The Rock Of Gibraltar
The Rock of Gibraltar is a large outcrop of rock which stretches up 1400 feet on an isthmus at the western entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. A number of people think that Gibraltar is an island as that is the way it appears when seen from the sea. In fact, it is actually attached to southern mainland Spain near the town of La Linea de la Concepcion.
It is a landmark which cannot be missed by any cruises that enter the Med at that end as it is close to where the Med is at its narrowest. The Straits of Gibraltar which are amongst the mostly highly used shipping lanes worldwide, are only 14 miles wide across to Africa. It is a very popular place for British tourists especially because it is like a home from home. Passengers from other countries can visit it if they want to see a miniature of the U.K. It has been a British territory since 1713 which is why it has such rich UK traditions like the policemen, pubs and red post boxes.
Any Western Mediterranean cruises which embark at ports inside the Mediterranean will usually not visit Gibraltar so you have two alternatives if you want to pay it a visit.
You can travel there by car from the Spanish ports, Malaga is the most popular if you want to do it. It is less than hours drive away and you will pass through the incredibly popular summer holiday getaway places such as Torremolinos, Benalmadena, Fuengirola and Marbella.
The alternative is to find a cruise which departs from outside the Med and passes through the straits into it.
.
Because of its obvious strategic position, Gibraltar has a very rich past. There is evidence in fact that this was the last resting place of Neanderthal man. It was inhabited by the great civilizations of their time including the Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians and Romans. It was one of the two Pillars of Hercules.
It spent seven hundred years in the controls of the Moors before passing to the Spanish and then on to the British. There is still an ongoing dispute between Britain and Spain as to the ownership. When I first visited the area in Spain in the 1970s, the border was closed and I felt a lot of hostility from the local Spanish people as I am English. I was scared.
The very English town lies at the foot of the rock on which there is a rich display of fauna and wildlife, especially birds. It is also home to the Barbary Macaques or apes. Despite the name, they are really monkeys and are the only primates which wander around freely in Europe.
I just remembered, there is a third way to visit the rock. There has been a large British Navy base there for many hundreds of years which has been home to thousands of Royal Navy and Royal Air Force personnel.
If you find a cruise that passes into the Mediterranean Sea from the west, do take time out to visit the Rock of Gibraltar.
Related Posts Here
News From Other Websites
- The Panama Canal (Get Foxy – World Travel Blog)
- The best of sunny Andalucía – Málaga (Car Hire Direct)
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
Gibraltar surely is a rock in the sea which seems like the island when seen form the sea and its very attractive place to look as well.