Ibiza Ceramics

You know how you mean to do something for ages and never get round to it? Well at long last I got round to taking photos of the ceramic masks which adorn the garden wall of a house in Port des Torrent.

There are about 40 in total so here, in no particular order, are some of them.

Light my Fire

I drove 8 kms down to Suma supermarket in Cala de Bou today with the main purpose of buying some firelighters to get the log fire started each day. They didn't have any.

Luckily, one of the other, less important, items on my list was oven chips, which they did have. I'll be rubbing two of them together tomorrow in an effort to warm our living room.

The Postman Never Rings Twice

Living in the centre of buzzing San Jose we're lucky that we actually have a postman. Those in the country have to rent a postbox in the post office and call in to collect their mail.

We have quite a funky postbox on our gate - bought at the long gone Sunday fleamarket at Ponylandia for 5 Euros - but I was worried that should we have heavy rain, it would let in water and ruin important letters.

I needn't have fretted. In over four years in the village we've never had one letter delivered when it was raining!

Ibiza Christmas: Post Haste

Every year I receive a fabulous hand-painted, limited edition Christmas card from the architect and accomplished painter, David Cullearn. Every year it arrives some days after Christmas and this year was no exception as it was delivered yesterday, 29th December.

Saddleworth

What was a surprise was pulling it out of the postbox in pristine condition! Normally the words 'DO NOT BEND' in red letters are enough incitement to the postie to commit terminal origami on it. The difference this year is that we have a new temporary post girl for the busy festive period - a cheerful lass, she can smoke, phone and pull the trolley all at the same time!

I'm a PC

Be it. Say it. Wear it

Sprout Trek Ibiza

Villa Man's Blog, Ibiza Date 24.12.2008

Spain's Christmas Customs do not include the same Holy reverence of the Sacred Sprout of Brussels that we British have. For many years my Christmas Eves have been spent driving fruitlessly (or more to the point vegetablelessly) from greengrocer to greengrocer on a sprout trek more akin to the search for the Holy Grail.

This year my shopping mission was to achieve 3 things; buy sprouts, replace lost cutlery and collect my meat order from Peter the Butcher.

The replacement cutlery shop was closed for 4 months, there were three bags of sprouts on one of the stalls at the country market, and Peter the Butcher only cracked one joke the whole time I was there.

Here's our Ibiza Christmas Sprout Shrine

Let it be known that the sprouts are now (as of 10.00 hours) on a low simmer so they'll be done to perfection by the Queen's Speech!!!

Ibiza Insider

Don't worry, I'm not going to drone on about super exclusive Ibiza restaurants or secluded Ibiza beaches. Instead, I'm wittering on about the non-laptop-toting Ibiza Insiders held in little esteem by glossy web-page publishers – yes the inmates of Ibiza Gaol!!

Most of them are blokes, in their 30's, unmarried and childless, so nobody cares for them. The ones who are married are mostly banged up for wife-beating, so ditto on the caring front. The majority are in for offences against public health, ie drugs, and many are far away from home, as most are foreigners; the top nationalities represented being Colombians (cocaine and coffee) and Italians (ecstasy and Rolex watches).

These lads, all 112 of them, are squeezed into accommodation designed for 50 to repay their debt to society when their only crime has been to break the law without being related to the 'powers that be' by blood or marriage (or better still, both)

Just to prove that being in the nick isn't all fun, here's an article I wrote yonks ago

News

Ibiza: Coincidence Island

With a winter population approaching 250, it's hardly surprising when you bump into someone you know, even in a completely different situation to normal.

Today I crossed paths with world famous Flamenco-Jazz-Chill guitarist Paco Fernandez BUT NOT in the place I'm accustomed to seeing him. We were not in SYP Ses Paisses (remember when he offered me his free gift savings stamps there?) but in the Can Tomas woodyard close to where he lives!!!!!!!!

What a coincidence! it doesn't end there though, because spookily I'm actually going to see him play at Raco Verd this very night, AND (this is the million to one chance) we were BOTH buying firewood at the wood yard!!!!



