Dear sports fans,
Gibraltar is famous for the imposing Rock, but it is equally famous for the free-ranging Macaques that roam the city.
They mostly live on the Rock and urban legend says that as long as the monkeys are there, then Gibraltar will remain under British rule.
Hundreds of macaques live in the Rock and have no problem socializing with residents and tourists.
Be careful though: Macaques are not only looking for food (chocolate, cookies, ice cream, etc.). They are lovers of women’s bags and cameras. So you have to be very careful, because the macaques lie in wait and may surprise you and grab your personal belongings.
It is not uncommon for hotel staff to ask their customers not to leave windows open when they leave their rooms, because it is clear that a macaque will be lurking.
Also, the hoteliers ask not to feed the monkeys, because they will eat well at some point and then they will not only come for food, but to grab an object and disappear.
Many of them are familiar with cameras. They like to make faces and climb on the heads of tourists to stage their own game.
As an image it is very beautiful, because you see free monkeys living together with humans. The reality, however, is that at any time and moment you are at risk of losing items that may be valuable to you.
The locals try to find solutions to the chaos the macaques are causing, but as they rightly point out, when tourists rush to feed them, then the monkeys will gain more courage.
