The next day we drove to a beach just north of Gibraltar to go swimming again. It was a different beach. The rocks/sand stuck to you when you were dry instead of wiping off. It got deep really fast. You could see the rock of Gibraltar at a distance. They said that there were bathrooms and showers at this beach and there looks like there were, but they haven't been in use for a while. There was a medieval tower on the beach. The kids saw their first topless sunbather at this beach too. There were only 4-5 other people on the beach besides us, so we just went down the beach aways to have some privacy. The kids say that the Mediterranean Sea is not warm yet. I'm guessing that we'd have to be farther from the Atlantic and more into the summer season. We had snacks on the beach and enjoyed the sun before driving into Gibraltar.
When we crossed lines to Gibraltar, the signs were now all in English and we had to go through a passport check. That was fine. But then trying to find our Airbnb was the hardest thing ever. The streets as you go up Gibraltar get smaller and smaller. They are ALL one way as well so once you start going up, you can't come down until you get all the way up. Since there were no legal parking places, I stayed with the car and Jer took the kids and luggage to get checked in. First they couldn't find the place. Then they couldn't find the key where it was supposed to be. Then they found that there wasn't any toilet paper at the place. First thing we did was go find a public car park and leave the van there for the next two nights. Then we went to a grocery store and got toilet paper and breakfasts for the next two mornings. We had just enough time to get dinner before getting home and bathing everyone and doing homework. Jer had been joking about this restaurant that he saw on the map called the Clipper. We figured it was too far away, but we just went down the block from the grocery store and it was the first restaurant that we came to. It was like a Sunday dinner place. Mashed potatoes and gravy. Stroganoff. Soup. Then it was off up a million flights of stairs and to bed.
On our way to Gibraltar, we saw 4 or 5 of these random metal bulls on hills.
This one legged pigeon was hanging out in the restaurant and no one cared.
The next day we spent the entire day getting up the rock of Gibraltar and wandering it. We walked down to the cable car and visited the Trafalgar cemetery on the way. That was a fun history lesson. Then we caught the cable car to the top. The rock of Gibraltar is the only place in Europe that has wild monkeys. You aren't allowed to touch them, but they are everywhere. We found the skywalk and the suspension bridge after a little trial and error. We also found St. Michael's cave. There was a strong mold smell coming from that one, so I sat outside while they explored. They loved how they incorporated projectors on nature for some neat experiences. Then we had lunch at a little cafe at the top. A monkey even came in and stole a stuffed souvenir monkey from the front desk. They had to bribe it to drop the fake monkey with an apple. We then climbed all the way back down the mountain with stops to rest feet, and to check out the WWI guns on the rock face.
This german guy jumped in the picture because I was telling "Everyone get in the picture" to my kids. He was so funny. Him and his wife were visiting their son in Spain and decided to hop on down to Gibraltar to. I asked where they were from and he said, "The Black Forrest."
This was on the back of the sign as we walked by. Does that look family Dad?
We all wanted to stay on the bridge longer because there was a nice breeze walking across it.
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