Monkey Madness
Trip Start
Jan 15, 2011
1
7
18
Trip End
Jun 27, 2011
Gibraltar, United Kingdom
Friday, March 11, 2011
The next stop on the Andalusia tour was Gibraltar, which is actually a British territory, and not a part of Spain at all. After a few hour bus ride from Malaga, we arrived to a line of cars and buses waiting to pass through British/Spanish customs into Gibraltar. The most recognizable part of this small penninsula is the "Rock of Gibraltar." It's an impressive, 1,400 foot rock rising out of the sea with sheer cliffs. The population of Gibraltar is spread out around The Rock into various districts and neighborhoods.
After passing through customs and having to leave two students behind for the day in Spain because they forgot their passports, we got off the bus to more rain. What luck! Fortunately, we were directed to a station of small tour vans waiting to take us on a guided tour to the top of The Rock. I think everyone was on their last pairs of dry shoes and socks (and nerve), so I don't want to know what would have happened if they told us we were going to be walking around in the rain for a second straight day. The vans were a pleasant surprise and we ended up getting a very knowledgeable, friendly driver who gave us the rundown on Gibraltar history and culture.
Gibraltar has a rich history. It has been considered the last known dwelling place of the Neanderthals, was at one time thought to be a Pillar of Hercules, is home to a once powerful Moorish fortress, is covered in complex tunnel networks, and is home to St. Michael's Cave, one of Europe's most famous caves. In Greek mythology, Gibraltar, or more specifically The Rock of Gibraltar, along with neighboring Morocco's Jebel Musa mountain, were thought to be the two points (pillars) marking the limit to the known world (the Straits of Gibraltar). I'll try to explain a bit more of what our guide taught us as I go, but I would recommend doing some internet searching if you're interested because there is some pretty fascinating history surrounding this region.
Getting back to the tour, we climbed the switch-backs to the top of The Rock and stopped at the mouth of St. Michael's Cave. The first thing we saw when we stepped out from the van was an old male monkey staring at us from behind a small fence. I figured we would have to keep our distance and we'd only be able to see them from a short distance...I was wrong. About 10-15 monkeys were in the area, climbing on tour vans, trying to grab girls' purses, riding buses, and climbing all over the walls. Everyone was tentative at first, but after the first monkey jumped onto one of our group member's backs from a wall without doing any harm, it was all fun from then on. -- We later learned that it can be dangerous to allow the monkeys to climb on your shoulders because they were once taught to do this by tour guides who would reward them with food. Apparently, the older monkeys, who still expect food in return for a photograph, have been known to take their hunger out on the tourist and give some pretty nasty bites (not to mention the monkeys often have lice...don't worry I had my hood on and washed up well) --
After having some fun with the monkeys, we headed into St. Michael's Cave, which was much larger than I thought it was going to be. The cave was known of and explored by prehistoric men, the Greeks, Romans, Moors, and eventually used as a military safe-house/hospital, as the Straits of Gibraltar have been a strategic military location for hundreds of years, especially during WWII. We also learned that Gibraltar is home to a considerable Jewish population due to the Spanish Inquisition banishing Jews and Muslims from Spain. Apparently the cave played a role in harboring fleeing refugees. Once inside the cave, we were surrounded with immense, yet beautiful stalagmite and stalactite formations. The cave is obviously now a tourist destination, but the large main chamber has been turned into a auditorium for concerts, weddings, etc due to its unique acoustics. After touring the cave, it was back into the vans to check out more monkeys and hit one last scenic overlook before heading back down The Rock. We were supposed to be able to see Africa from the overlook, but due to the foggy weather, we had to use our imaginations.
We ended our afternoon in one of the main plazas in Gibraltar, where we kept the British theme going by ordering some traditional fish and chips. They were delicious. We had a bit of free time to explore the duty free shopping areas, then we walked back to the bus and embarked for the next city on our tour, Chipiona.
