Gibraltar

If home is where the heart is, my home is and always will be, the small and mighty Rock of Gibraltar.
Of all the places I've visited in the world I think that Gibraltar is one of the most curious. In the Iberian Peninsula, at the Southernmost tip of Europe, at the edge of a vast plain rises a great limestone rock. When seeing it rising out of the straits for the first time (keep in mind I have no idea what that feels like having been born on the thing) I can imagine that it looks rather impressive - but it isn't just the structure of it that has shaped Gibraltar's past, it is its location: Piercing out of the water between beautiful sandy coasts, Gibraltar acts as the gatekeeper of the Mediterranean. As one of the Pillars of Hercules it was believed to mark the end of the known world back in the days when the Greeks wore togas, but it is its strategic importance that has made these tiny 2.6 square miles what it is today.

Whenever I've told people I am from Gibraltar the initial reaction has usually been "Oh, I have never met anyone from Gibraltar" ... Well, if you come from a town with a population of 30,000, the chances would be that I've never met anyone from there either... The next question is very often "Do you feel British or Spanish?". That one is easy. If nationality really can be classed as a feeling, then what I 'feel' is Gibraltarian. Part of what makes the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar a curious place is not its Britishness, it is its Gibraltarianess. 30,000 people with a unique culture, a unique sense of humour, a unique language, a unique economy and a unique identity. Ethnically, we are Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Maltese, English as well as Moroccan, Jewish, Indian and more. It is that unique mix that makes us who we are as a people much more than our proximity to Spain or our British passports.

I am not English and I am not Spanish. I am Gibraltarian, I am Mediterranean, I am British, I am European and I feel proud of all of these things. I do love Spain however. When I meet people from different countries and I talk about Gibraltar I also talk to them about Andalucia. In my opinion, Andalucia is one of the most beautiful places in the world and my love for travel was nurtured there. The music, the people, the history, the food, the architecture, the coasts, the mountains and the energy of Andalucia have also helped shape who I am and whilst I don't "feel" Spanish, Andalucia holds a place in my heart.

We are not Spanish and yet Spain holds a lot of power over us for obvious reasons. It is in our interests to have good political relations with Spain, but if Spain does not want good political relations with us, there is little we can do... When having good political relations means having to compromise on our territorial rights then clearly we have a problem.

The hate campaign that rages in Spain sometimes becomes personal and therefore impossible to ignore. Naturally, it hasn't affected my relationships, but with Gibraltarian cars being set on fire and a completely shocking, limitless and disgusting hate campaign on social media (ranging from branding us as pirates, criminals, dogs, apes and culminating with death threats against our Chief Minister) there become less and less chances for good personal relationships due solely to the small mindedness of certain hateful individuals. Add to this completely false reports in the Spanish media that plant seeds of hate that spread like wildfire and we are powerless to do anything.

The other thing that we face now that we never faced in the past is the accessibility of people's opinions on social media. It's so easy to see the hate that exists on both sides which just serves to fuel the fire. I find it hard myself not to get emotionally involved - when I read sweeping statements insulting me, insulting my people how else am I supposed to react?  But I don't hold it against spanish people in general, that would be idiotic, I hold it only against the small minded individuals insistent on turning this political circus into a personal war. I resent them on both sides. I resent them everywhere that they exist in the world for whatever reason they choose to discriminate and judge, whether it be anti-muslim, anti-immigrant, anti-spanish, anti-gibraltar, anti-communist, anti-woman... I am anti-anti. Hate is a strong emotion so to fling it around blindly at people or things that you don't understand is a complete waste of energy and the irony is that the hateful people with opposing views are more similar to each other than any other people on this planet - the same values, the same ideologies, the same reactions, the same emotions - they just happen to be on different sides.

Aside from all this, I am enjoying being back home and spending time with my amazing family and friends who I love to pieces - being away also makes you realise how good things are back home. Thank you so much for reading my ramblings - I can only hope that I've inspired you to book a flight!


