We walked back down from the rock and through the town, stopping for a coffee and cake at one of the cafes.
This is a view over the airport towards Spain.
A scupture monument to the evacuation.
Signs of the previous history of the garrison.
An interesting toilet!
Everywhere were the signs of war.
Found this guy just hanging around.
A bit of a mixture of Spanish and British architecture.
A plane landing at the airport.
The Barbary apes aren’t apes at all – they are tailless monkeys, Barbary macaques, who originated in the Atlas mountains of Morocco and were probably brought to Gibraltar by the Muslims when they invaded Europe.
I do adore monkeys. I always wanted a pet one but it isn’t very ethical.
These particular monkeys are doing very well. They first prospered because of the myth that the rock would always be British while the apes were there – so the British fed and nurtured them. Now they are a major tourist attraction and get fed and pampered.
Technically they are wild – though because they get fed and looked after, they have no fear of people and are dependent on humans.
They seemed to be enjoying themselves posing for photos.
These Barbary Macaques are the only wild monkeys left in Europe (apart from my grandchildren).
We went up high on the rock with great views over the bay and towards Spain and across the straits to Africa. Then we went into the caves.
Gibraltar is a mass of caves. They have been hollowed out by water dissolving the limestone rock.
St Michael’s caves are a big complex. The main one is a big cavern in which they hold concerts. A fabulous setting.
The concert setting.
The caves are a mass of stalagmites and stalactites all lit up in bright colours (as seems the current trend to attract tourists). It is quite a spectacle.
Well we are all familiar with the old story about the British and the monkeys. The Barbary macaques are the only free roaming monkeys in Europe. The myth is that f they chose to leave the rock Gibraltar would go back to the Spanish.
They are very mischievous and quite lively. They know how to scare people and seem to have a lot of fun doing it but they are incredibly fun to watch. They are such characters and all different to each other.
