Sculpture by the Sea 2011

Sculpture by the Sea is on again, that time of year when about 500,000 people descend on the cliff walk between Bondi and Bronte to view the artworks. It's one of the biggest outdoor art exhibitions in the world and I love seeing how the sculptures transform the environment. Some of the artworks blend in so well that you have to do a double-take as it feels like they have always been there. Highlights of this year's event include sea slugs, a gigantic set of taps, a smiling skeleton perching on a ladder and when you need a break halfway through there's even a set of lounge chairs made out of hessian sandbags.

If you get a chance, go check them out - even better if you can go through the week or at sunset or sunrise. They are on from November 3-20 and the endless weekend crowds can test even the most dedicated Bondiphiles, but it's nothing that can't be soothed by the glimpse of the ocean through the artworks. When you're done, you can always drop into the Bondi Icebergs Dining Room and Bar and down a soothing champagne bellini while you feel smug about how cultured you are.

Off The Beaten Track: Chasing the Waves in Portugal’s Tipi Valley

OK, Portugal is a long way from Bondi Beach, but this week's post comes courtesy of a guest post I wrote for the delightful travel blog, Novel Adventures, which is all about travel, food, and books, which are of course, some of my favourite things. Yes, that is me, and as you can see from the look on my face and my elegant form, I'm clearly only a few weeks away from becoming a professional surfer!

“Look upstairs and paddle,” instructs one of the ridiculously good-looking Portuguese surf instructors, both of whom are named Ricardo. I paddle furiously, and I’m up on my bright blue foam board, arms stretched out in the warrior pose before falling headfirst into the whitewash.

I lived across the road from Bondi Beach for over a decade but it took a trip to Portugal to get me on a surfboard for the first time. When I first booked into the Algarve Surf & Yoga Retreat – better known as Tipi Valley – in the Western Algarve, the southern most region of Portugal, at the bequest of my friend Selina, a keen surfer from the UK, I was more interested in the yoga. I agreed to give surfing a go, since it was part of the package, and had so much fun that I wish I’d tried it years earlier.

The ecologically sustainable company was started by Australian surfer/sailing instructor, Laurie Quirk and built with the help of WWOOFers (Willing Workers on Organic Farms). It’s in a stunning valley on the Costa Vicentina Natural Park, the largest protected natural park in Europe, which has 74,000 hectares of rolling hills, cliffs, rocky coves and beaches.

While the Algarve has a reputation for being overrun by tourists, the fact that we are a one-hour drive from the nearest international airport, Faro, and the lack of five-star resorts means the area retains its charm. We share the beach, which is framed by volcanic cliffs, with a handful of Portuguese and Spanish families.

There is a Tipi onsite. Built from 12-foot eucalyptus poles cut from the property, it sleeps six, has a floating wooden floor and is furnished with single beds, rugs, a lounge, and Moroccan lamps. Selina and I are in the breakaway tent, which has twin beds with pink chenille bedspreads, and mosquito nets. The camp sleeps a maximum of 10 with a smaller Tipi and two canvass tents.

There are seven other guests who have come from Ireland, the UK, Portugal, and the United States. We do an hour and a half of yoga each morning before breakfast and then head to the beach for the surf lessons. Our yoga teacher is Cherie, who teaches aKundalini-based Hatha yoga.

The surfing lessons are outsourced to the Odeceixe Surf School (pronounced O-de-shaish), which is run by David who has lived in the area all of his life. Since both our instructors are called Ricardo, David tells us we can call one Ricardo uno (one) and the other Ricardo dos (two). The first is a former body-boarding champion for Portugal and the second is a lifeguard and volunteer fireman.

A couple of hours in the surf has us feeling ravenous. Lunch is at a café overlooking the beach where we have fresh seafood, Portuguese custard tarts (pastel de natas) and glasses of Vinho Verde, a sparkling green wine native to Portugal.

Dinner is delicious meals prepared from organic vegetables grown on the property but after a few nights in, we organise a group outing in nearby Aljezur with Laurie, David, and Ricardo uno. Pont’A Pe is a charming restaurant by the river with blue-chequered tablecloths.

We tell Milton, the restaurant manager and our waiter for the night, that we want a typical Portuguese meal and he serves up a feast: clams steamed in garlic, fresh sardines, barnacles, roasted chicken in piri-piri sauce, sweet potato, sea bass I was asked to pick from the restaurant’s aquarium. Mussels in garlic and white wine sauce, and carne de porco à alentejana, a Portuguese twist on surf and turf – fried pork, potatoes and clams. For dessert Milton brings out a tray of pastries and crème caramel and shots of Medronho, which is also known as Portuguese firewater.