 The Rock:

'

Our beautiful sunsets over the bay:

Our barbary macaques:

Andalucia:

Sevilla:

La Alhambra, Granada:

Ronda:

View of Gibraltar and Morocco from Estepona:

One of my favourite beaches in the World in Tarifa:

Morocco, Also a big influence on our unique little culture.  Tangiers:

Guilin

Our first taste of China came on our 6 hour train journey to Guilin which seemed set to be a particularly uncomfortable experience when we realised we didn't have any seats. What we didn't count on was the friendliness of the locals which turned what could have been an awful train ride into a surprisingly enjoyable day. One guy decided to test out his English skills on us (consisting mainly of the words 'hello' and 'beautiful' - the little smoothie) and pretty soon we attracted quite a large group of his friends and neighbouring passengers. We squished up on the seats in between them and took part in a little photo shoot and a mutual and very unsuccessful Chinese/English lesson whilst swapping snacks and struggling to communicate in some very broken English. Giggling is a universal language however and the Chinese put it to good use.

Train party:

 

 

China is amazing and beautiful but it is also really rather an odd place. When the Chinese are standing still or sitting down they are seemingly the friendliest, happiest folks on the planet ... But catch them when they're in motion and they become violent human bulldozers - personal space is an alien concept and the previously under appreciated British orderly queue is non-existent. At one point Cata was about to sit down on a bench and a man sprinted over and literally bumped her out of the way before her arse had time to hit the wood - perfectly normal behaviour apparently as no-one else even batted an eyelid. Now that we know the deal though we're getting quite good at the shoving etiquette. The trick is to stick out your elbows and not allow any space whatsoever in front of you. If anyone does try to cut in, give them a swift bump back with your shoulder or place your foot or bag in front of them, then shuffle back in as soon as there is some space.  This doesn't always work however as it is also acceptable to wave money and/or whatever you are buying in the shop keepers face in order to get served first even if you are behind in the 'queue'. Haven't quite figured out how to beat that one yet. Perhaps I need to invest in an extendable claw? Chances are I'll find one somewhere because the shops here literally sell everything that you can or can't imagine - and no sooner than you think to yourself 'why on earth would anyone buy that' does a very willing customer or two shove past you waving some of their well earned cash at the vendor. Toothbrush salesmen on trains, women on boats selling flowery headbands, folks whizzing around touting wheels that you can attach to your shoes, shops stocked with every kind of noisy rubber animal you could possibly want, demon eyed battery powered puppies, mini statuettes of Michael Jackson (OK, so maybe I was a little tempted by that one) ... You name it, they sell it.

Eating has been quite the challenge as well as no-one really speaks English and all the menus are in Chinese. First rule before heading into an eatery is to make sure there's stuff that you can point at, otherwise you'll be leaving the place hungry. Even the pointing technique can be hazardous with culinary delights such as dog meat, chicken feet, or 'cold white fungus' as illustrated by one of the few chinglish menus we found:

In a nutshell, this place is totally crazy. It's exhausting but great fun! I suggest if you plan to come that you bring a good phrase book and life might be made a little bit easier! Make sure to learn the word for toilet - there is nothing really more awkward than having to mime it...

 

 

China's quirks aside, Guilin is the one of the most beautiful cities I've ever been in, surrounded by two rivers and two lakes and set between spectacular mountain scenery. The real highlights however were to be found outside of town - a scorching four hour trek amongst the stunning Longji rice terraces in an area know as 'the dragons backbone' was easily one of the highlights of the whole trip. The endless ridges of winding tiered rice fields peppered with old wooden houses are so unbelievably beautiful that you get the feeling that you have stumbled onto a film set.

Mountain villages and Longji rice terraces:

 

 

The next day we headed on a bamboo boat tour of Yangshuo which again rewarded us with breathtaking scenery.

Yangshuo:

 

 

Kerala

I've just discovered that I can write around my photos... Would've been far more useful to know that 3 months ago! 

I'm pretty sure I've said everything about India that I needed to say but for the sake of completeness here is our final leg:

After Mysore we headed to the relatively lovely and civilised town of Kochi. On our first night we went to watch Kathakali which is typical South Indian theatre dating back as far as the 17th century... Now, I can see how 5 hours of men skipping around in heavy make up and large skirts may have been entertaining back in the days before electricity, but we sat through a shortened 1 hour version I think we were more bemused than anything else!  Although it wasnt really my cup of tea, I do have to give credit to the commitment and talent of those involved - it takes 5 years to train as a Kathakali performer and it is clearly a highly skilled art; every eye movement, face movement and arm movement has a meaning and tells a story without the use of words . The make-up takes one hour to apply and transforms ordinary men into mystical heroes and demons in an impressively striking way. They then dance around each other to the (rather irritating) sounds of drums and cymbals gesturing and rolling their eyes like possessed folk but to be honest if we didn't have a piece of paper explaining the story to us I'd have been completely bewildered and clueless as to the meaning of all that expended energy!

