Europe: Gibraltar 2025

"Life begins at the end of your comfort zone."

Neale Donald Walsch

On November 10th and 11th, while travelling in Spain, Melanie & I took a short diversion to that other British colony endearingly known as 'The Rock'....

Gibraltar

In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht ended the War of the Spanish Succession by forcing France to cede both Newfoundland and Gibraltar to Britain, officially making both British colonies.  Fast-forward to the present and Gibraltar, while still considered a territory of Britain, is by-n-large a self-governing parliamentary country.  It's a tiny territory, only a mere 6.8 sq. km., but the dominate 'Rock' reaches a height of 426 metres.  Most of the Rock's upper area is covered by a nature reserve which is home to around 230 Barbary macaques, the famous "apes" of Gibraltar (which are actually monkeys), these are the only wild apes or monkeys found in Europe.

 


The moment you see the 'Rock', you realize something doesn't seem quite right - it looks totally out of place; there isn't another geological formation like it along this part of the Spanish coast.  It's only when you look the 9 kms. across the Strait of Gibraltar to Morocco do you realize that the Rock was meant to be over there in Africa.  Obviously; it didn't break off correctly when the continents split....the Rock, the English and even the monkeys all seems like they should be somewhere else but where they are.

Gibraltar has but one town, aptly called Gibraltar Town, where all of the 33,000 residents reside.....

Around Town

The international airport runway - a Gibraltar oddity: look closely and you'll see the main road into the territory.  It bisects the runway for which pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists must cross (a tunnel is used for vehicle traffic)......

....when an airplane is using the runway, the main road is closed (as is the case here) and you have to wait.....

...after the airplane has done its thing, the road reopens and everyone is allowed to cross the tarmac, similar to walking down any street.  Situation normal!

How British is this little finger of land jutting out into the Mediterranean Sea you ask?  Very British actually - Spain was neutral in both World Wars and it has no association with November 11th Remembrance Day, it's just another day for them, but here - different story.

Like most communities in this part of the world, they have a walking street.  This one keeps traffic at bay with huge barriers, tastefully reminding people of their British heritage.

All around town are signs of the historic military importance of this chunk of rock, including the historic San Pedro Battery (one of many here).

Damn, I wish these port-a-potties would have frosted windows!

We found our go-to bar called The Skull, named after the first ever discovered Neanderthal skull in a quarry just up the road from here....not this skull, it's a fake.

Joe, the Belfast bartender at The Skull.  He had Irish wit, a strong broque and a love for Canadian hockey.

Mel informed me that she met some guy named Robert.  She said he was a policeman, (an unlikely story I said), but as it turns out "Bob" was a policeman.  Mel lost interest after she found out he lived at home in his parents basement.  Some people simply never grow up and leave home.

After spending most of our first day wandering around Gibraltar town, it was time to tackle the......

Rock

We've all heard the saying "solid as the Rock of Gibraltar" which is used to describe an entity that is very safe or firm.  To get to the top of that safe, firm and solid rock, requires walking or taking an extortionate-priced cable car to the top - which we did (cause we were at The Skull, the night before)! 

First stop was to visit the Great Siege Tunnels.  Over the centuries, Gibraltar built approximately 55km. of tunnels within the Rock for defense purposes.  Apparently, this is double the length of the roads within the territory, meaning they were better at building tunnels than roads!

This set of tunnels were built in 1782 to fend off the warring Spanish and have become a major tourist attraction (something the original builders probably envision happening 240+ years later).

An elaborate series of gun galleries were strategically place within the west side of the Rock, where the British could blast the poop out of the warring Spanish.

After walking nearly all the way down off the Rock to see the Great Siege Tunnels, we turned around and huffed back up the Rock to see the other attractions it has to offer, including the Windsor Suspension Bridge.

Spanning over 70 metres across a 50 metre gorge, the bridge can only be crossed if you correctly answer all three of the bridge-keepers questions - which apparently I did.  Melanie, on the other hand,  couldn't remember her favourite colour, and was therefore tossed off.

The bridge has anti-jumping wire mesh running its full length, just in the event you wanted to commit the hairy canary or push the Instagramming Glamour Girls off.

Of course, no trip to the Gibraltar Rock would be complete without seeing the monkeys, similarly no trip is complete to the Newfoundland Rock without seeing the monkeys on George Street.  Same same only different.