After dinner we visit a 10^th century Moorish castle, now in ruins, climbing the steep cobblestone path by the light of the full moon to admire the sleeping village of Aljezur with its whitewashed houses and red tiled roofs.

Another memorable meal is our farewell dinner. In Australia, BYO – or bring your own – usually refers to a bottle of wine, but David brings his own barnacles to the Taberna do Gabio in Odeceixe. We have creamy sheep’s cheese, anchovy paste, olives, fresh bread, and carne de porco à alentejana. Barnacles are not my favourite Portuguese delicacy – they kind of taste like a chewy squid – but considering David got up at dawn to scrape them from rocky cliffs washed by treacherous waves, I eat as many as I can.

At the end of the meal, Selina and I have a final glass of Portuguese firewater, and promise to return to this beautiful part of Portugal with its delicious food, gorgeous beaches, and warm and hospitable people, as soon as we can.

Photos courtesy of by Cherie Bousfield

The Winter Festival: ice-skating at Bondi Beach

I haven’t ice-skated since I was about 15 when we used to spend Friday nights alternating between ice-skating and the local Blue Light Disco, so I was a bit shaky on my feet as I headed for the rink at the Bondi Winter Festival,  an ice-skating rink set up on the sand at the south end of the beach.

After a few laps in my bright orange hired skates, gravitating to the edge for dear life, I realised the ice had melted slightly around the edges and it was harder to skate there, so I counted to 10, let go and ventured out with the big kids. It all came back to me and soon I felt like Jane Torville of Torville & Dean (remember that dynamic duo?) until I fell straight on my arse. Jane never fell over, but today it was a free-for-all as people fell, laughed, got up and fell again.

Luckily I only had the one stack in what was a fun afternoon as some latent muscle memory kicked in and I kept my balance. Its $26 to skate for 45 minutes (including skate-hire) and $19 for kids. I booked online a few hours before heading down for the 4pm session. 

There was something rather magical about ice-skating while looking out over Bondi Beach as the sun set and watching the huge waves crash against the shore. 

It’s a great set-up and family friendly, especially with the addition of Bobby the seal for kids under 12, who could either grab on to the tail for balance or sit on his back and get pushed by a parent. My friend said her husband skated too fast and her daughter fell off as he took a sharp corner and had to be coaxed back on. There’s only 12 per session, so I’d recommend booking one in advance – in fact, I wouldn’t have minded one myself to help my balance!

If ice-skating’s not your thing you can just head down for some wintery treats such as mulled wine, chai, hot chocolate, pancakes, goulash, hamburgers and chestnuts. The Alpine Lodge – Sydney’s latest pop-up bar – has a log fire, creating a cosy ambience, or you can go outside under the heaters and watch the action on the ice. 

At 5.50pm we were treated to a professional ice-skating performance with the super-skaters gracefully dancing on the ice and generally showing us amateurs how it was done.

There’s only a week left at Bondi, but from July 22, it moves to St Mary’s Cathedral, and I might just return for a second go at re-living my Torville & Dean fantasies.  

AquaBar: for mascarpone pancakes with a view

I love mascarpone, but considering its base ingredient is triple cream cheese, I’ve had to wean myself off it, one day at a time.

So, when I saw that Aquabar, a cute café in North Bondi, had leek and potato pancakes topped with mascarpone, smoked salmon and rocket on the menu, I reluctantly turned the other cheek.

Bondi Curmudgeon, though, who regularly eats sausage rolls for breakfast, ordered it for himself and swore he wasn’t taunting me as he gushed over every mouthful.

I begged for a tiny teeny taste – although Joey doesn’t share food – and it was so good that my tastebuds went into an instant sulk and refused to eat any more of the baked eggs with spinach I’d ordered in the name of being ‘healthy’.

 So, we returned a week later, sitting in the empty spare room of the café, while everyone was crammed into the main dining room or bracing the cold and wind outside.

The cheery waiter took our coffee orders and warned us there had been changes to the menu.

“It’d better not be the mascarpone pancakes,” I said, in a tone harsher than I’d intended. 

