Welcome to Ibiza

Following a 15 Euro cab ride to Hotel Lido in which the cab driver hit the jackpot with my 2 Euro tip (I found out later that you don’t tip cabs), I arrived perfectly in cahoots with Saumya’s return from a day on the beach with our two other hotel-mates, her boyfriend Nick and mutual friend from San Francisco, Sagar who has been working in London for the past two years. Since Saumya’s move to France in February, this was the first time I had seen her in three months. What a better way to start off the trip than with one of my best friends!

After catching up briefly, my eyelids gave up the fight as I collapsed on the bed and drifted into a deep, dreamless nap. Three hours later, it was 9 p.m. and daylight still lingered on the horizon as I stepped onto the breezy balcony overlooking the Mediterranean. The night was young. It was time to rally up.

After everyone was showered and I successfully returned power to the hotel room after blowing a fuse with the hairdryer (damn voltage converters don’t work), the boys rounded up some pizzas from a local shop and Saumya pulled out some pre-purchased bottles of alcohol from Barcelona (always thinking ahead). With Red Bull vodka the cocktail of choice and shots of Jameson (ouch) as insurance to avoid the warnings of high-priced drinks on the island, the night was off and running. In the meantime, Sagar’s Canadian friend from London, Mitch, also joined in as we discussed our options for the night.

This weekend was “Opening Weekend” in Ibiza, the biggest weekend for clubs on the island, only second (as sources tell us) to “Closing Weekend”. Essentially, the three biggest clubs, Pacha, Privilege and Space, would be hosting their most elaborate parties of the year this Friday, Saturday and Sunday – the three days we would be in Ibiza. As much as I would like to say that I planned this … I’m afraid I can’t lay claim to this precipitous timing.

Friday night, Pacha was the place to be. As the club doesn’t go off until 2 a.m., we decided to head down to the strip at Playa d’en Bossa to some bars where the group had earned a round of free shots from Rosa, a promoter they had befriended on the beach earlier in the day. Several more shots of Jameson in the hotel and a cab ride later, we arrived to the side by side bars, Top 21 and Murphy’s. Feeling sufficiently wasted buzzed, we collected our complimentary shots in the outdoor bar terrace and moseyed to the downstairs area of Top 21 where we managed to take over the dance floor, seamlessly switching our dance styles between hip hop and salsa en suit with the DJ’s mix.

Before we knew it, we had migrated to Murphy’s next door, an Irish bar packed to the brim with a live band playing American hit after American hit with a few Spanish numbers thrown in here and there for authenticity. On the band’s break, Saumya and I were so inspired by Lady GaGa’s “Let’s Dance” playing in the interim that we paired up for a lip syncing duet on the stage before being politely kicked escorted off … A blur of sing-a-longs and several salsa numbers later at Top 21, and suddenly, the time was approaching 5 a.m. Where had the time gone?

Day two in Ibiza had us all suited up and out the door by 10 a.m. (thanks for the wake-up call Sagar) to hike the 20-minute walk to Playa d’en Bossa. The day wavered between overcast and sunny skies where we lounged beachside with a couple Coronas, Sangria and beachside soccer. I have to admit, the island was pretty quiet. I expected a lot more people out and more of a “scene”, but then again, considering the intensity of the clubbing at night, I suppose it made sense.

While on the beach we were approached by a German guy and girl tag team of promoters offering a deal for the opening night of Privilege, the “Biggest Club in the World”. We were already aware that entrance into any of the clubs this weekend would set each of us back about 45 to 50 Euro minimum. We had also heard that unlike Vegas, it would be near impossible for Saumya and me (the ladies) to pull off getting in without paying the cover because of the magnitude of the weekend. This in mind, the Germans’ deal piqued our interest. After sipping on a glass of bate free Sangria to discuss the details, Sagar returned back to relay the deal.

For 45 Euros each we would get a ticket for entrance into the club and unlimited drinks of our choosing from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. at the Beach Palace, an outdoor bar on the beach and also the “official” pre-party for Privilege’s opening night. Additionally, the offer included a free bus shuttle to the club.

Our concerns. 1.) If we planned on being out until 6 a.m., starting the night with unlimited drinking at 9 p.m. was pretty early, even for us. 2.) We did not want to arrive to the club that early [12 a.m.], as the club doesn’t really go off until 2 a.m. This would also mean that in order to keep our buzz, we would have to purchase obnoxiously priced drinks at the club, starting at 15 Euros per drink.

