Gibraltar, Spain/England: Our gorgeous warm sunshine at sea yesterday turned into cloudy fog and rain as we docked in Gibraltar early this morning. We could barely see 50 feet, so forget about seeing The Rock. (Luckily, we had seen it a few days ago when heading out of the Mediterranean and into the Atlantic.) Also, the temperature was 50 degrees fahrenheit. Miserable. We had a quiet morning, deciding to only use in the in-room espresso machine, because we were going to a tour of Gibraltar and attend a five-wine and appetizer tasting.
At 10:45a, we boarded (five) mini buses and began a tour of Gibraltar. The bus windows did not fog up as our driver, Derek, had the air conditioner blasting. He was wasting energy on that air conditioning, because it was so foggy outside and the windows were being pelted with sheets of rain - we couldn't see a dang thing save the buildings/houses directly next to the road. However, Derek was quite amusing and knew Gibraltar well. Gibraltar is attached to Spain, but has forever been operated/owned by the United Kingdom. Derek is English, but has lived in Gibraltar for over ten years and drives this tour bus when ships are in town. We learned about the municipality, the school system, military, government and housing prices. Car traffic crossed the airport runway, until a tunnel was built under the runway a few years ago. Can you even imagine?
Derek drove us all around the peninsula - with a massive limestone rock in the center - but we could barely get even a little glimpse of The Rock. (Remember the old Peninsula Insurance slogan: own a piece of the rock? Of course, Jimmy has a song about that - Holiday.) We were so excited to ride the cable car up to the top of the mountain and see the monkeys... alas, the cable car was not running due to weather and Derek said the monkeys disappear when it rains. Well, rat farts.
So, the only place we stopped was to the wine tasting and that was also a bust. The five wines turned out to be three wines (and I was only served two, but trust me, that was fine), the snacks were serrano ham and manchego. It was on an outdoor covered patio and all us old people were freezing. Rain water was dripping down through the ceiling lights and I was afraid the entire place was going to burst into flames at any moment.
Enough with that, it was back on the bus and back to the ship where I'd venture to guess 80% of the bus/wine tasting tourers complained, as we had a refund notice posted at our door later that afternoon.
We went to the not-a-buffet for lunch and as it was a port day, it wasn't a themed meal, just a great assortment... but we noticed the crew kept the food flowing at least one hour after the usual closing time, as so many soaked passengers were returning from their excursions - cold and hungry. Today they were offering a spiced Indian lamb dish and DT has a different seafood stew that looks like all the seafood stews, but they always are spiced differently.
The pizza is a margherita, but made with yellow tomatoes.
After a bit of lunch, a rest and a warm-up, the sky cleared. We decided to walk the mile into the town center. The Gibraltar peninsula is about 3.5 miles x 1.5 miles), so it is pretty easy to get around. Few people have cars, as there is no where to park them and the city bus system is everywhere and free to everyone. There is a well-marked path from the cruise port to town - just walk straight. There are also numerous supermarkets on the path to town, and we saw many crew members shopping for snacks. The Indonesians knew of a good Indonesian restaurant, so they went straight there to eat.
We met a woman from our ship as we were heading to town. She said there were only jewelry stores and perfume stores. Wow, was she ever right - though a few candy, souvenir, and clothing shops thrown-in. Duty-free and no VAT tax in Gibraltar makes it a popular shopping port.
An ancient mile-long seawall is incorporated into the new city of Gibraltar. Outside this border, much of the town has been built on reclaimed land. Gibraltar played an important part in WWII, and a few people have been able to see General Eisenhower's desk built into a cave inside The Rock.
We walked up and down Main Street, heard 20 different languages, saw women in headscarves and men in yarmulkes. The Catholic church was offering a condolence book anyone could sign for Pope Francis. A very international and inclusive city.
By the time we had walked back to the ship, The Rock was clearly visible, and it was such a beautiful warm evening. It was late (for us) for dinner, but went to Fil Rouge again and had such great meals. Again.
Yeah, it looks like smoked salmon or lox, but it is slivered cantaloupe and white grapefruit, with a little olive oil, raspberries and mint. Talk about refreshing - and it was served ice cold.
Dave had a Caesar salad, and I tried the crudite salad - exactly like it sounds, grated carrots, cabbage, beets, and cucumbers with a few bits of lettuce and cherry tomato. Super refreshing. For his entre, My Driver once again had the Dover sole, which is absolutely fantastic and deboned tableside. I had the salmon on a bed of lentils. First time trying this. Loved it.
As we left port this evening the sun was trying to set, but I was able to catch a photo of The Rock (looking east) as we set sail.
Tomorrow: Motril, Spain - we are going to explore caves.
Until my next update, I remain, your "You can't really own that rock" correspondent.
LINKS:
Gibraltar Tourism Links
Explora II
Current Ship Location