Luckily it wasn’t - he can completely change the rest of the menu if he wants as I’ve found my dish and I’m sticking to it.

Unless it’s lunchtime and then I’ll be forced to have the smoked-salmon angel hair pasta with caramelised lemon which is my other Aquabar favourite.

TEDX Sydney: a crash course in ideas

TEDX Sydney: a crash course in ideas

Life is a Carnaval for Muchacho at Bondi Markets

Wandered down to the Bondi Markets this morning, and met a fellow traveler in Andy Cameron, a Bondi boy who started Muchacho, a t’shirt brand inspired by his love of photography, fashion and travel, especially in Central and South America.

Muchacho, which is Spanish for young man and Mexican slang for mate, takes the good life seriously, and its slogan is ‘La vida es un carnaval (Life is a Carnaval).

“We believe that what you wear is a reflection of your state of mind and can make you feel good so we include positive colours and combine them with comfortable cotton fabrics,” says Andy. “Each design is based on experiences that have been enjoyed by the team often including photography from a particular event over the years.  We aim to connect with the wearer in order to make garments as well as tell a little story along the way.”  


Bondi Curmudgeon scored a jumper (the girls' version modeled below),  and it came with a story about how Andy took the photo at Plaza de Mayo y Cabildo, in the centre of Buenos Aires, Argentina, one of his favourite cities. 

I know how he feels, I was there in the summer of 1995-1996 as part of a whirlwind six-week trip to South America with two girlfriends, Alicia and Denise. 

We crisscrossed the continent going from the bars of Buenos Aires, to the glaciers of the wild and remote Torres del Paine, the beaches of Rio, the waterfalls of Iguazu Falls, to the sacred Machu Picchu, which gave me a natural high that had nothing to do with the Coco Leaves we chewed in a vain attempt to ward off altitude-sickness. 

I left my friends in La Paz to return to work in Australia and Alicia ended up falling in love with a Brazilian boy working in Bolivia. She was so love-sick when she eventually came home that she returned to La Paz to live for a couple of years until they could get his visa approved and move to Australia. Sadly, their romance ended in tears, but they have a gorgeous son, Keane. 

My nostalgia for South America made me feel like the above t'shirt was designed just for me and after checking in on Foursquare, I got a $10 discount. Andy says he took the photo on a perfect Sunday afternoon on Brazil’s Ipanema Beach, when it was 32-degrees and the coconut stand had just cracked open a coco verde. 

“On Sundays they shut down the road alongside the beach to let people cruise along on skateboards, bikes and rollerblades ...  these two guys were riding into an Ipanema sunset having a good yarn.” 

The tag says, “Season Quatro designed in Sydney after a trip to Carnaval with a few stops on the way – loads of inspiration, loads more fun …”

Fun is one way to describe Brazil. After a fantastic NYE's on Copacabana Beach we jumped on a bus and ended up in Buzios, which won our hearts with its beaches, sailing trips, cocktail bars and sunny days just made for reading in hammocks. It was a sleepy fishing village until the 1960s when it was discovered by Brigitte Bardot and her Brazilian boyfriend who alerted the rest of the world turning it into a playground for those who enjoy the good life. 

The Rose Bay to Rose Bay Walk

For those days when I can’t make it to Bondi for the world famous Bondi to Bronte cliff walk, I undertake the lesser-known Rose Bay to Rose Bay walk, a 40-minute round trip that showcases the best of the harbourside suburb I call home.

You’re unlikely to spot Lara Bingle or the latest reality TV star from The Biggest Loser, but you will get to see the local wildlife – pelicans – and you won’t be tripped over by lycra-clad joggers.

Start at Perfection Chocolates – you’ll need sustenance for this walk along flat surfaces, so feel free to stop for a decadent hot chocolate – head past the kayaking stand, the RSL, the paddleboarding stand, the Woollahra Sailing Club to Lyne Park.

If you’re lucky you’ll see a seaplane taking off or landing and you can dream of zipping over for lunch at Cottage Point or Jonahs. Seaplanes have been landing in Rose Bay harbour from 1938 making it Sydney’s first international airport. There’s a cute sign telling you how far you are from London, Singapore, etc.

Gaze longingly at Catalinas – which is named after the Catalina flying boats – make your way through the crowds at the ferry terminal and head along the promenade to The Pier.

If you only have loose coins in your pocket rather than a Platinum Amex, instead of pressing your face up against the window wishing you were in there dining with the rich and the fabulous, I’m going to let you in on a little secret that gives you an even better view for your morning latte.

