Peninsula

A walk around the peninsula reveals a bit more of the history and mystery that makes Ceuta what it is. The peninsula is topped by Monte Hacho, said by some to be the southern Pillar of Hercules (Jebel Musa, west of Ceuta, is the other contender; Gibraltar being the northern pillar). The summit is crowned by Fortaleza de Hacho, a fort first built by the Byzantines and added to since by the Moroccans, Portuguese and Spanish. Now occupied by the army, it is out of bounds.

On the northern slopes of Monte Hacho stands the yellow-and-white Ermita de San Antonio. This convent, originally built in the 17th century and reconstructed in the 1960s, is the venue for a large festival held annually on 13 June to mark St Anthony's day. At any time of year, however, it's worth coming up here for the magnificent views over Ceuta and north to Gibraltar. To find the convent, follow the main road clockwise around the peninsula 2.5km to Parque de San Amaro and a small zoo. Take one of the paths leading up steeply into a bowl of hills, and veering eastwards, and you should come out on a lane below the convent.

Back down at the main road, after another kilometre northeast you reach a colossal brutalist monument honouring Franco and the 1936 uprising that marked the start of the Spanish Civil War.