At last - GIBRALTAR !

From the ship’s Navigator, it is mentioned, early this morning Saturday May 31st 2008, we continued to follow various westerly courses through traffic separation schemes, and eventually altered to the north when abeam of Punta Europa which lies to the north of the strait, just before the narrows. On this northerly heading we embarked our pilot and made our final approach to the berth in Gibraltar. The weather is of mix sun and clouds with a chance of rain. Winds northeast 10 - 15 knots. Highs 22 degrees Centigrade / 71 degrees Fahrenheit.

This is one place and country that we have been wanting to visit despite the discouragement we have been given that it is so small to make it any worthwhile to do so. Back in the Eighties, Farazil used to visit the place since he had then a Gibraltaran girlfriend. From the photo that he showed us then, she was quite pretty. Farazil always have good eyes for beauty. In fact in this aspect it speaks well for him in other picks such as clothing, shoes, and essentials for his profession as Executive Chef. Farazil is presently at the Hyatt Hotel Kota Kinabalu.

The Rock - as it is always referred to - crouches over the sea like an ancient stone beast, looking Sphinx-like to Africa. Beneath the white cliffs - a natural fortress - grows a profusion of palm, pine and cypress. No fewer than 600 varieties of flowers grow here, some not found anywhere else on earth. Gibraltar’s stunning setting is matched by its history : five countries have battled for 13 centuries to control the passage between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The result made for a cultural melting pot : veiled Moroccan women in caftans stroll the narrow steep lanes ; locals revert to a liquid Spanish when talking among themselves ; and visitors to the 15th-century cathedral pass through a blue-tiled court yard, once part of a 13th century mosque. It is to our delight that we find another mosque built in the early seventies by the Muslims community who have become permanent residents of Gibraltar. The Ibrahim Al-Ibrahim Mosque is situated overlooking the traffic lane of the surrounding sea. The six of us, Rahim, Bahari and wife Aisya, Wahab and wife Noni and I are indeed privileged to say our prayers in this mosque, which we find very well designed for the local Muslims community usage amongst which includes weddings and other gatherings to foster closer relationship amongst themselves. As we see it, the Ibrahim Al-Ibrahim Mosque symbolizes the continued spread of Islam to this part of the world. In a way this speaks well of Gibraltar as a whole. From the conversations I have with the local traders at the main street shopping area of this unique rocky island, Gibraltar is proud of its complete coexistence amongst the local and the foreign residents. It is 100% crime free to the extend that nobody ever locks their house at any time of day or night and that goes with the cars too. A Pakistani trader I meet who runs a jewelry shop on main street tells me how he could not find a pad lock to lock his house when he first came, only to be told by the locals that he does not have to lock anything. His body and property is 100% safe in Gabraltar ! This bears similarity to our own Langkawi Island which also boasts of theft free as far as cars are concerned since nobody ever bothers to lock theirs and belongings left in them are guaranteed safe too.

All I can conclude of this wonderful "paradise" city is that I really enjoy my short day here despite the fact that I am alone all the time after we disperse from our mosque trip. Ainul and the others have good shopping here. With the Marks and Spencer's shop which sells fairly cheap compared to our country and London, they say, Ainul buys me a pair of jeans and shirt to match whilst she buys for herself a warm vest. It is whilst waiting for the rest to show up so that we can all go back together to the ship that I feel hungry and decide to experience the locals fish and chips. Almost after I place my order at the seemingly most popular fish and chips outlet here, Bahari and Aisya happen to pass by and I conclude the they must be thinking of having food too. So I invite them to join me and they order similar choice as mine. To my unexpectation, Bahari gives me a treat ! Rahim is equally generous with the taxi fare that we have for the mosque trip when he contributes to my share of the fare ! These are indeed very generous doctors. Anyway, in ends up with me going back alone to the ship since the rest stay back until late in the day.

As a point of interest though, Gibraltar is 2.75 miles long, three-quarters of a mile wide and 1,396 feet in height. Official language is English although Spanish, Italian and Portuguese are spoken. It’s capital is Gibraltar as indeed it has no other province or district. Its government a British dependency since 1704, although an elected House of Assembly controls most domestic affairs. Its currency the British pound sterling and population almost 30,000. Although it is small in term of its size as a country and rock protrusion in the sea, the Rock Of Gibraltar has become a symbol of durability and permanence. With its strategic location at the western entrance of the Mediterranean, "the Rock" offers great value as a military strong point. There is little wonder why it has been such a great source of contention over the centuries.

