Bondi Beach: living the Sydney dream
Bondi Beach is Australia’s most famous beach and one of its most iconic attractions. Of the many Sydney beaches it’s probably the only one a yak herder from Mongolia would be able to name, as someone (not me) once said. It’s brash, colourful, young, surfer culture, probably a little too in love with itself but we like it very much. The Australian Heritage Council recognised Bondi, alongside rather more obvious heritage icons as the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, for its role in developing Beach Culture, whatever that is. Well, life based around the beach, I guess. It’s just as usual to see a surfboard being toted along the beach front as a designer handbag but the surfer always seems to be in more of a hurry, normally running barefoot rather than tottering in sky-high heels and too-low tops. Maybe it’s just that they can’t wait to ride that next wave or they’re late for work but what I do know is the shorter the board the more expert the surfer. Any carried board that’s shorter than the height of the carrier and you’re probably in the company of a Bondi surfing god, and probably one that’s just as good looking, male or female.
The Beach is about 1km long, always busy but not overly crowded. It has reliable surf, no shade, good food and a lovely, relaxed, happy, touristy atmosphere. It attracts the young and the beautiful and some of the famous too – Leah told us Will Smith was seen by a friend walking to a local coffee shop early one morning last week. The sun rises above the sea around 6am and by 6:30 dozens of pre-work surfers are waiting on their boards for a ride where the biggest swells form. The beach is busy with organised keep-fit groups (Leah and Laura join one at 5:45 each morning), surf schools are in session early morning on the beach and on the smaller waves and literally hundreds of people are exercising and jogging. It’s so exhausting, dahling. The southern end of the bay, where we are, is best for surfing as the breakers are good and there’s a strong undercurrent so it’s not so good for bathers, positively dangerous, in fact. There’s also a good chance of being hit by a fast-moving surfer if you’re a bather in the wrong place and stupidly ignore the warnings but people often seem just too lazy to walk up the beach to swim in the flagged area, or too macho to do so after downing half a case of VB. It clearly drives the lifeguards nuts when bathers can’t/ don’t read the signs or simply ignore their tannoyed advice. The lifeguards drive up and down the beach in their sand buggies then turn towards the sea at intervals and use their loudspeakers to implore bathers to either get out of the sea or move up the beach to the flagged area. We watched one lifeguard quickly and expertly board through the surf to a swimmer who’d been hit by a surfer and we imagined the choice words of advice he got on the ride back in because he scooted off with his tail between his legs as soon as they landed back on the beach. I guess that’s fair enough. If a lifeguard has to put him/herself in some danger to rescue someone who simply didn’t follow their directions then the least you deserve when rescued is a good yelling. In fact, the lifeguards warn you over their tannoy, “if I have to come out to rescue any of you guys I will not be pleased”, or words to that effect. Bondi lifeguards are paid professionals who perform around 5000 rescues each summer so they’re not joking.
Bondi Beach is at the bottom of a hill imaginatively-named Bondi Road, about 7kms from Sydney CBD on our favourite 333 bus which also passes through Paddington, where Natalie & Col currently live. The main drag in front of the beach is called Campbell Parade but don’t ask me who Mr or Ms Campbell is or was or whether they paraded or even hailed from Scotland. Leah and Rob live above a smart Rip Curl surf shop (of course they do) in a lovely two-bed ‘unit’ overlooking the beach and just 100m or a one minute walk from the beach itself, really living the Sydney dream. Just to the right is the famous Bondi Icebergs Club which has a sea-filled outdoor pool used by club members throughout the year. This iconic pool was being pounded by a high surf when we arrived last week but it proved the pool is regularly refilled by the sea and I took some nice photos of the corner of the pool which, if you’ve ever been to Bondi, will be instantly recognisable.
Walking down Campbell Parade with the other beautiful people we feel decidedly overdressed. Mostly people are showing themselves off, if not to us then to each other. Tanned, fit, bronzed and healthy – and the Aussies aren’t in bad shape either.
I meet Leah, and sometimes Laura, each morning at 6:30 after their morning exercise class for coffee, an iced latte each for them, a flat white for me. Coffee in Sydney seems to be a way of life, a very lovely way to while a half hour and a chat. A barista-made coffee looks, smells and tastes delicious and really puts the big coffee chain shops under some competition. In fact, we’ve only seen one Starbucks shop since we’ve been here. Relaxing and cooling with an iced coffee after an early exercise class on Bondi beach before work is how I imagined these modern young trendies live, which is quite wonderful, I reckon.
All the tour guides mention the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk as a ‘must do’ and you know what? They’re damn right. It’s Leah and Rob’s favourite walk and they do it a couple of times a week. The girls put it on our ‘things to do’ visit schedule so we did it (again) yesterday morning with Rob who has a few days off now between night shifts. Armed with a camera, sun cream, a towel and bottles of water we set off past the Icebergs pool on the cliff path. It was a Monday morning so the path is nothing like as busy as a weekend morning and it’s a lovely 6km walk, past cliffs, gardens, rock pools, millionaire cliff-edge houses, parks and 5 or 6 lovely beaches along the way. We stopped for a swim and a cool-off at one before continuing to Coogee where we had a pizza lunch at the Pavilion before calling an Uber ride back to Bondi and a well-earned cup of tea at ‘home’, overlooking that beach.
Attached is yet another Google Photos album. I maybe should note that we recognise many of you UK-based folks are struggling with some pretty awful weather right now and we want you to know that we’re suffering along with you. It’s sometimes quite difficult to sleep without aircon at night and yesterday my shoulders did get a little red on the walk. You may be hearing about 40+degree temperatures at the Melbourne Open but you should know that it doesn’t get anything like as hot as that here at Bondi, in fact it’s a little hazy here today. And finally, the sun isn’t as bright, the sky’s not as blue and the sea is not as azure as it may seem in the photos. This is simply due to my prowess with Photoshop but nevertheless, I hope you enjoy.
🙋🙋🏼♂️😘
🕺🍻😅
