After last nights Flamenco exhibition, it would be difficult to find anything more fun in Sevilla, so its time to move on again. This time were leaving Spain again, even if its just for a few hours, to visit Gibraltar, which is actually part of Britain. We cant actually bring the bus into Gibraltar, both because its too big to get very far, but more because the bus and our luggage inside are subject to search by British Customs and this could cause a long delay. There has always been animosity between the Spanish and British Governments, but it has really been flaring up lately due to Brexit, and this has been causing customs delays.
The story goes that back in the 18th century, when Spanish king didnt have any children, the children or grandchildren, of the Austrian king and the French king were trying to claim the throne. The Spanish did not want Austria to win, and so they supported France. The French enlisted the help of the British, and ultimately the French won it wa=hat was called the War of Spanish Succession. France had to reward Britain for their help in defeating the Austrians, and Britain wanted control
of Gibraltar in perpetuity. Not realizing the strategic importance of Gibraltar, France gave it to Britain. Over the years, Spain has tried to reclaim Gibraltar, but the Brits have never been so inclined. But now things are different.
Back in 1967, Gibraltar had a referendum where voters were asked whether they preferred to remain part of Britain or part of Spain. The Gibraltar voters overwhelmingly chose to remain with Britain. But when Brexit came, Gibraltar voters overwhelming voted to remain in the EU, but Britain decided to leave. Up until now, Gibraltar being a member of the EU was protected from Spain doing anything untoward by the rules of the EU. But now that Brexit has occurred, and Britain and Gibraltar are no longer in the EU, Gibraltar has no one to is Spain is mistreating them as they have lost the EU as their protector. Harassment by British Customs is only the beginning, who knows how far this will go
But before Gibraltar, we headed southeast out of Sevilla toward the Mediterranean Coast and Gibraltar on its southernmost tip. As we headed south, the farmland opened up and while most of the land was
being used for farming, mostly sunflowers, some of the land was being used for ranching, and more specifically for raising bulls to be used in bull fights. While bull fighting is a tradition in Spain, its popularity has been diminishing over the years with bull fighting prohibited in some of Spains territories, and fully 20% of Spaniards find bull fighting disturbing. But for now, the cities all have bull fighting rings and bull fighting is still a national sport.
Beyond the bull ranches, the terrain begins to more mountainous as we approach the Mediterranean coast, and the Rock of Gibraltar began to loom in the distance. The peak of the Rock of Gibraltar rises about 1300 ft out of the water, but the total area is only about 2.5 sq miles. It has a population of about 32,000 people who are of British, Spanish, and Moroccans. It has housed military bases throughout the various wars, as it is right at the entrance of the Straights of Gibraltar which is a 9 mile wide passage between Spain and North Africa at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. But now Gibraltars military have mostly left, and the locals
rely mostly on tourism, and for its economy. Because of its unique status, it is somehow the preferred tax haven for most of the worlds online gambling.
So, the bus dropped us off at the Spanish Customs office so we could show our passports and wals nacross to the British side. We then boarded a British for our trip to the town square. But first we had to wait at the aircraft crossing, much like a railroad crossing as the road crosses the active runway, and we have to wait whenever a plane takes off or lands. Fortunately that only happens a few times per day.
