Boxing Day on Bondi Beach

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Boxing Day on Bondi, a Barbecue in the rain and a change of hotel

Sunday 28th December 2008

It was Christmas on Coogee so it had to be Boxing Day on Bondi. Lovely weather again, so the beach was rammed. Bondi is so iconic that one just has to go there and it was great, but actually we preferred Coogee. The name Bondi is derived from local Aboriginal languages, meaning “tumbling water” or “water breaking over rocks” to describe the surf. One thing that is surprising in Sydney is how nasty many of the public loos are, especially the old ones on the beaches; not for the faint-hearted or those of us who have a good sense of smell!

On Sunday we boarded the Manly Ferry and then a bus to visit a friend of Eric’s who lives in the Northern suburbs. Vic made us really welcome and we had a good Aussie Barbie, despite the thunder clouds rolling in from the west and the rain that followed; really nice day. Thanks, Vic, Ben, Yolanda and Sandra! Good one! Before boarding the ferry we had another little stroll around Circular Key. The photo of the anchor is from the HMS Sirius, art of the first fleet that left the Isle of Wight in May 1707 and landed in Botany bay in January 1788. The first fleet bought 1,200 convicts to Australia; those that survived the gruelling eight month voyage). Sydney is a wonderfully historic city and the history is preserved with pride.

Earlier that morning we had checked out of our hostel in Chinatown (unfortunately) because it was all pre-booked months ago for this week and we have moved to a hotel in Camperdown until 3rd January. Upon arrival we had the misfortune to encounter a “jobs worth” on reception duty, so were unable to get in to our room. Instead, we left our rucksacks in a secure room, went to the barbecue party and delayed the check-in until about 12.30 a.m. this morning. The room we were originally allocated had been given to someone else and ours has peeling paint in the bathroom and a stained and chipped bath and is also near to a noisy lift; the loo leaked when flushed; we thought we had our own indoor pool! We asked for a room change but the alternative we were offered was no better so at 1 a.m. we decided to stay put. Room cleaning this morning was minimal, with beds not re-made, just covered over, the pillows still propped against the headboard from drinking the morning cuppa! Trivial and unimportant things in budget accommodation, but not at these prices; one expects far more. Since leaving Spain in August, this is the most expensive accommodation we have stayed in and among the least appealing. We are paying the same for one week here as we paid for three weeks in America (in really nice motels). I’ve stayed in dozens of hotels over the last couple of years, for both business and pleasure, from Madrid to Moscow, Aruba to Auckland, so feel qualified to say it is a big thumbs down for the Rydges Hotel (an Australian chain). The swimming pool and terrace are really dirty and haven’t been cleaned since we got here (cigarette butts on the floor). Let us hope that this doesn’t reflect the norm! On the plus side, it is not as far from the city centre as we had anticipated and buses downtown are frequent and stop right outside the door; city transportation in Sydney is first class. Today we are having a lazy “catch up’ day, doing the washing, some shopping, reading the Sunday papers and re-charging the batteries.

WIFI is generally free for guests (with an enabled laptop) in most hotels, motels and hostels across the USA, including Hawaii and also in Fiji. In New Zealand one pays a small charge, usually $5 NZ for 24 hours. Here so far we have paid $10 AU in the hostel and here at The Rydges they want $29 AU for 24 hours. So we have nicknamed our hotel Rip off Rydges. $29 would be expensive for a month, so this blog will not be sent until we find somewhere cheaper and we’ll go to an internet café tomorrow to check the email. It isn’t that we cannot afford $29, it is a refusal to pay extortionate prices. We’ve been told that MacDonalds have free WIFI so we need to eat some burgers!

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Photos

Bondi Beach
and the skateboard park in the foreground

Anchor from HMS Sirius
near Circular Key

The North Head
Entrance to Sydney harbour, from the manly ferry

North and South Head
North on the right, South on the left

Manly Harbour
coming in to Manly on the ferry

Barbecue weather!
View from Vic's deck. Shame about the rain!

Room service!
Freshly made beds???