In following with this second concern, we asked the lead German promoter, Sasha, if we could utilize the free beverages at Beach Palace until midnight, forego the bus ride, arrive at the club later via our own transport (cab) at around 2 a.m. and still have valid free entrance to the club. This way we could drink in town for cheap and head over to the club when it starts going off. [Ah, the deep considerations of a group of intelligent college-educated 25-year olds!]

Due to the language barrier, Sasha and his equally beautiful dark-skinned female partner had trouble answering our questions and unfortunately, proved to be too unreliable for us to make a fully informed decision on how we were getting into Privilege.

We declined.

An hour later, a cute, bleach blond English-speaking Canadian named Leah who was down on her luck (getting outsold by the Germans because of the overwhelming number of German visitors on the beach and lack of English-speaking club-goers) approached us with the same deal. She confidently answered our questions and quelled our fears that if we went separate from the bus shuttle at midnight and arrived later close to 2, we could get in. Five minutes later, we helped boost Leah’s ticket sales by 100% and paid the 20 Euro deposit per person for the four of us, as well as three additions, Sagar’s friends that were also in town this weekend, Mitch, Kirin and Lex.

This is also where I contemplated my first way to extend my journey in Europe. Perhaps a month in Ibiza as a club promoter on the beach? Leah promised to introduce me to her boss, Peter later on that night …

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With one of the DJ’s from Privilege spinning, all of us decked out in proper club attire and beautiful people all around, this was more of the Ibiza I had imagined. By 10 p.m., we had amassed quite a group in a private cabana poolside at Beach Palace: Saumya, Nick, Sagar, Mitch, Kirin, Lex and myself. Oh, and a bachelorette party of 10 British girls in tutus. Just a calm, well-mannered group of people out on the town …

The line for drinks went out the door of the bar and wrapped around the pool (the catch to the deal, of course), but the upside (or would prove to be downside for one of our own later on) was each person was allowed three drinks per order and as it turns out, only the slightest of encouragement was needed to assuage the bartenders to pour a vodka on the rocks with a splash of Red Bull.

By midnight, we were all feeling good, but stuck to our guns about not taking the bus to the club. We bid our goodbyes to our new British friends and as some of the group hadn’t eaten, we stopped at a local restaurant for further imbibing and a light snack. Just prior to dinner being served, one of our group members (who shall remain nameless) fell victim to the intensity of the bartenders’ heavy pours and unfortunately, they had jumped on an unforgiving porcelain bus that had a long and arduous road ahead ...

After dinner was said and done (no idea of the time), our group was now down to five, well, more like four and a half … Sagar fell off the map for a second, but he managed to rally successfully. Determined to power on to our final destination, we hailed a cab and were driven out to what feels like the middle of nowhere. Then, like a mirage in the desert was Privilege, a massive, beaming building reverberating bass like I’ve never heard before. We had made it.

What can I say about this place? It is absolutely ENORMOUS. I think they said the capacity was 60,000 and I believe it. They say it’s the biggest club in the world. Well, it is definitely the biggest club I have ever seen. A sea of bodies gyrating back and forth, the beats of house music blasting at a decibel level that I don’t believe exists, lights flashing from every direction, half naked women falling from the ceiling on ropes and spinning around like rag dolls, Adonis-like men dancing on stages everywhere … I feel like the first thirty minutes in there entailed me standing there, jaw-dropped, staring in awe. Truly a sight to be seen. I just can’t even explain it. Neither my description, nor the pictures do it justice. It is one of those things that you just have to experience to understand.

After navigating our way through the sea of bodies, we posted up beside a pool with one of the DJ stages raised above the water in the heart of it where we managed to overtake a platform for dancing, stomping and body swaying with arms raised with the crowd to the trance. We even ran into the bachelorette and her friend from earlier in the night wherein they also joined in on the platform action.

Just like the previous night (ahem, morning), the time passed by in the blink of an eye and by 6 a.m. the place was still going off, as packed as it was when we walked in. With a flight to catch in the morning and a vehement refusal to pay 20 Euro for a bottle of water, those that made it through to the end retreated out into the sultry night (morning) at 6 a.m. where for a brief moment, I thought I might be def …

A cab ride and the blink of an eye later, it was 9:30 a.m. and we were headed to the airport. Delirious and dehydrated, we were all Barcelona-bound on the same flight together … Little did I know what would be in store …