The obligatory V-Day love waffle

Doesn’t time just fly when we’re having fun here in Ibiza? Another year has flown by and Valentine’s Day is upon us once again. Love Day, V.Day, Saint Val’s Day, Singles Awareness Day, Singles Appreciation Day, The Hallmark Holiday – whatever you call it (personally I have always thought of it as my mother’s birthday!), the day is approaching when couples all over the world feel compelled (or perhaps pressured) into publicly displaying their love for one another, through flowers, gifts, dinners, trips, proposals – you know the drill. And so, today, like many other bloggers around the world, I find myself in the position of needing to write some obligatory V-Day waffle… Mmmm, waffles.

Have I ever told you how much I love waffles? They weren’t really a breakfast staple where I grew up, so when I first travelled to the USA, I became a HUGE fan of waffles, especially when they were part of a high-end hotel’s breakfast buffet. You could say it was love at first bite (sorry!). That crispy-on-the-outside, fluffy-on-the-inside batter, those perfectly shaped hollow squares just waiting to soak up gloops of silky sweet maple syrup (interestingly, another condiment I had never tried in my home country – thank you good ole US of A for that one too!). Sure, you can put some strawberries on top to make them look beautiful, maybe a dollop of cream or some powdered sugar, but waffles in their most basic form are indeed a beautiful thing.

Perhaps a heart-shaped waffle would make the ideal Valentine’s Day breakfast? In the absence of The Giri Café (whose wonderful waffles are pictured above, but don’t open until March, I wonder if I put a special request in to my dear friend Lana Love (I mean really – LOVE is in her name, how can she say no?), the creator of Ibiza’s legendary Passion Cafes, for a heart shaped brunch waffle, if she could have her chefs whip it up for me? Now that – that would be love. After all, people can show love to those who aren’t their significant other. In fact, we do it all the time – it’s just not given a name or a special date to celebrate it on. Whether it’s kindness to another human being, showing compassion when someone else needs it, paying attention to how your friends are REALLY feeling (not just how they appear on social media), taking a homeless pooch for a walk, helping someone out when they need it – in my humble opinion, these things also fall under the love umbrella.

So today, as V-Day approaches, I think we should all focus more on the everyday kinds of love that takes place in our lives. Not the kind that involves dating, or diamond rings, or decadent dinners, or even a partner. But the kind that happens just while life is passing you by. It could be the love you feel when you get out of your car and realise you park in one of the most beautiful UNESCO World Heritage Listed Sites every day (OK, maybe that’s just me and a handful of others, but I’m trying to paint a picture here). Or the love you feel when a stray cat lets you stop and stroke it (is that one just me too?). Maybe’s it’s the love you feel when you take that first bite of Vegemite toast in the morning (you can replace it with Marmite if you’re one of THOSE people) and feel like you are eating a slice of heaven.

I feel love all around me in Ibiza, no matter where I might be. Sometimes it’s in the local SPAR (supermarket) when the lovely ladies always greet me with ‘hola nena’ or ‘hola cariño’ (basically babe and darling, but not in a condescending way); other times it’s how certain bartenders in certain bars (you know who you are!) always fill your wine glass up when you’re not looking, but never charge you for another glass. It can be the way the lady who waxes my eyebrow apologises SO profusely and sweetly for making my face red (it’s not her fault, I asked for it, paid for it, and I just have sensitive skin, which she knows after ten years but continues to apologise for) every time she shapes them. It might be how my corner shop owner always asks how my cats are, because he’s my go-to-guy for kitty litter.

I feel it when I listen to my friend Miss S’s 12-minute WhatsApp voice messages (I call them her podcasts) because she KNOWS I don’t like talking on the phone, but she likes to talk, so she invented the perfect compromise. LOVE! I feel it in nature too. I feel absolutely filled with love when I see the almond blossoms in full bloom (now people! Get out there!), and I feel almost overflowing with love every time I see the blazing sunset skies over Dalt Vila. Music too, fills me with love and it could be anything from a random Bon Jovi song from the 80s coming on the Rock FM airwaves, to streaming Taylor Swift’s Lover on repeat for six hours, to singing along with Disney songs while watching movies (I generally alternate between The Little Mermaid, Beauty & The Beast and Frozen) to getting lost in the plinky plonky dreamy soundscapes of Ricardo Villalobos on Instastories (watch this space for a full report on that in the future). My love for music knows no bounds (well, except Michael Jackson – was never a fan) and so as long as there’s music on, I’m feeling love.

