An article about Bondi

I found this article while looking at the morning paper in Sydney.

A Surprise Visit (and an expected one too!)

We got a surprise and welcome visit today from Evo & Michelle, on their way back from a holiday to Bali. And don't they look so relaxed!



Elena and I were off for breakfast and a morning walk around a very chilly Bondi, when he called. So we had a coffee on the beach before they jumped off on their flight to Melbourne. By the time they had left the beach was thriving.



Earlier, we'd found some more areas to walk around the area. It's amazing how busy it was for 9am on a Sunday morning.




The weather has been really fantastic. Today was the secons day of 25 degrees in the past week. It seems like Summer is certainly on its way!

What a shame it it wasn't so good a week ago when a good Swedish friend visited us. We had a great time. It's always fantastic catching up with old friends (no he's not that old...) and chewing the fat about what was, what is and what could've been. Since he prefers to remain anonymous, we have blanked out his face... ;-)



While he was here we wandered down to Bondi Beach - the place he hadn't seen when he was here last time, and back home for a seafood bonanza on the barbie.

The next day we mozied into and around Sydney feeling somewhat flattened by a bottle of whisky the evening before.



On his final day we did the Bondi to Coogee walk thing (almost), followed by a quick workout in the gym (what about that view!) and then out to a few bars in the evening. The next morning he was off the Melbourne to watch real men play real football.




He has a copy of the photos he made whilst in Sydney available for general viewing.

The rest of the weekend was not so exciting - but in the last couple of days we've ben to an Indian mucis concert, which was very relaxing and yesterday I went to a seminar on "Long term investments in the Sharemarket". The speaker was renowned, and it was not too expensive. But very worthwhile.

This week, there's not so much planned in our agenda's - which is good for getting back in the "what do we do for income" thought mode.

Bondi Beach - The Beach

After some comments from one of our readers, we thought we'd update you with another version of Bondi. By now you know it's well located, has great bars, etc... but what about that beach???

Firstly, Bondi is one of Australia's most famous beaches - and is the home of the worlds first Surf Life Saving Club.



The place name - "Bondi" or "Boondi" - is an aboriginal word meaning "water breaking over rocks".

So of course, it does have a great surf. If you manage to ride a wave like this I will buy you as much beer (or wine) as you can drink in a week.

Anyone who joins us during summer, we'll take some surf lessons if you are interested.

If you want to see what the surf is like at the moment, they have a live webcam set up.

For those so inclined it used to have an annual nude night surfing festival, which attracted a crowd of 10,000 people... Unfortunately the more conservative elements of society hankered down and banned it.

Last weekend was one of the most popular days at Bondi - following the City to Surf run. More than 60,000 people started the run in the centre of Sydney.



Then followed it for 14km around the suburbs, and finishing at the beach. Where another 60,000 people were waiting for them. Of course you get your serious crowd looking to do the run in record time. But some people are just out for a bit of fun...





Congratulations to Paul (not pictured)- our friend from up the road who completed the run in his own personal best!

The other big Bondi even is Christmas.

Of course Christmas is different in Australia - being so warm. Traditionally it is spent down the beach, or at least with a BBQ in front of you. Bondi is one of the busiest destinations on Xmas day in Sydney.

But having said that, I think it will be a rather nice place to spend the day!!

This is Bondi

Some of you might be wondering where exactly we moved to in Sydney. Well, as you can see in the map below, we are in Bondi, in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney,… I love the location because it is 15 min walk to the beach and 15 min walk to a huge modern shopping center.



For those unfamiliar, Bondi is a famous surf beach. It is quite large (so we can all fit on the top of each other), with a large green area perfect for picnics and BBQs. It is a bit different from other beaches I have known. No palm trees (We are going to burn!), no “chiringuitos” (bars/terraces) along the beach (You have to burn your feet to get to the other side of the road), no 30 degrees water temperature (this is not the Caribbean) and no topless is allowed (sorry but what did you think? we are in a very civilized country). Alcohol is also not allowed (obviously legislators do not enjoy a pinacolada perverting at the girls/boys). It does have some excellent features: lots of muscled surfers (excellent to keep healthy eyes… and to realize how unfit we are), lots of cafeterias, terraces and restaurants, a couple of natural pools (with sea water). It is clean and organized. It has a lovely coastal walk to other beaches with gorgeous views. The best: we live near!!



We are still in winter, so we have not been able to taste it. We cannot complain, as temperatures have been around 15-18 degrees, depending if the sun was in or out. Quite often we enjoy sunny days with an intense blue sky that reminds me of Spain. At the moment, we are discovering the city… enjoying being together. :-)

Getting By

It's amazing when you're not working. Time goes by amazingly fast. You have all these plans to do "stuff" and then look back over the past month and realise you've achieved very little. I guess living in Bondi doesn't help with all the 'distractions' around.

Not that the weather is consistently good... It seems to change everyday at the moment.



Thanks for all you mails. It's good to hear that everyone is having a great time in Europe this summer. It's super to see that we have a new Dahlin, a new Van Leersum - and we were delighted to see Theo walking!

... and Oliver, you're looking just too smooth in that old timer!

This week we had Gottfried and Libby visit us from Vienna. They lived in the same house as us, and are in the process of moving to Brisbane. We had a great day walking around the coastal path from Bronte, where we had lunch at a great cafe, before settling into Speedo's with a view down to Bondi Beach.



We also fired up the BBQ for the first time. Not exactly for a menu extraordinaire, but a good start! So at least we know it's working for when our Swedish friend arrives later this week.

Needless to say we've also been going to the gym frequently (what about that view!) and yes, we're still looking for the perfect job...