Stories of times in Ibiza in the nineteen eighties and nineties …
Although it is infamous now for its vibrant nightlife and peaceful coves, many might wonder why is Ibiza so renowned? And the answer is not just about the scene its paryting, it also embraces a tranquil atmosphere, cultural heritage, and still breathtaking natural beauty. But there was a time, over half a century ago, when that, as a package, was all still relatively new. and that was ”my time” on the island.
My relationship with the island started in the mid eighties when I begun to visit it as a holiday destination, having heard tales from other friends who had been and raved about its beauty, its vibe and its gay scene. For the first few years we always stayerd out of the main town in apartments in Figuertas which were perfectly pleasant but nothing special.
One day walking into the city via the coastal path, past the deserted half built hotel, the Molinas (windmills) and the tunnel through into Ibiza city itself, we noticed a little cove far below with people on it and a little islet people would swim out to and sunbathe on. We decided to try it the following day and came to realise it was both a nudist beach, where anything went and quite a gay crowd with it too.
And then we saw a row of white washed apartments nearby, with gay men hanging out on the terraces. We got talking to one and he told us they were all rented by a man called Antonio. Sr Antonio Roselló
We managed to find him , a kind, middle aged man in his office around the back of the apartments and get his number. The next time we came we booked the Apartments Roselló, loved it and after that we never went elsewhere, it always simply assumed we would stay there.
So many days spent in that little cove, so many evenings spent looking out at the sunset towards Formentera , so many nights spent walking back from the clubs to the apartments. So many good times I lost count. I soon came to regard them as a second home. I even left things with Antonio, so I didn´t have to carry them back and forwards.
Unbelievably perhaps, the apartments are still there . Antonio is long gone but his memory lives on and many others have come to cherish that
view in the decades since. I haven´t been back for decades either , perhaps I´m too worried about spoiling the glorious memories of holidays from long ago.
These then are some of my stories from those times. They are in turns, outgoing, explicit, introspective, fantastic, wistful and imaginative. They are pretty much a faithful record of where my mind was at thirty years ago and more.
As some of these stories are quite explicit don´t read on if you might be offended! They are all , every one of them truthful accounts of a life well lived on the island of Eivissa however
Onto ´An Ibizan diary, June 1995 part one´
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