That cheesy Wet Wet Wet song (that you now won’t be able to get out of your head after reading this) really had it right: Love is all around us. We don’t NEED Valentine’s Day, Love Day, V.Day, Saint Val’s Day, Singles Awareness Day, Singles Appreciation Day or The Hallmark Holiday to know this. We just have to be a little more aware in our day to day lives to FEEL it. We don’t need to hold onto this overblown idea of finding an epic, all-consuming love. Perhaps, all the little tiny daily doses of love we receive add up to be more than enough love to last more than a lifetime anyway. So to wrap up my love waffle for 2020, I’d just like to send everyone who has read this far lots and lots of love, today, tomorrow and beyond…

Ain’t love grand?

I’m going to be honest. As I sit here at my computer on Valentine’s Eve, I find myself (for once) lost for words. You see, after 11 consecutive years of writing some kind of ode to love, love in Ibiza, the loveless in Ibiza, being loved-up in Ibiza, love for Ibiza, anti-Valentines, love to all beings, loves lost, love being in the air, all the single ladies, finding Valentine’s gifts in Ibiza, things to do on Valentine’s Day in Ibiza and well, all kinds of other V.Day and love related topics, this year I simply have nothing to say on the subject of Valentine’s Day. And so I turned to my good friend Google for some inspiration.

Whenever I’m a bit stuck for words, I find song lyrics can usually encourage some kind of inspiration. As do movie titles. I instantly clicked with My Funny Valentine and started concocting a sweet little soliloquy dedicated to my kooky little cat, but then common sense stopped me in my tracks. Those are the kind of journal entries we crazy cat ladies must always keep to ourselves. Though… if you could see her, I’m sure you’d also fall completely head over heels in love with her too. *quietly books photographer for cat portrait session for next V.Day’s blog*

OK, so let’s keep scrolling. My Bloody Valentine is the next one that piques my interest but I’m not sure the world needs to read a blog dedicated to my love of slasher flicks on V.Eve (or does it? DM me for more gory details!). And then I landed on Blue Valentine. Ahhh Ryan Gosling. Even when he’s as messed up as his character in that dark, dark Oscar-nominated movie, he’s still every girl’s (single, coupled, married and dare I say possibly even gay) dream Valentine. Now there’s a topic I know my good friend Miss S would LOVE to read about – an entire blog singing the virtues of that beautiful baby-faced Gosling, who doesn’t seem to have aged a bit since that movie was made almost a decade ago. But then I circle back to the question I often ask myself when penning these blogs, what relevance does he have to Ibiza? (RG, if you’re reading, please come and visit us so we can make you relevant enough to write about next V.Day!) Sigh.

Back to the drawing board. Which, in this case was a message board where I contact my fellow writer Miss L in despair about my case of writer’s block. She instantly obliges with a plethora of ideas to use as a base, such as the fact Ibicenco men would play the flute near the houses of girls they wished to court, but they’d hide in the bushes so they wouldn’t be seen (pretty silly plan if you ask me – like sending an anonymous card: what’s the point? I’d want the glory). She also floated the idea of drawing a parallel with Ibiza’s well-known god of dance, Bes, with Valentine’s Day traditions of love and indulgence, which was a great one, until I started researching it and found out it had previously been written on another website!

Then we started talking about the fact that Valentine was indeed a Saint, and I began to wonder why – on an island where almost every single area is named after a saint – we don’t have a village called San Valentin in Ibiza? Seems the poor old Roman Catholic saint just wasn’t in luck when it came to doling out geographical areas on the white isle, though Miss L tells me there are 15 towns in the USA which are indeed named after him, Google tells me I should head to France for the ultimate St Valentin village experience and I also have vague memories of visiting a small backwater suburb named Valentine near Lake Macquarie in Australia during my childhood. I’m digressing…

Let’s face it, it’s not like Saint Valentine was all that lucky anyway: the guy was beheaded, after a beating with clubs and stones failed to kill him. Light bulb above the head moment! I finally see the connection between the patron saint of tomorrow’s big love fest and my favourite slasher flick! There was certainly no love lost there. [Side note: The remains of the V man himself are actually deposited in St Anton’s Church in Madrid just a short plane ride away from Ibiza in case anyone cares to visit him tomorrow.]

