Going to Bondi Beach

When Rich and I went to Australia, we spent New Year's Day of 1998 at Manly Beach.  That was summertime in Australia, and, since it was a holiday, the beach was crowded with families.  The weather was beautiful, the ocean was warm, and the waves were rolling into the beach, so we rented boogie boards to take advantage of the atmosphere.  It was a really fun and festive day.  However, when we boarded our Quantas flight to take us from Sydney to Cairns, Australia, there was a photo on the cover of the Quantas Magazine, showing the pool next to the ocean at Bondi Beach, and I've regretted not going there ever since.

On Tuesday, Erin and I made amends for that earlier mistake.  Erin had a friend who had studied abroad in Australia.  She also told Erin that we had to go to the pool at Bondi Beach.  After finding the correct bus, and winding our way through the neighborhoods of Sydney, we started our visit by walking all around the shore.  There was a coastal walk that took us to a high point, from which we could view the whole beach.  We had also just learned to use the panoramic option on our iPhones, so we made great use of that feature.  We walked up and down the coastal walkway, and went onto the rocks wherever there was an opening.  Erin had a long dress on, and I was amazed that she could scale those rocks with such ease.  Even in my shorts, my older bones were telling to be very careful as I climbed up and down the rock formations.

On our way down to lunch, we stopped at the concession area for the pool.  It only cost $5 to get into the pool.  We were amazed that the pool wasn't more crowded.  Erin was starving (as usual), so we planned to return to the pool as soon as we finished eating.  There was a huge Beach House, with bathrooms, the Bondi Repertory Theatre, a juice bar, a store, and a restaurant.  We bought a Bondi Beach towel and sunscreen for Erin.  Then we headed to the Mexican restaurant across the street.  I had spied it as I got off the bus, and my time in Singapore has been void of good Mexican food.  There was a "Living Social" offer at the counter, but I mistakenly believed that "Living Social" was like "Groupon", where you had to have signed up for the offer, so I didn't take advantage of it.  Erin got a burrito, and I had 3 shrimp tacos, so I could share with Erin, and we each had a margarita.  Everything was very tasty, but Erin and I are both "spice babies", so it was a bit too spicy for us, and our mouths were burning.  I kept taking big gulps of my margarita to cool off my mouth, and then I would get a brain freeze!  It was pretty pricey, too, as that meal cost $46, and the Aussie Dollar is worth a little more than the US $.

After lunch, we went directly back to the "Iceberg Pool".  We rented a locker, so that we could store our clothes and purses, etc.  They had a weird system, in which you had to give the key to the concessions attendant, and, if you needed to retrieve something from your locker but weren't ready to leave, she would give you a new token for the locker.  You couldn't hold onto your own key, though, despite the fact that it had a pin.

When we attempted to get into the pool, it was freezing.  No wonder it was the "Iceberg Pool".  We saw some people jump right in, but we couldn't do that.  We were there in late April, which would be one month after Autumn had begun, so I'm not sure if it would have been warmer if it had been the middle of the Summer.  After taking several pictures at poolside, with the waves crashing over the edge, I told Erin that we each had to do a lap, so that we could take pictures of each other in the pool.  However, just as I was taking pictures of Erin, a very nice Australian woman offered to take pictures of the two of us together.  When we told her that we were from Chicago, she told us that she had just been on the phone to Minnesota, ordering the button for your refrigerator that regulates the light.  She was a home renovator, who made money by buying houses, fixing them up, and flipping them.  According to the Minnesota woman on the helpline, it was snowing in Minnesota when she called, so were all thanking our good fortunes that we were at Bondi Beach!

This was my favorite picture of the whole trip!