The next day we signed up for a boat tour of the backwaters - Cata had a go at punting around in our eco-friendly boat and turned out to be quite the pro. We stopped off to see a couple of local businesses - one that made lime powder out of clam shells, another made rope out of coconut husks and finally a spice plantation. For lunch we were invited to eat at an Indian wedding where we were gawked at by the guests and served a beautiful tasting typical South Indian meal.

Our next stop took us to the beautiful rolling tea plantations of Munnar which are so serene and calm that we felt as though we'd left India entirely which was just fine by us! Finally, a 5 hour train ride took us to Kovalam beach in the South of Kerala where we rested our bones even further, spent our final rupees on a few souvenirs and flew out of India like bats out of hell...

A short and boring post but I am SO relaxed right now that that's all the India revisiting that I can muster! 

Aurangabad and Goa

Turns out I slept quite well on that night train to Aurangabad, so having arrived well rested we headed straight to the caves of Ellora. They're called caves but in reality they are impressively ornate temples and houses carved right into cliff faces. Walls of rugged rock give way to intricate carvings of women, men, animals and Gods in surprisingly good condition considering they were built over 1000 years ago. Squint your eyes enough in the dim light and you also start to notice the remnants of elaborate paintings on the walls, pillars and ceilings long faded by the passing centuries. Trunkless elephants lead you up worn stairs with big breasted women and big bellied men awaiting your arrival surrounded by flora and fauna all carved right out of the rock face. Ajanta is a similar story but pre-dates Ellora by another 1000 years or so... Keeping in mind these sites took about 200 years each to carve out I guess a millennia is not all that much and although Ellora is more impressive (in my opinion) they do have a similar quality. To fail to be awestruck by something that was built 2000 years ago is a crime but the fact is that they would be impressive in their own right even if they had been built yesterday and it was well worth battling the intense heat to enjoy them.
After all the palaces and forts and temples we were bloody looking forward to hitting the beach so Goa had some high expectations to live up to that unfortunately weren't exactly met... We stayed in Anjuna which is a nice enough touristy beach town but the nicer beaches were a short rickshaw ride away. Our favourite beach was Vagator which was isolated enough to be relaxing but popular enough to have a good vibe... Now although the beaches were lovely, I have to say that I did get the impression that Goa is overrated - I would imagine it is because we were there at the end of the season but it could just be because I'm just feeling rather jaded now. My feelings for India had been teetering on the love/hate side of things since I got here but I am sad to have to confess that there has now been a total breakdown of our relationship due to irreconcilable differences. The proverbial camel's back is lying on the side of the road in a thousand splinters. The novelty factor of everything kept me going for awhile but the charm has now died a definitive death and all that's left is negativity. It's not that we haven't seen amazing things, or had any good moments - the history here is rich and beautiful as are some of the places we've been, but India's present is failing to inspire any sort of enlightenment in me... This is supposedly the cradle of spirituality but god knows I can't see it anywhere... Ghandi himself (though not the original source of this quote) said 'A nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members' and nearly 3 weeks after standing next to the spot where he died I'm left wondering if he was the only Indian to have believed that. The lack of humanity here is shocking, the lack of hygiene is disgusting and the lack of beef is just plain driving me nuts! What on this great earth possessed me to think I might like a country where they don't eat cows is beyond me! The burping, the spitting, the coughing, the excrement on the road, the piles and piles and piles of rubbish everywhere, the lack of rules on the road, the constant badgering from people trying to extract money from you - it's enough to fray the most settled of nerves and I've lost all my good karma somewhere between the endless piles of shit from these herds of stray unedible cows. I'm afraid I might never recover!

I clearly must be missing something here because I've spoken to so many people who 'love' India and go on and on about how 'amazing' it is and it's a great shame that I just can't see it. I do apologise if this offends but it's just the plain truth as seen from my perspective... Seriously if you are sitting in an air-conditioned office right now, I won't go so far as to say I envy you but please, please take a moment to inhale the clean cool air, feel the padding in your chair hugging your arse, share some banter with a workmates - hell, tell them how nuts I've gone if you like - when you leave the office, have a nice strong cocktail with ice in it and eat yourself a huge juicy steak. Please, just do it for me.

On the plus side, the food here is genuinely lovely despite the lack of beef... That's about all the positivity I can muster right now! In the meantime if you happen to find the part of me that I lost (my mind, I think) please post it back to me asap.