Head down the stairs to the left or right of the Pier, holding your nose against the smell of fish, and you’ll find the Rose Bay Marina Kiosk. It’s the closest you’ll get to the harbour without hopping on a boat. There’s limited capacity seating, so on weekends you have to get there early to nab one of the tables, or you can get take-away and have your coffee in the park next door. On the menu are bacon and eggs, sandwiches, burgers, salads and a rather delicious goats cheese and beetroot tart served with rocket, all for under $20.

The other day when I was taking my time over my coffee the great excitement was a fin in the water that everyone at the café decided was a baby shark. An investigative team was deployed and it turned out to be a fish – the fin was its tail. That’s a relief as one of these days I’m going to try the paddle boarding and given my coordination skills I’m bound to end up in the drink so I don’t want to end up as some baby shark's lunch.

Mongers: for fish and chips by the sea

I don’t know why people insist on eating fish and chips by the seaside. We don’t usually sit in a paddock surrounded by cows to eat steaks or fly to London to eat pigeon pie in Trafalgar Square or insist on only drinking wine in a vineyard, although that's a nice option. 

But if you are one of those people who think fish and chips taste better when accompanied by the salty smell of the sea, then you’re going to want to know where to go for the freshest and tastiest fish and chips in Bondi.

I haven’t tried every fine establishment in the neighbourhood (yet) – and tend to steer clear of the deep fried Mars Bars for the sake of my arteries – but my favourite is Fish Mongers on Hall Street.

All meals are served in cute brown boxes made out of recycled cardboard whether you opt for eat-in or takeaway. If you go the eat-in option, its BYO and there’s seating for 35 with wooden and cast iron fish sculptures decorating the walls to give it that sea-faring touch.

Or you can take your haul to the beach for some alfresco dining, but watch out for the seagulls who know a good serving of fish and chips when they see it.

Everything is made fresh to order and the traditional fish and chips sells for $12.50, and grilled fish and salad for $14.50. The potato chips are hand-cut and thick enough to look like they were once a potato, which is more than I can say some of their fast-food cousins.

There’s also a selection of calamari, tempura vegetables, BBQ prawns or octopus, oysters and daily fresh market specials.

My stock-standard order is anything but ordinary: its the grilled salmon marinated in sesame seeds and ginger served with salad, thin crispy kumera chips, corn on the cob and a side of pesto, which is always fresh, moist, and full of flavour. If we’re going to be there for a while I’ll order a side of hot chips.

The Bondi store was opened by Claire Statham when she moved to Sydney from Byron Bay and couldn’t bear to be without her regular hit of fine fish and chips. There’s also a Manly branch.

In case you need further convincing, the Bondi store has been ranked among Sydney’s best fish and chips by both the SMH and The Daily Telegraph, who rarely agree on anything important, and Time Out. 

Writing away my days at Gertrude & Alice

Whenever I want to remind myself I’m not the only person in the neighbourhood working on the great Australian novel – or blog – I take myself down to Gertrude & Alice, a café/second hand bookstore in Hall Street to write amongst the general hullabaloo.

I missed this place so much during my time in exile that I even fantasised about starting my own store called Gertrude & Alicia. The premises I wanted was turned into a hairdressers before I could pack up my books so I settled for regular sojourns back to Hall Street to settle into my regular spot on the green velvet couch.

The menu has paninis, bagels, muesli, burritos, chilli con carne, mint teas, frappes and milky chai teas but I tend to stick to my favourites. I always have a latte and for those summer days when I'm still sitting there at lunchtime I'll have a salad of haloumi, lentils and roasted sweet potato. And in winter it’s hot chocolate (served with marshmallows) and Moroccan Lentil Stew.

“You cannot live on caviar and foie gras every day: sometimes a plain dish of lentils is all the palate craves, even if one insists that the lentils come from Puy”.

William Boyd, Any Human Heart

Even on the busiest days when every bench, stool and lounge is taken, the owner Jane Turner is tolerant of people sitting around for hours typing their novels, poems and Hollywood scripts into their Macbooks in between sips of coffee and has long encouraged local writers to consider it as a haven. You don't need to show credentials so the unpublished wannabe can sit next to the literary giant.

