After visiting customs and emigrations to clear out we left the dock of the friendly Alcaidesa Marina (La Linea, Spain).
Currently in the Strait of Gibraltar heading for our TSS crossing point to head towards the south side of the TSS. (TSS = Traffic Separation Scheme, kind of motorway with median for vessels)
Back to navigating.
Bye, bye!
Quiet Rollout on a Saturday morning. She looks stunningly beautiful. Even the windows are mounted – I believe the official presentation will be in some weeks.
A little heavy hearted we left Gibraltar, heading for Tanger, Morocco on May 27.
We had a very good time in Gibraltar. Both of us were having a cold, limiting our urge to explore a bit. Nevertheless, we had wonderful experiences here. We had some excellent recommendations, but couldn’t follow through. All rental cars within a reasonable radius were rented out on the weekend. The Tio Pepe Sherry winery or the white horses and several other great attractions have to wait until next time.
(Babak, thanks for the recommendations)
Passing the border from Spain – our Marina was on the spanish side of the bay – you got right away the good old England feeling. We lived near London in the early 90s. The border crossing had the oversized sockets, a red British mailbox, red phone booth and a bobby controlling the traffic.
But before we view more pictures, I must mention our personal highlight of Gibraltar:
Without doubt, this was our mid afternoon lunch in a restaurant on the ridge of the Rock of Gibraltar. You ride up there with a cable car. If you feel like it you can hike up there. It’s 750m altitude difference 🙂
Anyway, the cable car it was and a short walk to the restaurant. In the relative narrow dining area you will see the Mediterranean sea and through the other window the Bay- and Strait of Gibraltar. Food was excellent and very reasonably priced for such a prime location. It was a moment were you lean back, look 40miles into the distance and simply feel blessed.
Cable Car Ride
The View!
Point Europa
Neanderthals
In Cartagena we were impressed by its 3000 years history. Gibraltar goes way back over 40000 years. The “capital” of Neanderthals was here. Many caves with relics were found in Gibraltar. This was during a period when the sea-level was 100 meters lower than today – the Ice Age.
A lot of interesting information is on Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neanderthals_in_Gibraltar
Next time in Gibraltar, we’ll visit the Ice Age museum to learn more about that period:
Ice Age Museum of Gibraltar and other heritage sites
What would Gibraltar be without its monkeys
Good Bye to the Rock
Odds and ends
Hi, I was just in Gilbralta in September on a land cruise. I am now going to be cruising from Barcelona to Miami on the Brilliance of the Seas ( Royal Caribbean)
Of course, it will be nothing like sailing the way you are. My prayers are with you that you have an easier go from now on
Take care.