Cosmic Pineapple

Anyone who knows me knows I am probably the least cosmic person in Ibiza. I mean, I do confess to reading my star signs every now and again and I like a good pair of galaxy leggings for yoga, but as far as hippy dippy trippy spiritual type activities, well… I prefer give them a wide berth. Just not my thing. But as they say, you can’t knock it until you try it, and after two weeks of persuasion, the cosmic peeps at Pikes managed to talk me into visiting the very special Thursday day-to-night event Cosmic Pineapple. It was for charity after all – it would be rude not to! I have to admit, despite my strong resistance to all cosmic activitiy, they had me from the artwork. I may not consider myself cosmic but I do love a good pineapple, flamingo and palm tree in any kind of illustration, advertisement or décor. I’m also a huge fan of Josh Wink, who was part of the epic DJ line-up alongside  Tiefschwarz, Craig Richards, Mirko Loko, Ryan O Gorman, Cici and some other amazing musical talent, so I figured if the cosmic action all got too much for me, I could simply retreat to what was dubbed the ‘Space Rave’.

The event is a slow-burner, starting at 4pm with an opening ceremony and then casually leading you through the rest of the afternoon and evening with a series of workshops, talks, films, markets, classes, rituals and more, right up until the rave cave kicks off at 10pm, turning the party into a typical Pikes style fiesta. Having already checked out the photos and the reviews of the previous weeks (Cosmic Pineapple runs for four consecutive weeks on Thursdays), I convinced my mind to remain open, donned my best cosmic leggings (spaced out cat faces emblazoned all over the legs) and headed into the hills of San Antonio. Hitting the Once Upon A Time Market stalls on the hot pink tennis court was the craftiest way to ease a non-cosmic like myself into the proceedings – after all, is there anyone in the world who does not like market shopping? In my opinion, you can never have too many feathers, too many pairs of sunglasses or too much glitter and this was the place to stock up on all of the above. Customised hats and headpieces (hello next year’s Burning Man wardrobe), amazing quirky false eyelashes, festival-style sparkly face embellishments, crocheted swimsuits, handmade jewellery, crystals, oils… If this was cosmic retail therapy, then I was already a convert.

I was assured that beyond the tennis court and in the Rockovery area of Pikes was where the real cosmic action was taking place, so I braced myself and went in for the opening ceremony with Carli Susu, the girl who is dubbed Ibiza’s very own ‘white witch’, bedecked in feathers as we sipped welcome drinks, joined the circle, found a partner, locked on to each others’ energy and chanted ‘Har Haray Hari Waheguru’ – which I’m told is a Kundalini chant for creativity. There were bells, there was drumming, there was fire, there was more chanting for the fire element… and there were lots of smiles. Lots of happy, warm, friendly people, all happy to be there, happy to be connecting and happy to be taking part. The thing about happiness is, it’s kind of infectious. Even if you are a non-cosmic like myself, you can’t help but be swept away with everyone else’s enthusiasm. And being happy then opens you up to new experiences. For example… Reiki. I always thought it was just people who thought they had superpowers holding their hands out at you, Spiderman style minus the webs, but on this occasion, I have to say I really felt some kind of… dare I say… energy? And crystal healing – where previously I thought they were just a bunch of pretty rocks, this time I felt drawn to certain colours and discovered what that meant and what they could do to me. I had my Tarot cards read – and now I only wish I had recorded the experience, so I could analyse it more. I’ll just have to go back tomorrow night and do it all again!

Once I’d had my fill of happy hippy dippy trippy stuff I made my way to the pool where REAL LIVE MERMAIDS (also known as the MinxFX Mermaids) were making jaws drop left, right and centre as Ali Schwarz provided the awesome pre-sunset soundtrack. If you ever need to mesmerise a group of small children, simply bring them to the Pikes pool on a Cosmic Pineapple Thursday, where you can most definitely prove that magic exists. When I grow up, I want to be a mermaid! Up on the rooftop, a panel of some of the most awesome electronic music artists – including Josh Wink, Matthew Bushwacka, Acid Mondays and Ali Schwarz – had assembled to give a talk on taking a more conscious approach to dance music that had the audience enthralled. I even overheard one guest say it was one of the most interesting panels they’d ever been to, far more fascinating than the annual IMS. Perhaps approaching music from a conscious viewpoint rather than a business perspective is the way forward…

Cinema Paradiso were out in the garden screening my favourite ever film, The Lost Boys (previous weeks were classics Purple Rain and The Labyrinth), and even though I have seen it around 300 times in my lifetime, it didn’t stop me from pulling up a pew for a while and quoting every single word coming out of either Corey’s mouth, much to the dismay of my neighbours. Last of all was the dancing. With guest star drag artist performers BayBJane and Kalypso Bang looking fabulous, cosmic fluoro face paint creating awesome effects under the neon lighting and a soundtrack by the aforementioned DJs, who needs Burning Man? Ibiza has its very own little cosmic community coming together right here at Pikes… and though I may not be a fully-fledged card carrying member of the tribe, I have to admit my mind is a little less closed to alternative therapies and all that hippy dippy trippy stuff than it was before I arrived.

Tomorrow night is the final instalment of Cosmic Pineapple at Pikes at Ibiza Rocks House, celebrating the Autumn Equinox and the element of air. There’s more cosmic activations and healings, a candlelight yoga session, more tennis court market action, a Cosmic Pineapple Cocktail and as always, the DJ line-up will be kept a secret up until the last minute, but if the last three weeks are anything to go by, you can guarantee it will be a showstopper. Entry is free, however a donation to charity is recommended on entry, with this week’s charities being the Save Fabric London fund and the David Lynch Foundation. Sparkle leggings at the ready! Photography by Phrank for Cosmic Pineapple