September 7-8, Beaches and Monkeys and Tangiers, Oh My!

September 7,

We are finally settled into beach week here in the south coast of Spain. I'd go into detail about what we did today, but this about sums it up.


(Not pictured...cocktails)


September 8, Gibraltar

This is our first travel day. We decided to head SW from Estepona about 45 miles to Gibraltar and Tarifa. Gibraltar is a self-governing British territory that juts out into the Mediterranean. A place of military history, Gibraltar has been warred over repeatedly by Spain, England and others because of its Naval importance. As a result, today it is a weird mishmash of Spanish, English and African cultures. Known as "The Rock," it rises above the rest of the coastal skyline:




Gibraltar is the only place in the world that you have to cross an active runway to enter. You wait for this light to turn green, then you scurry across as quickly as you can with out being blown out to sea by jet wash.




Gibraltar is very very strange. It is absolutely a tourist trap. Most Brits vacationing in the south of Spain go there to get cheap alcohol and duty-free shopping. Our first thought upon enter was that this place felt exactly like "Disney England." Super clean and stereotypically English. That being said, we really enjoyed it as a day trip. It had plenty to see and do. We bypassed the tourist area and decided to climb The Rock. The view was incredible.



The most interesting thing about Gibraltar...MONKEYS. Specifically the only free-range primates in Europe. These bad boys just hang around the top of The Rock and wait for people to give them stuff. They are cute and vicious...just like Kate.






At the top is an active British military installation. This has been in use for hundreds of years. We stumbled across a remnant of so-called British military "technology." With foolproof plans like this one, its a wonder that they ever lost a war...




Tarifa

Next we headed over to Tarifa, the southernmost point in Europe. Tarifa is an interesting little, non-touristy city that is about 10 miles from Tangiers. As a result, anywhere you go in town the mountains of Africa tower over you. This photo doesn't quite do it justice; it is imposing, to say the least...

Morrocco on the horizon on a hazy day.

Tarifa was quaint and rustic. There were many small winding streets with cantinas and markets tucked away. Below is what passes for a street in Tarifa. There actually were signs for cars on this "road." Good luck driving down that...





After a full day we head back to the timeshare. For more photos of Gibraltar and Tarifa, click here. Next time: Puerto Banus, Ronda and Marbella.

Mike and Kate