Photo Friday: The Southernmost Tip of Europe

I'm not sure why, but one always feels so special, so adventurous, when standing at a geographically unique point on this earth.  It was exciting for us years ago to be at the southernmost point in the continental U.S. in Key West, Florida, only 90 miles from Cuba.  My fellow travel blogger, Lisa Goodmurphy, who authors the terrific blog Gone With the Family, recently posted a fun report of her family's visit to Cape Spear in Newfoundland which is the most easterly point of North America.  The next stop to the east from there is Ireland.

So of course my family celebrated with photos when we stood this summer at the southernmost tip of Europe in Tarifa, Spain.  Or, as the sign below reads in Spanglish, "You are in the European Southernpoint."  From here you are only 8 miles from the continent of Africa.

This "European Southernpoint" used to be an island, Isla de las Palomas, but has been joined to the mainland by a road.

Narrow road from the mainland to Isla de las Palomas.

There's not much to see on the very small Isla de las Palomas, just some ruined fortifications, but you can watch the ferries go back and forth across the Strait of Gibraltar from Tarifa to Tangier.

Ruined fortress on Isla de las Palomas.

My kids thought it particularly cool that on one side of the island and road they were on the Atlantic Ocean and on the other, just steps away, they were on the Mediterranean Sea.

 This post is part of Photo Friday at DeliciousBaby.com.