More about Ibiza. Ibiza
was originally settled by the Phoenicians.
"Isla Blanca" almond blossoms
It was known as “Isla Blanca”
(white island) for two reasons: one for
the white painted houses, two for the almond tree blossoms covering the island
in spring (as well as lemon and orange trees).
View of walled-in Ibiza town
Old Ibiza is a walled-in town and the main entrance is via a large, high
gated door. During my four months on the island in 1961, a few more classic
yachts visited, but one of them was exceptional: (like the ‘Farouk’ yacht
mentioned in my earlier post of June 22) was “an ultimate superyacht”: the Shemara. She was owned by a famous Englishwoman, Lady
Docker. At 65m in length, Shemara was talk of the town.
Shemara regularly cruised throughout the
Mediterranean to the Baleares islands of Mallorca, Ibiza, Menorca and
Formentera, and to North Africa, Monaco and Turkey. In fact at the time of Shemara’s visit to Ibiza, Lady Docker was on the Riviera.For
security and privacy reasons the yacht was at anchor rather than docked, with
crew coming ashore by small tender and rowboat. Once again, it was while having
my lunch at the waterfront bodega
that I met (not the Commodore as described in my earlier post), but the yacht’s
Chef de cuisine and hostess.
"Shemara" today, 52 years later, waiting for retrofit
That day
I decided to walk my donkey into town instead of going by bike. The hostess was intrigued to see a donkey
hitched up near the wall of the bodega entrance. Well, the donkey wasn’t
actually “mine”, it came with the villa I’d rented and belonged to the owner’s
daughter who lived in Barcelona. That’s why the monthly rent was only $65.Anyway,
the hostess thought it was intriguing to meet an artist with a donkey. The chef and hostess were on their way to the
market for fresh produce in the old walled-in town.The hostess invited me to a party aboard the
yacht the next day.
Marquita Kwan in her 20's, a few decades before we met
My neighbour, Marquita Kwan, was a fascinating woman. She was a former fashion model in England. She
had been the one that connected me with the villa owners where I was staying,
and was my closest neighbour.
View from balcony of my rented villa that came with a donkey
Her villa was just 50 metres up the hill. She was mother of the actress Nancy Kwan, who
in those days was a famous movie star of “Flower
Drum Song” renown. Marquita was very keen on protocol and “good
manners”. I persuaded Marquita to be my companion at the party. Marquita was in her ‘50s while I was 32. Everyone aboard the yacht thought she was my
mother, in jest of course. We were amazed at the interior of the yacht. Opulent,
chic, elegant, splendour would be good words to describe it. There were a good number of guests aboard who
were part of the yacht’s cruise, mostly in their 30’s-40’s. The party was being
held in honour of a British aristocrat. Food was plentiful, of gourmet, delectable
quality. Hard liquor, beer, wine and champagne galore. Soon the party evolved in to a Bacchanalia. Marquita was not amused when I danced with
some of the scantily-clad guests, some of whom were topless. Marquita insisted she be taken ashore. The
party lasted til the early morning, and next time I saw Marquita she berated me
and focused even more on ‘manners’.
Entrance gate to the old walled-in town, Ibiza
So there is another brief snapshot of some
experiences on the island of Ibiza that included invitations to visit
remarkable yachts. And all because of (a) stock market nerves of
the Commodore (b) the sighting of a donkey.
Henri van Bentum
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