Looking California

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Today is a beach day! We went to the famous Bondi Beach and our jaws dropped the minute we got there (albeit for different reasons). It is a gorgeous white sand beach with trademarked* blue water. It is also populated with many topless women and strapping surfer dudes.

Despite the extremely high UV ratings in this part of the world, less than 10% of the people on the beach were using umbrellas or sun shades of any kind. CM is always in search of shade, so we rented an umbrella. The government takes skin cancer seriously - there is a public service campaign for sun protection and the Cancer Society sells sunblock with a portion of the proceeds going to research. The ads feature a penguin and read "Slip, Slap, Slop": 1) Slip on a shirt, 2) Slap on a hat, and 3) Slop on some sunblock.

Amazing amount of activity for a weekday - this place is a lot like San Diego, CA. We hiked from Bondi up to Tamarama Beach and Bronte Beach. We had snacks during the day, and ate the first gourmet hamburger we'd seen the entire trip for dinner. Of course the Aussies still have it wrong - putting the fixings on the bottom, and the meat on the very top of the burger, but it was a great burger. One Aussie addition CM likes is a slice of beet on the burger, its quite tasty!

We took the bus back home from Bondi and met a really nice Aussie girl into holistic medicine who had never been to the US. We invited her to the Pacific Northwest, and maybe we'll see her one day.

*Apple computer named the color of the very first iMac "Bondi Blue" after this beach.

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Photos

Peace
Japanese style pose on Bondi.