Ever
thought of going? No, me either...
One
of England’s few remaining colonies; Gibraltar marks the entrance to the
Mediterranean as well as the end of Europe. I went on a weekend break, an odd
choice I know, it’s a home from home, except it boasts a sub-tropical climate. Mid-September,
the weather there is cooling down and was a cool 31degrees. Certainly can’t
complain.
You
can tell that it’s proud to be British; apartments fly both the Union flag and
Gibraltar’s flag. However Spain’s influence is strong, many people switch
languages as they chat to friends. The main street is very British: a BHS;
Marks and Spencers; Topshop; oh and lots of shops selling VAT free perfume and
alcohol. Yet the style is very Spanish, cute apartments and lots of cafes full
of people chatting and drinking. There are some good restaurants, I went to an
Argentinean restaurant, Gauchos, which served steak on a stone and other
authentic dishes. It was exquisite, so fresh and full of flavour. The tapas
bars are also exceptional due to Gibraltar’s proximity to Spain, meaning most
of the time you can’t go wrong! However Britain has bought places such a KFC
overseas, detracting from the surrounding of blue sea, blue sky and the lush
green rock. Though this is a bad as it gets, most of Gibraltar is surprisingly
pleasant! While there aren’t as many beaches as other Mediterranean countries,
Gibraltar has a few bays with clear sea and clean beaches: I’d much rather be
on Catalan beach than Brighton beach!
The
wildlife is what made this visit for me. A boat trip out to sea guarantees you
a 98% chance of seeing wild dolphins. I went with a company called Dolphin
Safari and I was in that 98% that saw dolphins. It was amazing; the dolphins I
saw were striped dolphins, while they haven’t been kept successfully in
captivity they are incredibly friendly, they swam with the boat, jumping over
the spray it created. It is definitely worth the £20 I paid. Of
course Gibraltar’s most famous animal is the Barbary ape. A short cable car
ride up the rock and you are suddenly surrounded by monkeys, roaming around,
completely unfazed by the presence of so many adoring tourists. The best moment
of my visit was after I climbed for 2 hours up the rock and came to the Ape’s
Den. There were monkeys cradling young as the jumped and slept in the hot sun.
One baby monkey who can’t have been more than a month old wanted to play more
than anything; as it’s mother was engaged with grooming anther monkey I watched
as this tiny monkey crept towards me - befitting the phrase ‘cheeky monkey’. It
kept looking at me to see how I’d react as he slowly reached out and grabbed my
toe; this monkey evidently hadn’t been told Barbary Apes were meant to be
vicious!
I
was worried about Gibraltar being a bit of a dive, somewhere Brits go so they
don’t have to adapt to another language but they still get the sun. I was more
than pleasantly surprised. It doesn’t feel British, it feels Mediterranean with
some familiar shops and people who happen to speak perfect English. If the
chance ever arose again I would go, it’s a beautiful place and the culture is a
wonderful mix. As I sat in a little cafe overlooking the marina, I couldn’t
help but feel completely content, I’d definitely be happy here!
