Living in Gibraltar

View of Gibraltar looking towards Spain

We have now spent six weeks living in Gibraltar and are starting to feel like locals who are enjoying the mild winter temperatures of 15 - 20 degs.  We even have library membership where there is no cost for borrowing new releases and the fine for an overdue book is 1 penny per day!  Instead of writing about the endless boat maintenance tasks this blog will provide an introduction to Gibraltar.

Gibraltar has an extensive and rich history and is recognised as the southernmost points of Europe.  It is  strategically positioned at the entrance to the Mediterranean, forming one of the ancient Pillars of Hercules. Gibraltar is small, just six square kms in total, the average width is 1.25km and the distance around the island is only 16kms with the highest point at 426mtrs.

Morocco - a short distance away

Border Crossing to La Linea

Spain is a short walk across the border and Morocco is only 24kms across the straits. It is easy to cross the border into Spain with about 30,000 workers and tourists crossing daily into Gibraltar. Given the small land mass & local population of 35,000, and daily influx of workers/visitors, surprisingly Gibraltar does not feel crowded with most people living in apartments.  The roads are busy at peak hours with scooters a popular mode of transport - this is despite the free buses for locals. 

The Tower of Homage remains of the Moorish Castle

Gibraltar is steeped in history combining civilisations and cultures dating back thousands of years. A very brief summary is Gibraltar was under Moorish domination for seven centuries, taken over by the Christians for 24 years in the 14th century and then recaptured by Spain. Gibraltar remained Spanish until 1704 when it fell to a combined Anglo-Dutch force. After this conflict Gibraltar was then ceded to the UK in perpetuity.  Though this did not stop the Spanish with many bloody conflicts to regain the Rock.  The four year "Great Siege" from 1779-1783 was an attempt by Spain to take back Gib. They failed. Spain again attempted to reclaim Gibraltar in 1969 which resulted in the border being closed for 13 years.  Political tensions continue to this day. 

The Mosque of The Custodian of The Holy Mosques

We like the cultural mix of Gibraltarian's today with the racial and religious harmony that is evident with a mosque, synagogue and churches all in close proximity and actively supported. The mosque, built in 1997 by the late King of Saudi Arabia, is said to be possibly the most expensive mosque in Europe per sq mtr costing five million pounds. The mosque complex’s ground floor area covers 985 sq mtrs and contains the Imam’s house, accommodation facilities for the caretaker, six classrooms, a conference hall, a morgue, library, administration offices, a kitchen and ablution facilities. For the opening the Saudi royal family and entourage required 60 limousines & associated security. I can only imagine the logistics planning required for the opening ceremony.

Not surprisingly both English and Spanish is taught in the schools.  We are now used to hearing a fluent Spanish speaker with a Brit accent and have adapted to most businesses closing for an extended lunch hour.

One of the reasons for the English success in the four year siege are the 'The Great Siege Tunnels' which  are heralded as one of the most impressive defence systems devised by man.  The tunnels were built into the Rock to allow the guns and companies of men to live there and withstand the siege. The tunnels were further extensively developed during WW2 on the direction of Churchill who believed an attack on Gibraltar was imminent.   As a result today there are now 48kms of tunnels in the Rock!  These are impressive to view - especially given they were built to accommodate 16,000 troops for a period up to one year complete with power, water supply and sanitary arrangements.  The allied African campaign was run from these tunnels.  

Gibraltar has a strong economy with 10% growth last year, and is VAT (=NZ GST) free, and is famous for cheap fuel, perfumes and alcohol - a 1 ltr of Bombay Gin is only  NZ$16 - one could easily become an alcoholic here at these prices! Gibraltar is also famous for the  'Barbary Apes' which are a species of tail-less monkeys from North Africa that inhabit the upper reaches of the Rock.  

Relaxed in his pose .. 

These are the only free-living monkeys in Europe today with approx 160 of them living in the natural reserve at the top of the Rock.  I was definitely not keen on them as they are known to jump on people to access their back packs for food (one tourist was recently badly bitten).  Hence on this hike I had our lunch box securely sealed in John's back pack just in case they could smell it!  There are fines of 4,000 pound for feeding the monkeys. Despite being semi-wild monkeys they did seem quite used to being relatively close to people.

