the Diamond Jubilee flotilla in Gibraltar

as a nod to Britain's rich maritime heritage, Gibraltar's flotilla last Monday sailed into history as a 100-strong motley but majestic crew of vessels of all forms and sizes sailed around Gibraltar Bay tooting horns and making noise as proof and proclamation that Queen Elizabeth IS Queen of Gibraltar.

there might well never be another Diamond Jubilee in the next decades to come so the mister and i made sure we were part of history in the making :) we took to the high seas as well and joined in the Ocean Village flotilla :)

here we are aboard the Dolphin Safari boat (normally, this is a tourist boat) on our way out of the marina to join the flotilla

an impressive profile of the Rock; it does take your breath away looking at it from afar

 we love this yacht! with its captain and crew in Gibraltar's national costume

aarrrrrr! a pirate schooner :) can you see the skull and bones flag?  too funny!

 thumbs up to this lovely blue fishing boat displaying its national colors

a Royal Navy ship

two kayakers joining in the fun

 our dream yacht :)  the sleek Sunseeker (someday!)

even the Oil Spill Response Team took time off to have some on-board party!

 we saw the crew of this cute fishing boat passing round a bottle of bubbly!

can you see the spectators?  Gibraltar folks cheering on the flotilla as we near Europa Point

on our way back, still making some noise :)

champagne in honor of the Queen!  cheers!  here's a short video of the event so you can have an idea how it all went :)