through an impossible gap along a street I inflicted a small scrape on the RH wing mirror about the size of my little finger nail.  I curse lots for not folding it in towards the car.

Our plan now is to head on northwards around the coast of southern Spain taking a little detour into the Sierra Mountains to find what we hope will be a quiet, scenic camp site.

Been there once before, but it totally blew me away again! So beautiful and cozy...
Went there with our whole class, and went for a minibus-tour with a local guide - Jerry, our guide, was the best guide ever; so humorous and spontanious. I saw a lot of "new" things and had a blast!! The sight of Morocco really impressed me, but the deepest impression came from the apes - so cute and human-like! Why couldn't I just grab one with me back home??
Anyway, really worth visiting, and if you go, choose the minibus-tour; adventure, fun and you'll learn a lot! I really loved it, which over 500 pics shows :)

Gibraltar is relatively small, located on a small peninsula in southern Spain. This area has been coveted by many different empires because of its strategic location on the confluence of both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Today, it is owned by the British as a territory. The main characteristic of Gibraltar is the huge rock rising 1,396 feet from the ground, a truly majestic sight. The city below is heavily influenced by the British. English is the official language, but Spanish and Portuguese from nearby countries are also spoken. There are many things to see here, including the top of the Rock and a cave system! The funny thing about the Rock is that it is completely filled with monkeys called "Barbary Apes". These little fellows are really smart, and I REALLY recommend any visitor to not bring ANY food, unless you want one to jump on you, trying to steal the chip bag you're holding, (that actually happened to this lady in front of me; she was hysterical!!). Well, there are plenty of signs at the entrance to the Rock (the cableway), warning you to not bring any food with you, not even in your bag. Tour guides also warn you of it. When I got to the top of the Rock, I was swept away by the commanding views of the harbor and Bay of Gibraltar. Of course, I watched out for the monkeys... I was near the cafeteria they have on top of the Rock, when two little kids came out with chip bags. Immediately, two monkeys out of nowhere came and snatched the bags from them at lightning speed!! It was hilarious, since they then opened the bags and proceeded to eating everything inside. Another batch of monkeys came and stole a bag from a woman, since I think it had an apple inside. The woman was horrified, since the bag held many different documents important to her. The primates then escaped from her grasp and climbed up a tree. I had an awesome time with them XD!! After I visited the Rock, I went to St. Michael's Cave, a cave right underneath the huge rock. Inside, it was illuminated with beautiful lights, creating an almost ethereal atmosphere. I have always liked visiting caves, since we have some back home in Puerto Rico. When I left the cave, I proceeded to visiting Princess Caroline's Battery, a system of tunnels built right beneath the Rock, with cannon holes carved on the side of the giant monolith. It was tiring walking through the tunnels, but was well worth it. The small tunnels could've made claustrophobic people sick... After all the sightseeing, I decided to enter this shop to buy a cool drink. In an instant, another Barbary Ape came in and snatched a jar of blueberry jam, then ran up a tree. The funny part was that the manager of the shop came out cursing at the monkey =D!!! After another funny encounter with the monkeys, I decided to call it a day. Gibraltar was very interesting and I would definitely come back again.

The Lord Nelson n Casemates Square is the place to be. It has a great atmosphere, reasonable prices, good food and a good night out. I spent a lot of time in there and it is a great place to go for a quiet drink or a bite to eat.

The Lord Nelson is situated in the north end of Casemates square which gives it a great location for a start. The Nelson is a pub/restaurant but to be honest I would not come here for food, we ate here a couple of times and was not worth the price we paid so I would recommend the surrounding restaurants. As for night life the Nelson at times can be great but all depends on what night. The beer is good with a wide selection and the interior is all done up like an old ship hence the name. They have live bands on during the week with the old residential rocker 'Zooney' appearing wekley and he alone is definatley worth checking out. All in all i'd say the Nelson is a great place to hang out during the day and good for a drink and a laugh in the evenings... just dont order food.

If your looking for good food mostly aimed at meat eaters then look no further than Gauchos at Casemates square in Gibraltar. Its very friendly and the ambiance is nice. The prices are about the same as UK so your looking at about £12- £15 sterling for a main. But lets not forget the most important thing the steak is out of this world!