There’s always a great soundtrack playing and the relaxed, cosy ambience comes from the mismatched crockery, exposed brick walls, the gold mirrors, chandeliers, framed black and white prints of famous writers and thousands of books ranging from the latest Booker prize winner to the complete history of meerkats in southern Spain. 

I usually leave with an armful of books to add to my collection making my home resemble Gertrude & Alice (without the hip people), which is why I own enough books to consider starting my own bookstore.

A bonus is that you're bound to spot at least one person wearing a beret like we really are in Shakespeare & Co in Paris in the 1920s and Hemmingway is about to pop in to drop off his latest manuscript. 

While trying to become a 21^st Century Hemmingway you can sit in the Hemmingway Room, which tends to be quieter than the communal tables in the main room and pluck reference books from the shelves on a whim. 

Or you can sit in the main room and wait for someone to ask you about your Magnum opus. And when they do, for a moment I feel like I'm making progress on a novel and not just entering random letters into the computer screen to fill in the time between trips to the beach. 

I'm a guest blogger for TEDX Sydney's Bondi broadcast tomorrow

Call me crazy, but I’m going to bed super-early tonight so I can get up before the crack of dawn to blog from the Bondi Pavilion Theatre at 3.30 tomorrow morning while I watch the live stream from day two of TED2011 from Long Beach, California.

I don’t get out of bed that early for everyone who asks, but because I was so flattered to be appointed as the event’s official blogger, I convinced myself the early start was just fine.

A sneak peak at the registrations shows I’m not the only one sacrificing sleep for intellectual titillation with 611 people registered across the four sessions. Some are attending all four, while others have just ticked one of the sessions.

There’s 303 other early birds signed up for Session 1 (3.30-5.15am), 427 people for Session 2 (6am-7.45), 508 people for Session 3 (9.15-11am) and 437 people for Session 4 (12-1.45pm).

Click on TEDXSydney.com for the rest of my post.

Sushi, Sashimi, Sake and Cheese at Mamasan's Bondi

There’s something so wrong about ordering a cheese platter at an Asian Tapas restaurant that I go ahead and do it. To be fair, the platter has an Asian twist – along with the Jersey Brie there’s a generous slice of Taiwan Blue, a side of Wagu Beef and my favourite, the Wasabi Cheddar.

We're at Mamasan’s in Beach Road for a lazy Saturday lunch while reading the papers. It’s the ‘naughty little sister’ of Li Zai, which was upstairs on the Campbell Parade restaurant strip for six years, and enjoyed fabulous views of the beach to go along with Gemma’s deceitfully lethal cocktails, Asian Tapas and Yum-Cha.

The views are now of the Beach Road Hotel, which is across the road, and a few of the artifacts from Li Zai adorn the walls at Mamasan’s and some of the more popular dishes are still on the menu but the new place has a cozier vibe, which brings a winter crowd as well as a summer one.

The tables are made from recycled wooden railway sleepers and the quirky toys that help give the restaurant its charm – the lucky cats, Astro Boy, toy soldiers, bonsai in Oyster Sauce tins, and Godzilla who guards the Asahi beer tap – are collected by former advertising executive Adam Hunt, who runs/owns the bar with Gemma.

Bondi Curmudgeon scoffs at me for ordering cheese, but is happy to try them all, along with his oysters that come with flying fish roe drizzled in fresh grapefruit and lemon juice, and his sashimi platter of kingfish, tuna and salmon. We also order spicy edamame beans steamed with garlic and pepper and king prawn and mint spring rolls to start.

I wanted to go for a swim at the Icebergs after lunch (twist my arm and I'm at the Sydney Cellar Door Event in Hyde Park sampling wines instead) so I stick to water, letting Bondi Curmudgeon sample the extensive drinks menu for me.

As well as Sapporo, which is on tap along with Asahi, he had a small serving of cold sake, a.k.a. ‘The Drink of the Gods’. After my golf caddying days in Japan, where it was considered a national insult to turn down a cupful or five of sake, it’s not my idea of fun.

However, BC can’t get enough of the stuff, which comes from the fermentation of polished rice grains and pure water. At the waitress’s suggestion he tried Mountain Water, which he declared ‘awesome', promising to return on a Sunday afternoon to try the other nine on the menu while listening to live jazz.

PRICE FOR 2 (including drinks) $115

Over budget: $15

BC's verdict: "Sashimi, tender and fresh. Oysters, beautiful. Sake, awesome. Shame it's in Bondi, otherwise I'd be there a couple of times a week."