ning out, you simply take out the battery and take it
home with you to charge. The amount your electricity
bill would increase would be a meagre 17p! Compare
that to £30 a month on petrol for a motorbike! Not to
mention road tax, insurance and servicing.
Taking in the breath-taking views of Caleta with the
morning rays, I realised how lucky we are and how
beautiful this place is. We are caught up with work
every day, kiddies and normal day-to-day chores. How
lucky we are that in just 5 minutes you can enjoy a
view so beautiful and breath taking.
Juan took a few photos of the bikes, as he does,
and off we cycled to Sandy Bay… my favourite beach.
Having a little one, I unfortunately haven’t been able
to enjoy this beach very much this summer, it’s kind
of a nightmare to get down there with a pram. We
headed down the very steep hill and my only thou-
ght was… how the hell are we going to get back
up? You have the sensation you’re going to fall back
even when walking up it.
We stopped there for a little while, watching the
dolphins splash about in the water. Seems unreal
even writing this but it was true and off we went. Yes!
I cycled up probably the steepest mini hill in Gibraltar
on a bicycle… all this without even breaking a sweat.
It’s crazy how this bike works, I really cannot get over
it! So, so awesome.
Heading through the tunnel, which luckily wasn’t
too bad with traffic for the time of day, we came throu-
gh the other end to sunshine and clear ocean in front
of us, an amazing downhill ride and a deep breath.
That feeling…free!
Next stop, the lighthouse. So many tourists, buses
and taxis around, all waiting on the roads. While the
tourists swarmed to the lighthouse to get a snapshot
and take in the views, with our bikes we could ride by
and get even closer... ha!
From there we headed to the Shrine of our Lady of
Europe, as we rode there I noticed the big gates by the
University were closed and thought we would have
had to go back, but there was a little pathway through
and being on bikes and testing my bike riding skills,
we rode through without a problem.
We stopped there and Stuart told us a little about
the Shrine and how it was once used as a lighthouse
before the current one was built. He explained that
sailors would come ashore and contribute to help
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maintain it. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen that whi-
pping post before… what amazing history we have.
We pass by every day, not even realising what we
have around us.
From there we started to make our way up the rock,
full assist On – Check!
We headed through Lathbury Barracks, trund-
ling along. Yes, you could feel that you were cycling
but there was no resistance whatsoever… walking is
much more of an effort.
It was quite funny, we had some tourists staring
at us, dripping with sweat and commenting as we
passed…
“I can’t even walk let alone cycle up the rock”, we
all found that quite amusing, little did she know, we
were all quite chilled compared to her…. We got all
the way up to the Queens Balcony and stopped to take
in the views. And what a view it was!
The Queen certainly knew where to stop and look
out when she came to visit in the 1950’s.
You can’t help but notice the silence of these bikes,
especially when you’re riding along and your pea-
ce is rudely interrupted by the revving of a diesel tour
bus loaded with passengers, gets you wondering why
people are not opting for this type of tour more.
Unfortunately, as we were pressed for time, life
always seems to be lately, we started making our way
down the rock. With the wind flowing, I started loo-
king around and wondered how different the views
would be from a car or a bus. I would never be feeling
this way, the freedom, the fresh air… I even noticed
an eagle flying right above me.
As we headed into the upper town, I beca-
me apprehensive again, with the sudden realisa-
tion that I was on a bike. So many cars, so much traffic
everywhere.
Everyone busy, everyone rushing… it is crazy to
think how out of the way you feel just by going up the
rock and enjoying a few hours up there, away from the
hustle and bustle of everyday life and soaking in the
beauty of our hometown.
I cannot recommend this trip enough, get your fa-
mily and friends, call Stuart up and book a tour with
him and visit Gibraltar, you will not be disappointed. I
recommend them 100%.
I had a smile on my face all day after that, thanks
again Stuart. By the way Cameron did sell his bike!
OTWO 04 / NOVEMBER 2019
OTWO 04 / NOVEMBER 2019
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