Day One Hundred Twenty - May 5

Welcome to Gilbraltar.

On our last visit in 2019 we crossed into Gilbraltar by walking across the airport runway from the city of La Linea de la Concepcion strange but true. Yes this still exists but a plan to build a tunnel although in existence has not come to fruition.

You hear alot of Spanish being spoken in Gilbraltar as many Spainards cross the border daily for employment. The familiar vision of the Rock of Gilbraltar that many of us know cannot be seen from the the Mediterrean, at least that is my thoughts.

With the UK dropping out of the EU, there may be demands that Gilbraltar become part of Spain. Only time will tell what happens here. The last referendum held in 1967 gave residents a choice of opting either for Spanish sovereignty or for continued close association with Britain; the result was an overwhelmingly pro-British vote. The UK continues to supply a significiant amount of development aid to Gilbraltar.

This small narrow peninsula sits at the bottom of Spain and has been a British overseas territory since the 18th century. A strong military presence exists on the peninsula with British air and naval base today.

As you travel through the Straits of Gilbraltar you can see two continents separated by 13 kilometers (8.1 miles; 7.0 nautical miles) of open ocean. The closest points are between Point Marroquí in Spain and Point Cires in Morocco. While entering the port I saw the Africa Morocco Link ferry running between the continents.

Our arrival time was 09:00. Many oil tankers dotted are in the harbour as a huge oil refinery is in the city of La Linea.

Today we walked to the cable car to purchase a one way ticket up and a visit to the Skywalk and St. Michaels Caves for a cost of 61 UK pounds. Our view from the top of Gilbraltar shows you how conjested the city is with its tall apartments/condominiums near the water's edge.

Beware of the Barbary macaques which can be found on the top of Gilbraltar. Signs are posted that these are wild animals. Do not eat anything near them as they may snatch the food from you or don't get too close to take your picture as the macaques may bite you or try stealing your camera or glasses.

A visit to the Skywall was next, check out Skywalk Gilbraltar on Youtube for a short video. The first level of the Skywalk is clear glass floor that juts out over the rock and looks out to the Mediterraean. Not for the faint of heart.

On our hike on the way down from the top we made our way to St. Michaeals Caves which is a network of limestone caves located in the Upper Rock Nature Reserve.

Both Janice and I are becoming a little peckish now but before we can get down we must walk across the Windsor Suspension Bridge which is also located in the Upper Rock Nature Reserve. It measures 71 meters long and connects the banks of a 50-meter-long gorge.

Finally back in town we stopped at at "Roy's the Real McCoy" in the main plaza. The sign read English fish and chips with Mushy Peas. Luckily no peas were sampled.

One last stop was needed to supply us with English chocolate and crisps especially Walkers Prawn Cocktail which Janice likes.

Insignia left Gilbraltar at 18:00 for our next port Sevilla 104 nautical miles away for a two night stay.

While having dinner at the back of the ship in Toscana's Italian Specialty Restaurant you could see both continents, with wind farm turbines dotting the landscape. A beautiful end to a wonderful day.