Strait of Gibraltar, Natural waterway between Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean, Spain.
The waterway connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean and separates Spain from Morocco across a distance of roughly 36 miles. At its narrowest point, it measures just 8 miles between the two shores, and the water appears deep blue with strong currents flowing in both directions.
The name comes from Arabic Jabal Ṭāriq, after Tariq ibn Ziyad, who crossed these waters in 711 during the Islamic conquest of Hispania. Since then, the waterway has served as a strategic passage between Europe and Africa and has been controlled by different powers.
Fishermen along both coasts have known the changing currents for generations and use them daily to navigate between continents. In port towns on either side, people from Europe and Africa meet for trade, and their languages mix in markets near the water.
Hundreds of ships pass through daily, so from the shore you can often watch tankers, cargo vessels, and ferries moving between continents. The best viewpoints lie along the coast on both sides, where wind and waves shape the experience.
The Mediterranean Sea keeps its water balance through this passage, with surface currents flowing east and deeper saline waters moving west. This double flow moves invisibly beneath ships and influences marine life on both sides.
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