I first went there in 1983 on a twenties holiday with a friend because it was cheap. Three years later, I was back working as a holiday rep. I was there when the whole Ibiza clubbing scene was developing. Being in Ibiza is like pushing the pause button on your life; the only worry is that one day you will have to return to the real world or make Ibiza your life.

The moment when I really fell in love with Ibiza was when I realised that the only decisions I had to make were which beach to go to, which bar I was going to get drunk in and I had none of the responsibilities I had in England. I love the laid-back café society in Ibiza. I had a birthday over there and a friend lent me the zoo he used to own. So a whole group of us, from all sorts of backgrounds, gathered around his pool and chilled out. We took three or four hours over lunch, had a few bottles of wine and watched the world go by.

I see Ibiza as rather like having a love affair. It can be painful seeing an ex-lover doing things you once enjoyed doing together. I now look at Ibiza rather like that: it's moved on, has new people and I've just become boring. You can't moan about Ibiza not being like it used to be; it's just changed. The pelloutes, which is what the Spanish called the 1960s hippies and draft dodgers, found different things than I did and the people who come now. I suppose my main complaint is that now everything is being thrust in your face and it is hard to just discover Ibiza for yourself.

How do I get there? Airtours (08701 577775) offers seven nights' self-catering in the Playa Bella apartments in San Antonio, departing Gatwick on May 22, for £179pp based on two sharing. Thomson (0990 502555) offers seven nights in the Fiesta Palmyra apartments in San Antonio, departing Gatwick from May 8, for £225 based on four sharing a studio.

• Is Harry on the Boat?, Colin Butts' novel about holiday reps in Ibiza, is published by Orion at £5.99.