11/05/08: Medieval madness: EIVISSA MEDIEVAL FESTIVAL

It’s a common misconception that Ibiza is all about parties, lazing on the beach and long lunches, and while Miss W certainly does have a tendency to indulge in all of the above, she also likes to get a bit cultural every now and again - just to make sure her brain is still stimulated (and to avoid getting mis-cast as a party girl too!)

So this weekend, to celebrate the fact that our city was declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 1999, Ibiza town has come over all medieval on us - it’s not hard when you’ve got the ancient fortress, castle and cathedral of Dalt Vila as a setting, but I mean SERIOUSLY medieval. Think market stalls selling all types of herbs, spices, teas and organic produce, handmade jewellery and traditional Spanish shawls, thousands of different cheeses and all sorts of artsy craftsy stuff… and then, there was the amazing food market!

The entire top platform of Dalt Vila was transformed into a Medieval masterpiece, with everything from cous cous and felafels (Miss W ate three over the course of three days they were THAT good) to barbequed steaks, ribs and squid - there were enough tantalising smells wafting through the air that you could follow your nose to find exactly what to tickle your tastebuds.

Of course, there were plenty of market stalls offering local wines and chilled ales to wash the feast down with and as the afternoon wore on, it became THE place to be scene, even if you did have to weave your way through street performers, bungy jumping displays and crazy parades to find your friends. Miss W and the White-ettes claimed poll position at the top of the hill, meaning we were close to the bar and could also watch all the action unfold beneath us

THE LOWDOWN
The good: The amount of effort gone into organising the three-day event by the council of Ibiza and Mayoress Lurdes Costa - if only it could happen every weekend!
The bad: The rain - again! I thought Ibiza was supposed to have 300 days of uninterrupted sunshine per year - can only hope this marks the end of the 65 other days!
The gossip: A certain few of Ibiza’s well known blokes-about-town chose to leave the festival in all its glory early to watch the football. Oh well - to each their own, Miss W always says…