Gibraltar

Gibraltar is well worth a visit. The best way to visit Gibraltar is to cross the border on foot and leave your car Spain.  Do not forget your ID!

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. It has an area of 6.8 square kilometers and a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major attraction of the area. The economy is mainly based on tourism, financial services and shipping. The name comes from the Arabic (جبل طارق - Jabal Tariq: the mountain of Tariq), the Moorish army chief Tariq ibn Ziyad.

During the War of the Spanish Successionr, in 1704,  Gibraltar was conquered from Spain by an Anglo-Dutch force. This region was then in 1713 under the Treaty of Utrecht "forever" transferred to Britain. It was an important base for the Royal Navy.
The sovereignty of Gibraltar is a important point of contention in Anglo - Spanish relations as Spain asserts a claim to the territory. Gibraltarians rejected proposals for Spanish sovereignty in 1967 and again in 2002. According to the Gibraltar Constitution of 2006 Gibraltar governs its own affairs, though some powers, such as defense and foreign affairs, remain the responsibility of the Government of the United Kingdom.

In Gibraltar, you can take the sightseeing bus. You can also go on foot, then you walk to the town inside the "Land Port", originally the only access by land.
The town is nice to walk and a lot of shopping is possible!  The shopping is tax free !!!

A cable car is definitely worth it. The cable car takes you 412 meters above sea level to the summit of the mountain. There you can meet the monkeys that live on the mountain. Give them certainly no food because they are a bit aggressive. 

The view is spectacular! You have a view of the Mediterranean Sea, the Street of Gibraltar, North - Africa and Spain.

The Rock of Gibraltar has approximately 54 kilometers of tunnels, more than the total length of all streets above ground. This network of tunnels, called galleries, were excavated by the British army over a 200 year period. It served as a storehouse for weapons, ammunition and supplies.

Because the rock is composed of limestone (which is slowly dissolved by rainwater) more than 100 caves are formed in the rock. The most famous cave is St. Michael's Cave. The largest room in the cave, the Cathedral Cave, was so long that people thought you could walk all the way to Africa. The Cathedral Cave is now regularly used for concerts and other events. Archaeological research in Gorham's Cave and other caves shows that the caves were inhabited by Neanderthals. In Gorham's Cave more than 100 objects have been found, dated 24,000 to 28,000 years old. Plant and animal remainings  in the caves have shown that Neanderthals had a lot of variation in their nutrition.