Balearas

Our Balearic arrival had proved eventful, complete with a happy ending. But more surprises were in store.

From Cala Badella, we hopped around the northwest corner of Ibiza to San Antonio, a bulletproof (and free) anchorage in any weather. More importantly, there was cheap bus service every 15 minutes round the clock to Ibiza City less than 10 miles across the island. Luna and Philip boarded a bus at 9 p.m. as the streets were just starting to come alive. They weren’t sure what they would find, but knew it had to be good.

Ibiza City is renowned as a center of techno music. From across Europe and beyond, fans flock to Ibiza City to party and enjoy the music. To attract them, the clubs book top acts produced by the world’s premier disc jockeys. Walking from the bus station, Luna and Philip noticed a poster advertising a show. Tiesto was playing Pachas, the hottest club going. They did a double take when they saw the date of the show. It was tonight! Suddenly, they had a plan. They didn’t blink as they put down 75 Euro ($95) each for tickets.

They arrived at Pachas around midnight to the pulse of techno music. A warm up act was in progress. But no one was there. It was kinda’ eery to feel the beat echoing around the place with no bodies to absorb it. They bought shooters at 12 Euro a pop ($15) to pass the time. Around 2 a.m. things started to happen.

Pachas began to come alive as a steady stream of Tiesto fans jammed in. At 2:30, Tiesto took over and the place bounced. Wave after wave of piercing, pulsing, body vibrating music brought the crowd from pianissimo to fortissimo and back, each crescendo vaulting the place further toward mad delirium. Multi-colored lasers and strobes were synchronized with the music as dense fog alternated with chilled air pushed up through the floor to complete the total sensory experience. At 6 a.m., when it was all over, Philip classified the experience as “life changing.”

Waking up the next morning – afternoon actually – it all seemed a dream. But Luna and Philip had the memories and the drained wallets to prove that it had all happened. After an overnight stop in Cala Benirras for R&R, it was back to the duty roster as we set sail for our next destination – Mallorca.

Less than 50 nautical miles separates Ibiza from Mallorca, making it an easy day sail from one to the other. We dropped anchor in the big protected bay at Santa Ponsa. Taking the dinghy ashore, we were instantly aware that Mallorca was strikingly different from Ibiza. Here, instead of bronzed beach comers and mojito bars, tall drab condo buildings lined the shore and backed onto retail shopping zones. Hordes of pasty British tourists walked dingy streets lined with cheap souvenir shops and ale houses. Signs offered eight Euro fish and chips and two Euro pints. The place had a worn feeling as if it had been built in the ‘70s and never remodeled.

On a whim, we found car rental agency and, for 45 Euro, reserved a high-mileage Suzuki hatchback for the next day.

Our Chariot

Our land excursion started with a drive along Mallorca’s northwest coast. At 1,400 square miles, Mallorca is the largest Balearic island. The northwestern third is occupied by the Serra de Tramuntana, or Tramuntana range, with peaks rising to 1,445 meters (4,740 feet). Our route took us up, up, up a narrow, winding two-lane highway with breathtaking views to the sea. Interspersed among the piney forests were charming old pueblos surrounded by well-kept villas and terraced beds where grape vines or olive trees grew. We stopped for cappuccino and a look at the Valldemossa Charterhouse, a former Carthusian monastery dating to the 14^th century.

Valldemossa

Valldemossa Charterhouse

We descended south towards Palma as the narrow, two-lane roads quickly widened, eventually turning into superhighway near the city. With no plan, we wondered where to go next. A couple of months ago Luna had been surfing workaway.info to find a gainful gig for part of the summer. There, she noticed a posting for help on an ostrich farm on the Balearic island of Mallorca. She had sent an email inquiry but had not received a reply. Driving along, we wondered what an ostrich farm looked like. On the spot, we decided to satisfy our curiosity. We would go there and see for ourselves.

We skirted Palma’s northern edge and turned east into flat scrubland. The real estate opened up and got scruffier. The highway trimmed down to two lanes again, but much wider. Stone walls and prickly pear hedges separated the vineyards and olive groves that intermittently lined the highway. We turned south at Campos under a blistering sun. The streets of town were empty. Siesta was in full swing.

A few forks in the road later, we turned onto a rutted dirt lane and followed hand painted signs to the ostrich farm. There, we met the proprietor, his wife, and one of his two sons. He was from Israel; she from Holland. They met in Mallorca 35 years ago and, after marrying and traveling the world a bit, they settled in South Africa where they studied and practiced art. Their art centered on using natural materials for their creations. They discovered the incredible versatility of materials provided by ostriches – two kinds of leather, feathers, and eggs. Because they loved Mallorca, they decided to return and continue their art, this time growing and harvesting their own supply of ostrich materials. The Artestruz ostrich farm was begun.

They raised their two sons on the ostrich farm, and now offer it both as a unique tourist destination and a source of the finest ostrich art and products available in the world. After observing the ostriches, including some babies that Luna was able to hold, we browsed their shop, admiring the leather products and innovative egg creations. Before we left, we had increased our ostrich knowledge exponentially.

Proprietor Feeds a Tomato to an Ostrich Named Nelson (Notice Lump in Throat)

Ostrich Egg Lamps

Ostrich Leather Handbag

Ostrich Egg Art

Ostrich Leather Shoes

Ostrich Peering Through Shop Window

Our time at the ostrich farm ended, and we pointed the rental car west through Palma and back to our boat anchored in Santa Ponsa. The next day, we moved the boat to a mooring ball off Cala Blava within a short dinghy and taxi ride of the Palma airport.

Our next crew change was upon us.