Chillout

The summer we moved to Australia had a pretty good start in Switzerland (it turned cold and wet just before we actually left). We had many hot and sunny days and it was the first summer both of us could actually really enjoy our garden and summer as such. The years prior it was the busiest time in our work schedule and we were away for most of it.

It’s been a beautiful, hot day today and I got taken back to those days back in Switzerland. Sometimes it happens. We had the most beautiful sunsets there, over one of the corn fields in the area. That summer we often sat outside, with or without friends there, listening to one of the many Café del Mar CD’s in our possession. For those of you who don’t know what Café del Mar is:

Café del Mar (Catalan: [kəˈfe ðəɫ ˈma], Spanish: [kaˈfe ðel mar]; “Sea Café”) is a bar located in Sant Antoni de Portmany, Ibiza, established in 1980. In 1999, it founded the record labelCafé del Mar Music, known for its series of chillout CDs.

Although we’ve been to Ibiza we’ve never been to the one Café del Mar. I heard it must really be great there, especially when the sun sets. I also think you don’t have to be in Ibiza to watch the sun set and enjoy chillout music. You can do that in your garden in Switzerland or over here in Australia.

So that summer we did a lot of that. We enjoyed our sunsets, we enjoyed our garden, we enjoyed the calm, the music, each other. It was our way to say goodbye to our life there. It was our way to let go of all the stress we had endured in the months and maybe even years prior. It was our way to say goodbye to all the toxic people we left behind. And it was our way to let go of what we liked.

Recently I was looking for a CD of a band I loved a lot back in the days and took out the box all our CD’s are stored in. I not only found that one CD but all of our Café del Mar CD’s and of course I had to take them out and play them.

I think music “talks” to you. You find the one type of music that makes you relax and breathe deeper. Many of the songs on the Café del Mar CD’s do that for me. Not all though. I’m glad I was looking for the other CD and dug out all those CD’s too. I spent some nice nights now sitting outside and listening to them over the last couple of days. Just sitting there, not reading, not doing anything. Sitting and listening. And it felt good.

Tonight I might just do the same thing once again (if the mosquitoes leave me alone…). I love thinking back to those sunsets in that specific summer. It was the summer that changed so much in our life and I’m extremely grateful for that time in our life although it was not easy at all. It shows that sometimes the hardest moments lead to the best chapters in your life. For me, the album the following song is on stands for exactly that. Don’t let challenges discourage you. Accept them for what they are, in a way embrace them and then move on from there.