 

A visit to Gibraltar wouldn't be complete with a hike up the steep Mediterranean Steps which required a few stops to catch your breath on the way up. The steps runs mainly along the South- eastern side of the Rock, an area that is primarily cliffs! The view from the steps are breathtaking, taking in the Mediterranean Sea, Spain and Morocco.  

We are enjoying our 'winter over' in Gibraltar and the ease of living in a small town but having access to La Linea for greater variety of hardware stores. Thankfully everything is in walking distance which keeps us fit.  Our daily exercise now sees us alternating between a hike up the Rock, pilates in the local park, or a run out to the lighthouse before starting 'work'. Once we get sailing again we will miss the hill climbs and spectacular views.

View from the Eastern side looking North to the Spanish Coast

View looking NW towards La Linea, Spain

Border crossing is across the runway

Spain in the distance across Gibraltar Bay

Our current berth in Queensway Quay Marina

The next blog update will focus on the boat maintenance that is being completed.  If only to dispel the myth that we are sitting around all day enjoying G&T's on deck!

Arrival in Gibraltar

We have been in Gibraltar for a month now and have been busy in maintenance mode - so the blog updates have slipped while we make the most of the mild winter to get the outside tasks completed. The trip from Cadiz to Gibraltar at 80 NM was our shortest, and last, trip for 2014. We opted for a late departure from Cadiz at 1730hrs to ensure we arrived in Gibraltar during daylight hours. While the plan was good, we had stronger winds than forecasted with the main and geona reefed at 3/4 for the duration of the trip with excellent sailing conditions. We arrived at the entrance to Gibraltar on 13 Dec at 0500hrs - so much for daylight hours! This was a particularly taxing arrival due to the volume of shipping traffic with both of us staying on watch from 0300hrs to ensure no collisions. It was like a city coming into the straits of Gibraltar with all the ships lit up.  

Qcean Village Marina

After completing our check-in process and hot showers it was time for breakfast then a much needed sleep.  I was fully prepared with my PJs on making breakfast while John completed his final checks on deck.  It was then we realised the docks were not floating - a major problem for us as the davits (and the dinghy) were overhanging the concrete dock.  You would think this would be easily solved, just move the boat further away from the dock - this would work but then we could not get on or off the boat.  Okay, take the dinghy off and retract the davits - yes that works but there was nowhere to keep the dingy for an extended period and it won't (easily) fit on our foredeck.  

Safely berthed at Queensway Marina

With the rising tide we would have woken to a damaged dinghy and davits and no way of getting off the boat.  So much for a sleep!  To give ourselves some time to assess the situation (noting this was to be a long term stop over) we initially moved the boat to a temporary finger pier (alongside berth).  With only two marina's in Gibraltar there are not many options. I had contacted Queensway Marina (the other marina) for a berth but they had not confirmed availability so we walked down to see if they had floating docks and a spare berth.  Fortunately they had both so it was back onboard and our third move in less than four hours of arriving - and yes another Med mooring!  Queensway Marina is a small marina surrounded by apartment blocks and restaurants, with good security and quiet location (no runway) with a good view of 'The Rock. 

View from our berth

We are now back into a 'work mode' as we catch up on a myriad of boat tasks.  These have included finally taking out the passarelle (a boarding platform to get on/off the stern of the boat when Med moored), five months after purchasing a 8HP, 2 stroke outboard motor it was fitted to the dinghy and run, completing some minor repairs, installing a new deck wash pump, replacing the port winch power control board (which had previously failed), stripping and cleaning all seven winches and the windlass and the never ending task of cleaning and polishing the GRP and stainless steel. Thankgoodness for audio books and podcasts to listen to while working.

Testing the outboard - or playing!

While we had planned on one month in Gib sourcing spares from the UK, and being delivered the wrong items (it always comes back to logistics!) compounded by the Christmas holidays has meant our time here will be extended. Although our Christmas Day was quiet with just the two of us we are now settled into Gib and enjoying the ease of living on a small island with a population of 35,000 and an area of 6.4sq km - it is so easy to walk everywhere. We have only had one day of rain in the month and the temps are mild - with highs of 20 degs and over night low of 10 degs - this is better than a Welly winter:). We are a short 10 min walk to the town's shopping area and a 30 minutes walk to cross the border into Spain for a greater variety of shops and more competitive euro prices. With 35,000 people daily crossing into Gibraltar during winter the border crossing can get busy - just as well passports are not stamped as the queues would be long even longer. It is certainly faster to walk across the border than travel by car or scooter, however, it is interesting to note a resurgence in political tension between the UK and Spain over the status of Gibraltar!  Hmmm - must look at our insurance - don't want to be caught in any incident that could be characterized as an act of war for which we are not covered. LOL!

