Small Thoughts: Mediterranean Cruise

My previous post took us up through our stop in Seville. This post will cover Gibraltar, an at sea day, and Sète, France.

Day 4 - Gibraltar, UK

Link to Gibraltar, UK Pictures

After a very enjoyable final stop in Spain we were off for Gibraltar. Short trip by sea and an early arrival meant lots of time to explore a fascinating little chunk of real estate. There is lots of history about Gibraltar on the internet and it is almost all amazing. Our shore excursion for the day was a trip up to the rock (what else would you do here???) for a visit with the monkeys and some tours through the siege tunnels.

We got started early, even before the sun decided to join us. First impression was cramped - everything is piled on top of something else. I am sure it is necessitated by the limited geography offered by this little spit of land. We made our way from the ship to the rock with our tour guide providing a very entertaining history of Gibraltar. He also provided us many warnings about the monkeys and their devious ways. No food of any kind, avoid shiny stuff, keep track of your bags - all aimed at reducing thievery by the monkey population.

I will admit that at first I was skeptical and had managed to convince myself that we would be lucky to see a single monkey at this hour. Luckily I was wrong! Two (maybe three) ways to get to the top of the rock. Take the tram (our method), take a cab (and risk your life), or hike it (for the younger folks, perhaps). We packed into the tram like sardines in a can and made our way to the visitor's center at the top and were immediately rewarded with stunning views and lots of monkeys. As soon as they see the fresh meat coming up they crowd around the visitor's center hoping to get some fresh treats or trinkets.

Gibraltar has actually taken aggressive steps to preserve the monkey population, keep them healthy and prevent them from descending the rock to town. They feed them twice daily with their typical dietary foods (fruits, veggies, etc) and have vets to look after their health. There are stiff fines associated with intentionally feeding or mistreating them. The monkeys are VERY comfortable around humans and it was not unusual to have one (or several) walk/run right next to us. Pretty cool!

The siege tunnels offered a sobering look into life on the rock during the various conflicts. Hard to imagine the armies digging through that rock to place cannon. I will say this - when someone says that something is as "...solid as the Rock of Gibraltar...", you might want to exercise some caution. That thing is swiss cheese with the natural caverns and man-made tunnels!

Gibraltar has a uniquely challenging airport that I had actually heard about on one of my many Discovery channel shows. The runway cuts across the only road in and out of Gibraltar. When a plane is ready to take off or land they close the road to traffic. We were lucky enough to observe the process while at the top and it was quite fascinating. The other challenging thing about this airport is that the rocks and ocean combine to make some crazy and unpredictable wind patterns. I believe being rated to fly into Gibraltar puts you in rare company.

Africa made a pleasant appearance while we were on top. We were at the visitor's center while the sun rose and the mountains of North Africa appeared through the clouds.

After our excursion we had time for some walking around Gibraltar. We enjoyed (?) traditional British fish and chips, gelato and some shopping. I meant to ask my British friend if leaving the skin on the fish is normal?

My impressions of Gibraltar - reasonably clean, very crowded, felt very safe. The trip to the top of the Rock is absolutely worth your time. I am leaving fish and chips to others.

The Rock before sunrise.

Constellation from the Rock.

Jeannette's only desire was to see a monkey. What do you do when that goal is met within minutes?

Posing for me.

Here's the tram we took from the bottom to the visitor's center on top of the Rock.

Monkey feeding time.

Beautiful sunrise over the Strait of Gibraltar.

Inside the siege tunnels with a restored canon placement.

A plane is coming...close the road!

A sweeper goes out to clean the runway and make sure no debris is present.

Here's the plane crossing the same section of runway that traffic was just using moments ago!

Plane landed, let the traffic go.

Momma and baby. Just as comfortable as all the other monkeys.

Outstanding wine selection of the day - nice job Karlene!

The mountains of North Africa make an appearance through the clouds.

Day 5 - At Sea Cruising

Link to At Sea Pictures

Day 5 was spent at sea on our way to Sete, France. We didn't have much planned except for eating, drinking and playing cards. Ken and I decided to take part in a "behind the scenes" tour of the ship with promised stops in the galley, support spaces, engineering control room and bridge area.

I was amazed by all of the activity that is happening right under our feet to make sure the cruise experience is enjoyable. Knew there was a lot going on, but actually seeing it was pretty cool.

I think the highlight of the tour was the time we spent on the bridge. It was a great way to kill several hours.

The booze locker. Well, one of several.

From the bridge.

The bridge. Amazing how similar to a submarine it looks...not!

Looking aft from the bridge.

One of many fantastic selections form the pastry chef :)

A small section of the galley. Holy cow it is a huge operation, and the turn out great food.

Day 6 - Sète, France

Link to Sète, France Pictures

First off, it is pronounced "Set". Get it wrong and you are labeled a tourist...as if the lack of ability to speak anything other than American English wasn't enough indication! Sète was an interesting stop. We actually spent no time in Sète - our entire excursion happened away form the port in the French countryside.

Our excursion in Sète included a stop in a French city, Pézenas, to tour some older buildings, and a stop at a French Abbey for a tour of the buildings and some wine sampling :)

Pézenas was a fun stop. Our guide walked us around an older part of the town and demonstrated the styles of architecture common to the area. I was impressed by the condition of the buildings - most are currently occupied by families or used by businesses. The typical style includes a ground level courtyard originally used for keeping livestock and multiple upper levels for family and house staff. Bigger house = more money and more important.

Our stroll through Pézenas also included a quick stop at a French bakery for what I have to admit was the absolute best pastry I have ever enjoyed! A fresh croissant melted in my mouth and made me wish I had a much larger stomach! We also had time to do a little shopping at local shops and enjoyed a nice cup of cappuccino at a small French cafe.

There was a small group of people in our tour group who seemed to struggle with the concept of "...be back to the meeting point at...". Most of us made it back to the bus in time for departure, but our "friends" were nowhere to be found. Our guide eventually left the bus to stroll through the small town in search of them, and finally they returned to scattered cynical clapping and a smattering of boos from those of us who made it back.

Next stop on our excursion - the Valmagne Abbey. Another spectacular stop with tours of the buildings and gardens and a brief stop for a wine tasting. This abbey is now privately owned and serves mostly as a winery and gathering place - no monks here now. It is in excellent shape. One of the things that I found most impressive was the use of cypress trees along the side of the country roads to create a tunnel-like effect. Our guide told us it dates to several hundred years ago when most traffic was by foot or horse, and those trees were the source of relief from the hot summer sun. It is truly impressive to see.

We made it back to the ship in time for dinner and rest from our busy day of eating and drinking our way across the French countryside.