"WTF George, where did you get all the fleas?"

The famous "Rock Apes", how they got here is a mystery but the most likely story is they came as pets when the Moors conquered this part of the world.

The monkeys started up quite the business - posing for the tourists and then charging 10£ for the pictures.....cheeky monkeys!

Our next stop on the Rock was to visit St. Michael's Cave, an elaborate cave system that has had a Neanderthal presence dating back over 40,000 years ago.  However, more recent history shows that the Greeks, Romans and Phoenicians all had an association with the place.    

This cave is named after these particular stalactites, which seem ordinary enough and can be found in just about any cave in the world.....

....but add a little bit of coloured lighting and, BOOM, it becomes St. Michael the Archangel, who continues to battle the three evils of society: Satan, Hitler and Donald Trump.

The ancient Romans believe this cave to be the Temple of Hercules....you may notice a resemblance between me and Hercules who was renowned for his strength and far-ranging adventures!!!  Just saying!!

Meanwhile, the ancient Greeks thought that this cave was the entrance to Hades, their mythological underworld.  Perhaps - but do they serve cold beer there?

The largest of the cave chambers (named Cathedral Cave), currently serves as an auditorium complete with seating for 100 people, colourful lighting and outstanding sound acoustics, not to mention this backdrop!!!.

Our final activity in Gibraltar involves getting down off the Rock without taking a second mortgage out to do so.  Our plan is to hike down the Mediterranean Steps, which was built by the British military to allow access to some of their more remote military defense posts.  The Steps are steep and not for people suffering from extreme vertigo!  Perfect!!

The north face of the Rock with its 390 metre near vertigo high cliffs.  The Med Steps start here!

It is down down down from here!

It's over 1,400 steps down.  Hard on the knees, but the views are an awesome reward for the pain!

There are places where the trail levels out and even a couple of places where you have to go back up, however these are few and far between!

Europa Point Lighthouse with Morocco in the distance!

If you fall here, it's straight down....now the fall won't kill you, so my advice is to enjoy the trip down.....having said that, the abrupt stop will certainly kill you, so my advice is to avoid that part.

The Steps are in the shadow of the Rock for all of the climb down, so you know you've come to the end when you walk into the sun!

And with that we conclude our trip to Gibraltar.  tomorrow we head back to Spain to continue our trip there!

Europe: Andorra 2025

 "Life is not what you have, but the experiences you have lived."

Unknown

On October 20, 2025, Melanie and myself fly across the big pond to the tiny European mountain country of...

Andorra

Officially called the Principality of Andorra, you'd be forgiven if you never heard of this landlocked sovereign microstate in Southwestern Europe, afterall; it's probably not on most people's bucket-list.  With an area of ​​468 km²,  Andorra is located high in the Pyrenees mountains, between Spain and France. The official language is Catalan and while nine-million people worldwide speak it, Andorra is the only country where it is the national language.

The 87,000 residents enjoy a unique form of government - a parliamentary co-principality whose heads of state are the co-princes of Andorra; being​ the Spanish Bishop of Urgell and the President of France.  Is it an odd form of government......yes, but alas it has worked since the year 1278 making it one of the oldest countries in world today.

The first time I ever heard of Andorra was when we were travelling in 2015 near Toulouse, in France, and our travelling bud at the time, Paul Delaney, who mentioned that Andorra was only 125kms away and we should do a side trip.  That sidetrip never materialized, but ten years later we returned to the region to check out this tiny nation.  We planned three nights in the capital......

Andorra la Vella

In Catalan, 'Andorra la Vella' means 'the city of Andorra', and it holds the distinction as the highest capital in Europe, being situated +1,000 m.a.s.l.  As cities go, this be a very small one (only 22,000 residents), but in the world of shoppers - this be a very big one, with over 2,000 duty-free shops & stores, making it somewhat like a large open-air shopping mall (we did not come for the shopping - actually we never even set foot in a store....true story)!

The Pyrenee Mountains hem Andorra la Vella into a narrow valley on all sides with limited room for growth.  

Andorra is not a European Union country even though they use the Euro.  When you cross the land border (there is no airport) you get no 'passport stamp' proving you were there.  What usually happens is a customs officer gets on the bus and checks your passport and then you're good to go!  If you want proof that you were there, then this picture showing the 'Andorra la Vella' bridge is it!