Europe is only eight miles from Africa at this point, and the Straits are 36 miles long. Whoever controls Gibraltar and the harbour at its base is in a good position to control the passage between Atlantic and Mediterranean waters. The Rock itself is a natural fortress with a sheer vertical face to the east. Today it has an ethnic mix of Spaniards, Moors, Arabs, and British and all the new traders from far and wide, which bespeaks of its colourful history as ‘the Rock" in demand.

The ancient Greeks called the two sides of the Straits the Pillars of Hercules. In the year 711, a Moorish army led by Tariq ibn Zeyad crossed over from North Africa and began the conquest of Spain for Islam. The name "gibraltar" is derived from "Gebel-Tarik", which means Tariq’s Rock. He built a strong fortification to secure his communications with Morocco. Thus we see the ruins of a Moor’s Castle which represents part of this fortification construction.

Tatiq’s army of 12,000 Arabs and Berbers began what would be more than seven centuries of Moorish presence in Spain. It was not a harmonious occupation, and Spanish armies traded control of the Rock with the Moors several times. The Spaniards finally recovered control of it in 1462, on the feast of St. Bernard. Since that time, St. Bernard has been the patron saint of Gibraltar Town, with special celebration held each year on August 20.

The modern history of Gibraltar began in 1704, during the War of the Spanish Succession. A strong British naval force under Admiral Rooke captured the town and the fortress. "Rooke’s Rock" has remained in British hands ever since, in spite of many Spanish and French attempts to recapture it. It remains a contention for these two European nations. More recently, very extensive fortification was done during World War II . Gibraltar was a key naval and sea base, especially for the campaign against U-boats, It was also the home base of Admiral Somerville’s powerful "Force H", which kept an eye on Mussolini’s fleet, and supported the convoys to reinforce Malta. Although Spain was neutral during the War, General Franco still hoped to regain Gibraltar. The Rock was never actually attacked, but the garrison spent much effort preparing for the worst. Thus defensive tunnels were constructed against bombing from the air. Even General Eisenhower planned the 1942 invasion of North Africa from here.

Today Gibraltar is the home of the famous Barbary Apes, which are tail- less monkeys and native to this place only and cannot be found in the rest of Europe. Legend has it that the British will retain the Rock as long as the Apes live here. At one point during the War, they seemed to be dying out. Fearful of poor morale at a critical time, Winston Churchill gave the legend a bit of help by bringing in ape-reinforcements from North Africa in 1944. Today they number 60. Other denizens of the place include migratory birds such as honey buzzards, griffons, black stocks and the unique short-toed eagles. Britain granted substantial self-government to the colony in 1964, and it has been since an autonomous member of the British Commonwealth, and hence the British sterling pounds currency’s usage here.

Back at the ship and the night’s entertainment, it is Spotlight Showtime starring Impressionist Tony Pace , the man with multiple voice who just happens to be really funny. At the Vista Lounge at the same time there is Production Show Motor City which is said to be very good too and we really do not wish to miss this too. Fortunately it has a repeat performance tomorrow and we earmark this for our next show.

The ship’s entertainment spots are really unending if you feel like indulging in all. For instance whilst we enjoy the shows at the Princess Theatre, others can enjoy the Romantic Trio strolling melodies, fun games called Country & Western Trivia and the Country & Western Line Dance Party at the Explorers Lounge . Other musical entertainers include Pete Nilson Duo dance music at the Wheelhouse Bar, and International Piano Entertainer Bruce Tilden at the Promenade Lounge. As for those moviegoers at the Movies Under the Stars on Decks 14 & 15 where the buffet food is, "The Golden Compass" is showing continuously whilst at the Vista Lounge late night movie " Michael Clayton" is showing. It is at this movie that Ainul and I have a very nice sleep almost throughout the show. We discover later on that both Rahim and Bahari see the movie too but I do not venture to discuss it for reasons my readers already know from our past movie adventure with them . They are serious moviegoers !

( TO BE CONTINUED )