Ibiza although a Mediterranean island is more famous or infamous for its party's which go on through out the night rather than the beaches which are few and far. The place is more for people who want to let down their hair and inhibitions than the one's who would want a quiet retreat by the sea.

Having said that make no mistake Ibiza has some breathtaking beaches with crystal clear blue waters. One such beach we decided to visit was the Talmanca beach which is the closet from where our apartment was in the old port area. Raj had stayed over at her friends place for the night and wasn't expected till evening. Her friends had hired a convertible car and were self driving around the island, I don't blame her for the decision. It was just 15 min drive by taxi and no convertible self driven car as Swati, Sid, Rishu and me reached the beach.

My heart sank at the view. It is a smallish beach with not much of sand and almost no activities. There were sun bathers with virtually nothing on them lazing on the narrow strip of sand while behind them was a single restaurant serving the usual. But my biggest disappointment was there was no surf or waves. The water was so still anyone might have mistaken it for a lake. I have noticed this at many south east Asian popular beaches as well and the sight always reminds me of the awesome surf on Goa beaches. I am a complete water baby and the feel of the waves crashing into you is nowhere close to just lying down in a still water body however clean it may be.

The girls, Swati and Sid in particular also didn't like the feel of the beach. As we walked down the length of the beach thinking whats to be done, Rishu pulled out a postcard she had purchased for her collection which showed another beach and looked more happening. All consenting we decided to go to that beach without any further delay. The beach we were headed to is called Cala Conta and is situated on the other side of the island, called San Antonio.

After a rather expensive taxi fare and 45 min drive, our taxi driver, a blonde girl in shorts and spaghettis, dropped us near a small hill like rock beyond which we hoped was the sea and the beach and waves. As we approached the edge of the rock/hill we were mesmerized by the scene. Below us lay the sparkling Mediterranean sea with shades of blue and at a distance was an island hill, barren and uninhabited, the very hill we stood on tapered off into the sea below where there was some sand which formed the beach. On the right side was a restaurant with its interiors and exteriors such that it looked like the part of the rock itself. As we were absorbing the stunning sight, I saw a splash of white and then the spray of water. This beach had some awesome surf, accentuated by the steep slope of its deck. I couldn't resist to get into those waters. We found ourselves some space on the small beach and lay our towels which we had got from the apartment to spoil as we weren't happy with the arrangements made at the apartment.

Swati likes to enjoy the sea from the beach side and seldomly enters the water, Sid also didn't seem to eager so it was just Rishu and me who went into the water for a swim. The next 5-6 hours were spent on that beach and the adjoining restaurant. Although our hearts weren't content we decided to check out another place which was supposed to be a must go for sun set.

This place was in the city of San Antonio and to get there we had no means of transport. The beach was so isolated that no taxi waited there or came looking for a fare. With no option we started to walk along the only road which led to the city. 10 min of waking and we were convinced we cannot tech the city or any habitation on foot. So came out the thumb as e decided to hitchhike.

The first car that came our way was a mini tempo kind of van. Inside it was a sole woman. When asked for a ride she said she lives just ahead but if we want she would drop us to where we wanted for a charge. We agreed for a price and got into her van. The van and it's owner were a specimen lost in a time when hippies ruled. The van even had Ganesh jis sticker and coincidentally just yesterday Ganesh Chaturthi would have been celebrated with aplomb back in India. As I started a conversation with the lady we came to know she had been to India 12 years ago and spend 6 months going around the country to places like Patna, gaya, machallipatnam (she could pronounce that), rishikesh etc. On asking whether she had been to Goa she said she did but only for a brief period of 10 days. On asking what does she do, she replied she was an interior designer but was doing nothing for past 2 years unless the restaurant called her over for help during high tourist season. Intrigued I wanted to ask much more but we had arrived at our destination.

The sun set point for which we had come all the way was a big disappointment. It was smelly, full of people and worse the sun actually set behind a distant island in the sea. Not wanting to stay there any longer we made our way back to our side of the town, this time taking a bus which proved much cheaper, and enroute got some groceries as Rishu and Sid decided to cook today's dinner as we were completely spent.