To quote my own mantra ‘If you didn’t visit the apes you didn’t visit Gibraltar’ but for Carol to re-visit the apes was far more than a day out – it was facing her nemesis. To visit the apes meant a cable car ride and the last time she did the cable car ride was a very unpleasant experience for her.
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It was a very windy day back in 1976 and we’d gone up the Rock for a day out. Back then there was a stop part way up where you got off to see the apes and then got back on again to go to the cafe at the top. It had been a long day out and I think we must have got the last cable car back down from the cafe at the top. As we approached the stop where the apes were the wind got up and within a few minutes the cable car was rocking wildly. The attendant decided to take action and opened the door then got a big stick to push the car away from the pylons. In doing that we ended up (more or less) looking straight down through the doorway at alameda gardens which left Carol virtually paralysed with fright and so needless for me to say today was a big day for her.
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After leaving the Cathedral we walked up Main Street past John Mac Hall and as we passed Inces Hall I heard Carol giving Sheila and Joe a little commentary on some of the events we’d been to there. Her commentary continued as we passed Trafalgar House and I detected a certain fondness in her voice as she pointed up at the window to our old apartment; a few minutes later we arrived at the cable car office, paid our fare and boarded our car.
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As the cable car took off I thought I might be looking into the whites of Carols eyes but was delighted to see she was fairly relaxed; relaxed enough to be really enjoying the views and pointing places out to Sheila and Joe in between taking a few photos. She was also relaxed enough for me to take my concerns away and enjoy a few of the views myself even though periodically she would sheepishly turn around looking as though she was biting her bottom lip (and checking I was still keeping at eye out?).
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Seeing Sheila and Joes reactions in the cable car as they realised they were looking over at Spain one minute and Africa the next was priceless. They’d never been to Gibraltar before and so they were looking through the eyes I first looked through back in 1974 and a part of me really envied that. I’ve never forgotten the wonder of looking down from the top of Gibraltar and hope I never do.
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(Sheila and Joe)
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There was no midway stop on our cable car ride, it took us straight to the top where the cafe is and where there are a troop of apes; when we finally came to a halt at the terminal we all piled out excitedly, cameras at the ready to say hello to Gibraltar’s most famous residents.
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