Border Crossing from La Linea to Gibraltar - easy but political tensions remain!

The passarelle - akin to walking a plank

Looking down on Queensway Marina

As a result of questions we have received we have now added a page called 'about the yacht' which provides information on Sabbaticus and her systems for the yachties out there. 

Our next blog will cover the more interesting tourist highlights of Gibraltar.  Below is one of the 'locals' we see on a regular basis when doing our daily exercise on The Rock.

Cadiz, Spain

After a leisurely departure in the morning we enjoyed the 110NM passage from Vilamoura, Portugal to Cadiz, Spain.  Although cold overnight, requiring two sets of long-johns, this was a near perfect passage with great sailing conditions.  Although light (almost non-existent) wind required motoring in the late afternoon/early evening for about 6 hours (30 miles) we were fortunate as the wind then picked up suddenly around 2100 rising from 9 to 25 knots in the space of 30 mins and after unfurling the sails, killing the engine, then shortening sail we were on our way again with good 7-8 kts of boat speed! The night sailing was relaxing with relatively calm seas, good wind and a full moon providing a most enjoyable night sail (and not too many fishing boats).   

Another nav hazard to avoid - sandbanks

Arriving at 0300hrs to Peurto Sherry Marina we followed the marina instructions to "keep the buoys to port" at the breakwater entrance due to the shifting sandbank. This all made sense when we looked over the stern from the visitors pontoon on waking the next morning. This was a pleasant marina for a stopover with 750 berths and tourist apartments /restaurants built around the marina.  The economic crisis is evident with many apartment blocks unfinished.

Santa María Bull Fighting Ring  

After finishing the mandatory task of giving Sabbaticus a good wash down to remove all the salt we enjoyed sightseeing in the local area of Santa María and finding a huge local supermarket within walking distance. We still get a chuckle seeing the huge wine selections with bottles starting at 1 Euro - though not sure how good the quality would be - it is cheaper than the bottled water!

Rooftop view of Cadiz Cathedral

We then spent two days visiting the city of Cadiz - getting our daily exercise by walking 45mins to catch the ferry (30 min ride) across the harbour. Cadiz is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Spain and one of the oldest in western Europe.  We loved the relaxed vibe of this city reveling in it's history which included being a depot for Hannibal's conquests, falling to the Romans in 206BC, ruled by the  Moors from 711 to 1262, Christopher Columbus sailing from Cadiz on his 2nd and 4th voyages, and raids by Francis Drake in 1587 who occupied the harbour for 3 days, captured 6 ships and destroyed 31 ships which delayed the Spanish Armada sailing by a year. Plus the numerous invasions and occupations over the next couple of centuries by the British with the Spanish constitution signed in 1812 in Cadiz - all resulting in a rich history.

Front of Cadiz Cathedral

The original Cadiz Cathedral completed in 1260 was burnt down in 1596. The 'new' cathedral, built on the same site, was started in 1776 and was finished 116years later.  The different colours of exterior material used were a result of running out of money during the project.  The lower darker colour is the local crushed oyster shells - very beautiful and seen on quite a few buildings around  

Torre Tavira Watch Tower

     Torre Tavira Watch Tower

In the 18th century Cadiz was one of the most important ports and trading centres in Europe becoming a wealthy city. As a result Cadiz became a target for pirates who repeatedly raided the ports.  To protect the coastline and the shipping trade 160 watch towers were built on local merchant houses, this allowed the merchants to observe the ships arriving with goods from the Americas for trade.

 


Local markets are always a feast of the senses. This swordfish head was impressive and the shark looked menacing even dead!  Just wished we had bought our knives for sharpening - a novel (but practical) approach.

A view from our 'back door' at sunrise looking across the marina towards a traditional boat being restored.  Just beautiful.

Again miles and miles of golden sandy beaches

Vibrant and colourful!

 Our next stop is Gibraltar where we intend to stay for a month to spend time working on the boat before heading to Spain.