Preparation in Gibraltar

After arriving in Gibraltar on 18 September we spent the next 10 days at the Queensway Quay Marina in Gibraltar preparing to set out for the Canary Islands.  So much to do!

The first two days were spent shopping as we had the hire car.  We drove back into Spain to go the big hardware store; the everything store; the sports and camping store; then finally the grocery store.  Each day we came back with bags and bags of things for the boat, or things to eat which we had to cart to the boat – so glad to have the car to make this job easier.

The next 6 days we worked on the boat, cleaning, fixing, reinstalling.  We slowing made our way through The List of Things to Do, which was renamed The List of Things to Do to Get to the Canaries.  We will leave the rest of The List for when we get there.  Hayley and Megan were amazing finding ways to amuse themselves, exploring their new home.  They also helped with the additional shopping trips we made on foot to get the things we couldn’t buy in Spain, or the things we thought we’d bought but our Spanish failed us.

Dave's favourite spot 

Crew scrubbing the decks

Off to the shops on foot

We had drinks at a neighbouring boat, Sanctuary whose owner (Guy) grew up in Irrubel Road, Newport.  Amazing!  He had some other Australian friends over (from Glenorie!) and we talked about where to go in the Caribbean.

Steak on the BBQ :-)

Hayley practicing the cello!

Glassblowing in the main square
Hayley didn't want to leave.

Sunday was a big day – we were taking Raftkin out for a test run to practice anchoring and to fix the main sail in the lazy bag, something we couldn’t get right in the marina.  We took the boat out into the harbour and anchored over near la Linea.  There was a great fleet of Lasers racing in the bay next to where we anchored.  It was good to see something familiar – we could have been anywhere.

Heading out on Sunday for a test run

After another day of work on the boat on Monday, the girls and I went sight-seeing on Tuesday, catching the gondola to the top of the Rock of Gibraltar.  It was a warm clear day and it was exciting to be doing something away from the boat.  As soon as we got out at the top we saw the monkeys.  Hayley and Megan were not impressed and would have happily climbed on the next gondola back down the mountain.  Mean mummy decided they needed to learn how to cope with these situations, so we headed off to walk back down.

The view from the top was amazing.  We could see all the way to Morocco and out through the straights where we hoped to be sailing in the next day or two.  On our way down we stopped at St Marks Cave, a limestone cave where they also have concerts from time to time. 

A little bit of England in Spain

View of the strait at top of the Rock
Don't trust the monkeys

Tiny door at the top of the Moorish Castle

It was a long walk down in the sun and hard work as the grade was so steep in places we used muscles we never use – especially in our feet!  The kids loved the City Under Siege display, which explained what life was like when the British were under siege on the Rock.  Further down we saw the Moorish Castle, which was my favourite thing.  The thick walls of the castle made the rooms inside tiny compared to the exterior size of the structure. 

We walked back through Gibraltar to the boat right at school home time, so we could see all the children walking up the steps and pathways to their homes.  It was so hot! 

Wednesday was our last day in Gibraltar.  One more trip to the shops to get water and a few fresh food items, Dave did the last few serious jobs on the boat.  Tomorrow is departure day.

Dinner cooked by Hayley and Megan on our last night in Gibraltar