Sant Joan de Labritja Church

Step in from the sun under the front porch and the air turns cool. Stone benches run along it, and the flagstones underfoot are worn smooth with age. It is the best seat in the village on a hot day.

The church itself is plain Ibizan rural architecture: white walls, simple lines, no ornament to speak of. What catches the eye is the scale. The church and its cemetery look oversized for a village this small.

On Sundays the village fills with its market, stalls of handmade crafts and live music. On weekdays Sant Joan de Labritja goes very quiet, and the porch is often empty.

• The church opens only on Sunday morning. The rest of the week you see it from the outside and the porch.
• Sunday is market day in the village, with handmade crafts and live music.
• There are no public toilets or drinking water near the church — fill up before you come.
• The shaded porch with its stone benches is the place to sit out the midday heat.

Most people arrive by car. Two car parks lie close to the church, the nearer about 70 m away and the other about 100 m, so the last stretch is a short walk through the village.

By bus, get off at the Sant Joan stop, about 110 m from the church. The next stop out, encreuament Portinatx, sits about 800 m away in a straight line and makes a longer walk in.

Best: Sunday morning, the only time the church opens.

Avoid: weekdays if you want to see inside; the doors stay shut Monday to Saturday.

Sunday also brings the village market and its crowd, while on weekdays Sant Joan de Labritja is very quiet and the porch is yours.

Sant Joan de Labritja Church is a working parish church. Dress for a church, with shoulders and knees covered, and keep voices down inside. If a service is under way, stay at the back and leave photographs until it ends.