There's a walking street that pretty much spans the entire city.  It's  lined with store after store after store.  We went there once, which was enough for us.

Smack-dab in the middle of town is Salvador Dali's, Nobility of Time - symbolizing the passage of time (I read that).  As Dali himself stated regarding his art, "What matters is to sow confusion, not eliminate it."!  OK, now I'm confused.

Not to be outdone by Dali, is the Seven Poets, a piece by Jaume Plensa - the same artist who also created Four Yellow Guys Sitting on Sticks.

On the European continent, where a normal cup of coffee is measured by the tablespoon, seeing this Canadian icon where you can buy a double-double-extra-extra large cup of coffee, makes you wonder on its survival chances!

This very mountainous country has extremely limited farmland, but they still managed to put some of it aside for an equivalent Golden Arm RV Park! Same-same only different!

If you're in Andorra la Vella, your neighbourhood choices for staying are (1) New Town, where the draw is the duty-free-shop-til-you-drop scene, or (2) Old Town, the historic core where there's rich history, preserved medieval architecture, narrow cobblestone streets, ancient city walls, and historic squares.  This creates a walkable experience that transports visitors back in time, often enhanced by local cafes, unique shops and a vibrant cultural atmosphere - we stayed in Old Town.

Andorra's Parliamentary Building in the historic Old Town has been the seat of government for over 300 years.  True story!

Enjoying a tall cool one at the neighbourhood taverna!!  Like ya would!

The 11th century, Saint Esteve Church in the old town.  

The country's rugged terrain and high-altitude provide an ideal setting for the nation's love of outdoor activities.  The landscape fosters a strong hiking culture with several well-groomed trails lining the city parameter....

Municipal hiking trails here are more like pedestrian highways - motorized means of enjoying the outdoors is highly discouraged.

These walking trails are all part of the cityscape with municipal workers maintaining them the same way they maintain the city streets - a proactive practice our municipal governments should consider. 

Our time in Andorra la Vella wasn't all spent sipping cold beer in the neighbourhood taverna's (we also sipped wine)!!  However, to break things up, we grabbed a bus and headed to the tiny village of......

Ordino

This historic village (4,000 residents) was chosen in 2023 as one of 250 best tourist villages in the world by the United Nations - definitely a big deal! 

We actually planned on going to another village, but took the wrong bus or wrong advise or both.  Regardless; we find ourselves here and we were not disappointed with our 'ooops moment'.  

Exploring the ancient alleyways.

A small family chapel originally built in the 1780's.  I got to be honest it looks older than that......

.....The Church of Saint Cornelius & Saint Cyprian of Ordino (a double sainted church - how lucky for them)!  Believe it or not, this church was first mentioned in 9th century church documents.....I got to be honest it looks a lot younger than that! 

Our raison d'etre for coming to this tiny country was actually to hike the .....

Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley

Andorra's only UNESCO World Heritage site, this glacial valley represents the interdependence of mountain life and human activity over a couple of millennia and that is good enough for us to want to hike it!  Not everyone's cup of tea but different strokes for different folks!!

The trail climbs a whopping 805 metres over a 12 kilometre span!  Doesn't sound too difficult for those that don't hike, but believe me when I tell you a 800+ metre elevation gain is a real huffer and puffer....and then you got to turn around and head back!

The valley is uninhabited but it features man-made structures dating back to medieval times.

One of the few hikers we passed along the way!

Ramio, a small summertime village consisting of shepherds who bring their sheep and cattle here to graze on the high terraced fields.  However, this time of year they are all gone back to lower pastures.

Everywhere you look is evidence of a medieval construction boom!

After 2004, when it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site, any plans to make the valley more accessible to tourist was scrapped.  The cobblestone road that runs through the middle of the valley is reserved for foot traffic only, as it was for hundreds of years.  You want to see this beautiful place you got to put the effort into it!

Fall colours.   How many horses do you see?

Even though it was late October, the temperature was a comfortable 18C, however, two days later it snowed up here! 

Glacier scrapped bedrock reminding us of home!

After three hours of climbing up, this was our turn-around point, as the day was getting long-in-the-tooth and we still had a three hour hike back down.

An ancient medieval home.....

....a modern ancient medieval home.

And with the completion of our hike, our time in Andorra comes to an end.  We leave the next day for a four week trip to Spain.