Monday, January 08, 2007
Tuesday 5th December – Marbella & Gibraltar, Spain
We set off for a two hour drive to our next campsite near Marbella. Supremely confident we would be there in time to pitch, set up and have lunch. This was not to be, we arrived at the campsite in plenty of time at 12.30 but, we stupidly decided to drive with the caravan to look for sites, we ended up going down a road unsuitable for caravans and had to turnaround. The pitches were not great and after unhitching the caravan and leaving it in the main thoroughfare we drove the car to find a suitable pitch. We eventually found one but by the time we were parked and ready to have lunch it was close to 3pm.
So we have spent a few leisurely days going to the beach, which is a very short drive, we would walk if we did not have the snails we take everywhere with us. We have also been taking advantage of their swimming pool.
In between these leisurely days we visited Gibraltar. This is truly a little bit of Britain, in one way the familiarity with the signposts, the buses, the police uniforms, the shops and the language is quietly reassuring, but it is also a bit disappointing. We searched for the 100 ton gun and with our track record we were most surprised to actually find it. Duly impressed by the Victorian engineering ,we had a good climb over it and were then on our way. The cable cars to the top of the rock were not working due to cross winds so we opted for a mini bus tour. The guide was very good and the tour was enjoyable, so we took in the caves, the tunnels and the Barbary Apes. Of course the Apes were the highlight for the boys. It has been estimated that there are 33 miles worth of tunnels built into the rock, including a hospital and room for 30,000 people to seek refuge. The tour that most see is where the tunnels started during the “great siege” in the 1700’s and is just a taster of what lies beyond. Apparently there is a tour available with an army guide to show you the other parts of the tunnels including the hospital.
