Gibraltar is a perfect day trip if you’re visiting from southern Spain. And that’s what I did when I was staying on the Costa del Sol in the city of Marbella. While it may seem like a small sliver of land, there is much to see here. The dramatic landscape hits you right away as you approach the borders, rising up out of the ocean like the Titanic.

There’s a cable car that will take you from the bottom up to the top of the Rock, but you may also walk up. I do not recommend that as it’s much, much steeper than it even looks. Taking the cable car up and then having a nice stroll down is the way to go.

I was immediately confronted with the local Barbery monkeys that have occupied this rock outcrop for centuries. The monkeys will literally jump onto the cable car before it even docks and climb around the inside. As soon as you get off the cable car they will approach you curiously. You will be warned not to feed them as you’ll never be rid of them so take the advice. But, they are adorable and mostly sweet, especially if you are lucky enough to catch one nursing a youngling.

Once at the top I took some photos like a good tourist and then set off on what I thought would be an easy journey. The maps you are given at the tourist office are pretty worthless and don’t give you any idea of how big the Rock actually is. It may look as though there’s just one road going around the mountaintop and to get around from site to site would be quick and easy. Nope. Not the case at all. In addition to the winding road running miles long, there are little offshoots and paths. And being in southern Spain so high up you feel like a fried egg in a skillet.

So, my brother and I took off in search of adventure and by about hour 4 we were already baked onto the rock. I remember being so hot and thirsty that we were running from shade to shade in the little spots we could find. Eventually, we did get to some of the local attractions and realized that we left the tickets with our Mom that had taken a different route. Now, she was having a much worse time as her and my stepdad decided to take a stroll down one of the little stairways in the mountain because it looked ‘neat’, only to find out it was a rough one way ticket to the very bottom and no other way back up. So be sure to plan accordingly!

Other than the scenery itself and the local monkeys, one of the coolest things to see is St. Michael’s Cave. Filled with a great number of stalactites and stalagmites, and regarded as the largest of the island’s more than 150 caves it’s worth a visit. Legends hold there to be a secret tunnel connecting the island to Africa, where the Barbary apes are said to have come from. Since the early sixties the cave has been used as a theater that can accommodate up to 600 people. Check out if any local concerts are playing on your visit.

After a long hot day of wandering the Rock we made our way down to the base level for some reprieve. We headed to the local beach area and jumped in the sea and it felt glorious. Bobbing there in the water I had one of those travel moments you get when you suddenly realize the uniqueness and significance of the place you’re in. I was floating there in the Mediterranean sea looking up at the giant Rock of Gibraltar in front of me and the coast of Africa off in the distance. This key passageway through the Mediterranean has served as one of the most important choke points of the ancient and modern worlds. This is why we travel!