Miss L’s final contribution to my pot of V.Day blog ideas was one that I must admit I got a kick out of. And while it’s not technically in Ibiza, it’s a Valentine’s Day treat that’s available to women and men all over the globe and accessible via satellite so I think it’s well worth writing about. Especially for Valentine’s Day, the El Paso Zoo has created a genius Facebook campaign, where followers can opt to name a giant hissing cockroach after their ex-partner, which will then be fed to a meerkat. The feast is going to be streamed live via webcam tomorrow at 2.15pm.

Slightly more twisted than Blue Valentine, possibly more macabre than Saint V’s execution and just the comments alone on the post are more entertaining than any slasher flick could ever hope to be. Turns out while I was lost for words on what to say about Valentine’s Day, there are around 6.5k people out there who were ready just to let their thoughts rip. Ain’t love grand? Meerkats are pretty damn cute too. Look at him below, just waiting for his deliciously crunchy cockroach feast tomorrow. But judging by the viral success of that campaign, they’re going to need more meerkats!

Love is in the air

It’s Valentine’s Eve, and love is definitely in the air. Come tomorrow morning, it’s going to be on the airwaves, in your inboxes, in your old school post box, on your dinner plates, on your doorstep (I’d love a kitten with a big pink bow around her neck, if anyone’s paying attention, ahem), on your pulse points and if you’re in the market to get engaged, it might even end up on your finger. One thing is certain in today’s society. On February 14, love is definitely going to be on your mind. Unless you live on a deserted island and have no access to the internet or a calendar… in which case, you’re not reading this email so it’s totally irrelevant! Here on our little Mediterranean island, we are quite removed from the over-commercialism of V.Day, which sometimes I feel grateful for. For example, our favourite television shows are not interrupted by ads for florists, diamonds or dinners (though let’s be honest – we all just binge-watch Netflix now so our lives are blissfully ad-free anyway).

You can walk into any shop and not be hit in the face by cardboard hearts hanging form the ceiling, you can buy a bag of potatoes without having to receive a pamphlet that suggests six sexy recipes you can use them in and towers made from boxes of chocolates don’t dominate the entire cash register area of your local supermarket. On the other hand, there are times when I wish Ibiza was a little more Valentine’s inclined. Say, like those times when you’ve forgotten to buy your other half a gift, and you know there’s no chance a late night V.Day Eve online purchase can possibly arrive before he wakes up the next morning. Or when you DO happen to have the right gift, but can’t find any wrapping paper that isn’t for children. Or when all you’ve got left in your pantry is a bag of potatoes and you’re trying to work out how you can possibly turn that into a romantic meal!

Photo above of The Giri Residence by Ana Lui

Speaking of meals, a decadent Valentine’s dinner is always an option on the white isle, though given Ibiza is like a small town in winter, you have to be comfortable knowing you and your partner will be seated in close proximity to your boss/neighbour/client/bank manager. You can check out our selection of the best dining options in Ibiza on the White Ibiza Event Calendar here – but remember the small town syndrome thing… with such a limited amount of locations, you’ll need to make a reservation to ensure you don’t miss out. Then again, you could always whip up your very own romantic meal for two from potatoes… Though there may be a shortage of restaurants, of cards, of wrapping paper, of diamonds, of florists and kittens with bright pink bows on their necks here in Ibiza, I’ll tell you the one thing Ibiza is definitely NOT lacking. L.O.V.E. Love is all around us here on the white isle and we don’t need a day dedicated to showing it (though I still wouldn’t say no to a kitten or a nice dinner). No matter where I am in Ibiza, I feel love, everywhere. I love the way each and every resident of the island has their own unique reason for loving Ibiza. I also love the way the island inspires such fiercely loyal, passionate love in her visitors too. I love the way you can be alone in Ibiza, but never feel lonely, because you always have the island as your constant companion. To live in a place that inspires such love in a collective of strangers hailing from all corners of the globe is really something special. One thing’s for sure – if Ibiza could receive cards and gifts on V.Day, there wouldn’t be enough postmen and couriers on duty to deliver them all!