1970’S MENORCA A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE

By Sarah Folley

You could have a drink with your friends and watch them pass through a small gate, waving them off from the garden area as they walked across the tarmac. I also learnt to drive at Sol del Este, in our old Seat 600 with the engine in the boot. I have to admit that there were not many bushes left intact on our dirt track course, as we drove timed races on the “roads” they had laid out for the future development. Sol del Este was then just the Tramuntana villas - La Gardenia didn’t exist, nor any other houses or apartments all the way to Santa Ana which just had a smattering of large villas mostly overlooking Calas Fonts.

And oh, Calas Fons! (as we used to call it). Then THE place to go for all youngsters looking for fun. Trebol and Nikki’s (then Dumbo’s) are still in the original ownership they were back then. The port of Mahon had very little to offer in terms of restaurants or bars. My foray into “acting” was at Bar Port Nelson where free drinks were being offered to all the extras for the film “Spanish Fly” with Terry Thomas and Leslie Philips. The parents were none too pleased with the group of drunk teenagers rolling home later that day!

This was a defining moment in my life! No, not the stern ticking off I was receiving from my father for some serious misdemeanour at school but rather his announcement. While I was stood on the mat in front of his desk, head bowed in shame, he followed up with the news that he had purchased a villa on a tiny Spanish island. And so began a lifelong love affair with Menorca.

Number 1, Sol del Este was one of a group of 25 villas with a pool developed by Andrew Manners, whom many of you will know from his days with Don Cars or as Chairman of the Menorca Cricket Club. The deal was struck for under £5,000 in the Bar Andalucia next to the American bar, where most of their sales were signed up!

It was the early 70’s, flights were few and far between - the days of Aviaco, Dan Air and Freddie Laker. In 1969 the “new” airport opened on the current site with one runway and two check-in desks. It was all very casual.

My first jobs were here too. Scrubbing old antifoul off the bottom of boats on the portside and bar work in Calas Fonts. The bars there were nothing more than caves with a few benches and tables outside. The sanitation was primitive and ventilation was the open door at the front of the bar but we did enjoy the simple pinchitos and chips they served. Restaurants were mostly pretty basic with a limited choice of menu and I remember arriving with a suitcase full of sausages, steak and bacon! Mind you, you could always head for The Rocamar, considered to be the best restaurant on the island, sadly derelict these days.

In the late 70’s my mother was renting out several villas at Sol del Este for other owners. She was incensed one day watching TV in the UK that a bid for a children’s charity donation had been reneged upon and set-to, organising a holiday for some disabled children from a specialist home in Bristol. That afternoon she had secured the villas she looked after plus flights, all donated for the off-season break. Children of all disabilities came with their carers. Menorca came to the fore – restaurants, bars, residents and supermarkets donated meals, drinks, food, boats, ice creams and hire cars, even Tonic laid on a private disco session, which the children absolutely loved. Such was the kindness of individuals and businesses on the island. Tony Hatch wrote a song about their stay, mentioning each child individually, which he played and sang to them at a dinner at Scandals restaurant. Seeing them change over the week and the smiles on their faces when they left made everyone’s generosity so worthwhile.

Of course, Menorca is an island of sun, sea and sand and boating became a large part of our holidays here. Our small speed boat was duly moored in front of Sol del Este and water skiing was then allowed in the harbour. We used to set up a slalom course of cans of beer on the edges of the canal through to the lagoon (aka Cowards’ Cove), which we had to touch on each side as we skiied through. Our main mode of transport though was by Mobylette. No helmets and you could always tell who had been riding one as you could not avoid the burnt leg from the exhaust pipe!

The Nightclub Scene

As a teenager in the 70’s the nightclub scene here was a big deal. My brother and I would bring sets of the top 20 singles on vinyl which would secure free entry to that disco for the season. Tonic, Si, the Caves of Xoroi and Flistons were our favourites while later, others such as Lui, Stars and Pacha were considered the cooler clubs. We thought the dance podiums and lighting up dance floors were great. The water feature with bridges to reach the bars may have looked amazing but what a ridiculous idea that was with glasses and revellers taking regular dips!

Our night out at the disco, would end at 7am, having picked up some fresh bread from the bakers in Villa Carlos with which to watch the sunrise from the rocks in front of the villa (the most Easterly place in Spain). We would then be woken at 11am on a Sunday morning as the cannon was fired from Lazaretto - a weekly event which took place for many years. La Mola was still being used for National Service, so was very active, as were the military buildings in Mahon and Villa Carlos. Isla del Rey was a ruin where we used to go for picnics by boat and later my boys used to play with their BB guns in and out of the colonnades.

In those days houses were usually left unlocked, as were cars, often with the keys in the ignition -Well, if they were stolen, they couldn’t go far. This was very useful if someone was parked in your way, as you could just hop in and move it! Pretty much all the ex-pat community knew each other, life was simple, fun and at an easy-going pace – so that hasn’t changed much. Despite the enormous amount of development, Menorca has maintained that unpretentious charm that so many of us adore.

My love of and connection to this little Mediterranean rock has only grown stronger over the years. My mother and later, my father, lived here, I met my husband here, all my children’s holidays were spent here and now my young grandchildren are developing their love for it too. I can only hope that they have as many happy memories of this very special island as I do!