MEET THE SEA

For children growing up on an island, the sea quickly becomes part of everyday life. They learn to swim almost as soon as they can walk, spend endless summers in and out of the water, and think nothing of clambering onto a boat for the day. Meet the Sea builds on that familiarity, helping kids discover that beneath the surface lies an entirely different world.

The boat leaves from Port de Sant Antoni, collecting a second group of families from Port des Torrent before heading along Ibiza’s west coast. The journey itself is part of the experience. Greg points out landmarks along the shoreline before steering into a small sea cave, where the boat slows while he explains how the purple colouring on the rock beneath the surface is one of the signs of clean, healthy water. It’s the first reminder that the sea is full of things most of us swim past without ever noticing. From there, the boat continues towards one of the sheltered bays Greg has chosen for the day’s snorkelling.

Born in Ibiza, Greg has spent his life on and around the sea. As a child, he was encouraged to understand it, not simply enjoy it, and that philosophy quietly runs through everything he does. He often talks about how schools teach children about the environment, but very little about the sea itself. Here, learning happens differently. Before anyone even pulls on a snorkel mask, Greg explains that the dark patches beneath the water aren’t something to avoid, but meadows of Neptune grass, an ancient flowering plant that keeps Ibiza’s waters healthy and provides a home for countless marine species. Black sponge, sea urchins and sea bream soon become familiar names too, and by the time the children slip into the water they’re already looking at the Mediterranean with fresh eyes.

Once the boat drops anchor, the kids hardly need encouraging. Greg takes small groups beneath the surface, showing both adults and children how to snorkel while pointing out the wildlife they’d almost certainly have swum straight past on their own. Others make a beeline for the paddle boards, happy simply to float, splash and play while they wait for their turn. The atmosphere is wonderfully relaxed, with everyone quickly settling into the easy rhythm of the day.

Back on board, the smell of a traditional meat and vegetable paella begins to drift across the deck while everyone enjoys the water or dries off in the sunshine. Parents settle into easy conversation over a glass of sangria, a cold beer or a glass of wine from the onboard bar, while the kids drift between the paddle boards and another swim.

Then comes the moment that seems to stop everyone in their tracks.

After lunch, the children are invited back into the water with Greg while the chef gathers the remaining paella and scatters it into the sea in generous handfuls. Within seconds, the clear water begins to shimmer. Hundreds of sea bream appear from every direction, darting around the boat in flashes of silver as children lean over the side in complete fascination, before slipping into the water to swim amongst them. For the next hour, they launch themselves from both the bow and the stern of the boat, climbing back up the ladder only to race around and do it all again.

Before the boat turns back towards Port de Sant Antoni, the younger explorers set off on a pirate treasure hunt while the older children squeeze in one last jump from the boat. By now, everyone is tired in the way only a day at sea can achieve. Hair stiff with salt, skin warm from the sun, already asking when they can come again.

Somewhere between the purple rock beneath the cave, the meadows of Neptune grass, leaping from the boat and watching hundreds of sea bream gather beneath the surface, they’ve begun to see the Mediterranean a little differently. Not simply as somewhere to swim, but as a living world to understand, respect and care for.

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