Talking of the woodyard reminds me of a conversation I had with its owner, who's about my age, and confessed to me that he was fed up with his job.
'I hate wood,' he said. 'Every day for the last 40 years all I've seen is wood, wood, wood. I'm F*****g sick of it!'

If I wasn't such a blokey bloke (I don't even do any of that kissy-kissy stuff with girlies) I'd have given him a man's hug and said, 'there, there,' as I felt so sorry for him.

Lunch in El Yate 2008

Here on the Ibiza Villa Blog we don't need an excuse to do lunch (or as you'll see much money) but as we had to go to San Antonio today to buy some more Christmas Tree decorations we thought we'd indulge ourselves too.

First stop was the fountains square in San Antonio to have a look at the town's Christmas tree which is marginally bigger than ours and has an anti-cat fence all around it.

A tree's eye view of the bird

And then on to La Puerta Olvidada (The Forgotten Door) to buy replacement baubles, decorations and sumptuous scents for the festive season.

Baubles, bangles and beads

Now, the good bit. It was 18 degrees and sunny (Brits will be more familiar with its equivalent in Fahrenheit, which is now a balmy 86 degrees given the new rate of exchange) so we decided to sit outside on the terrace of El Yate.

Crikey, because it was Wednesday, if you paid for one 3 course menu of the day, you got another free!! The price:quality ratio is so good here anyway but a free meal sends it into the stratosphere. Take a look at what we got for €12 (about a monkey if you're a Cockney)....................

Fish and shellfish soup

Roast pork and vegetable rice

Brownie (don't know how it is in English)

I really wish I had one of those new aroma-cams!

And finally, my Christmas photo to one and all - a bauble's eye view of San Antonio.

CSI Christmas: Ibiza

When we were in Mallorca last week there were lots of flashing signs over the motorways reading

Driver + Alcohol = Accident

I could have put a similar one over our newly installed Christmas decorations yesterday blazing out this message

Cats + Christmas tree = Chaos

The scoreline after only one night is Tree - Nil, Cats - 3 as we've lost one bauble, one pair of angels wings and the lights are in disarray. None of the 'gang of five' have cracked under interogation and all remain poker faced about it.

I'm thinking of using video surveillance tonight?

Ibiza Sunset

Here, is the sun setting in all its majesty over Sa Talaia (Ibiza's highest mountain) as seen from our roof last night.

I haven't used any clever technology to manipulate it in any way - that's just how it looked!

Back Blogging

after a Biniaraix break! For anyone interested in going there I've spent a great deal of time and effort knocking up a detailed map code-named Biniaraix Boozers.
Here it is.............



It is the only bar in the village, so you'd think the prices would be astronomical given its monopoly of the alcoholic beverage scene, wouldn't you? Well you'd be right - but only if you are unfortunate enough to live in formerly fancy London town with its faltering economy and fast falling currency!

I paid €1.50 for a Bacardi(yes the internationally renowned Bacardi) and Coke (short for Coca Cola.) In normal Ibiza bars I'd fork out €3 or €4 for this depending on where I was sitting, so my Biniaraix Bacardi was pretty cheap. In fact I went back several times!

Given current exchange rates, poor Brits would have to stump up about 40 quid for the very same. No wonder they're all saying Spain's become expensive recently!

If my map is a bit confusing, here's a photo of the bar.

Mind Your Language

In preparation for our eagerly awaited trip to Mallorca (please let it be calm when we sail from Ibiza harbour) Jaki and I have been taking lingo lessons so we can converse with the natives




Recognise us?

Ibiza Sunset: Viewed from the Villa

Funny how the same thing can look totally different when seen from different viewpoints: from above or from below, from the back or from the front, or when drunk or when sober, and so on.

I 'dashed' (I could do with a Thora Hird chairlift) up the stairs to the roof this afternoon to capture the sunset on both sides. The clear cold air doesn't half give it a different appearance to heat hazey summer.

See what I mean?