You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Down Under
ALOHOL BANNED AT BONDI BEACH DURING CHRISTMAS
2004-11-18
Sydney, Australia:
DRINKING at the beach on Christmas Day will be banned in the latest attempt to kill fun in Sydney. Guards and police will patrol Bondi beach during Christmas-New Year, strictly enforcing a no-alcohol policy. Waverley Council has endorsed an alcohol management project calling for security guards and police to be stationed in "strategic locations" on the beach and in neighbouring parks. There is currently an alcohol ban at Bondi, Tamarama and Bronte beaches but the focus will be on Bondi.

Waverley Mayor Peter Muscatel Moscat denied council was made up of "wowsers". He said people would still be able to drink at a function in the Bondi Pavilion - as long as they were willing to pay $30. "On Christmas Day they're going to be turning people away if they bring alcohol to the beach," he said. Mr Muscatel Moscat said the number of people drinking on the beach was increasing. "Ten years ago there were riots on Christmas and New Year and we got that under control by working with the police and locals and making sure people drank in a certain area," he said. "Over the years that worked well but last year we had nearly 40,000 people on Christmas Day and almost 200 rescues.

Beachgoers weren't thrilled. "It seems a bit excessive," Irish tourist Neasa Smith, 23, said. "Do they just want to try and produce a bit of extra revenue?" Local Emily Bowdler said there was a nice atmosphere on the beach at Christmas: "Most people are well behaved."
Aaah well, plenty of other beaches to drown at.
Posted by:God Save The World

#10   It seemed no better or worse than a dozen beeches we have here in California..

Most, if not all, of the beaches I strolled in NSW were exceptionally clean, and the sand was a nice golden color. Little garbage, flotsam, etc, and the water was pretty clear. Go down to the coast here in CA (the central coast fo rme) and there's all kinds of garbage laying around, the ocean water is all foamy and icky, and the sand is like a dull gray. The CA coastal areas look good from a distance, like say if you're sitting on a tall bluff overlooking the water, but up close the beaches aren't all that great.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2004-11-18 4:43:36 PM  

#9  Bondi is MY beach. I grew up on it. My father's ashes are in the water there. Every day I'm not there I miss it.

Bondi water is clean and cold. No more dirty sewage. There are octopuses, blue gropers, and many interesting fish living in the rocks around. There is a woman who sells organic corn on the promenade. There is always free entertainment: brazilians doing capoeira, african drumming, or just musclemen showing off.

There's always festivals there: sculpture by the sea, festival of the winds, south american food festival etc. Every weekend something different is on.

There are waves down the south end for surfers, and flat calm water up the north end for toddlers.

The beach has something for everyone, it's the best beach in the world.

But alcohol on christmas day is a tradition! Damn you Waverley council Damn you to hell. And double damn you for my parking fine!
Posted by: Anon1   2004-11-18 11:40:48 AM  

#8  RJ - you're in SD, right? Ever been to Tourmaline after a storm? Pebbles, man.....
Posted by: Frank G   2004-11-18 11:14:26 AM  

#7  My wife's biological father had a place near Bondi beech. When I saw it I never understood what the big deal was. It seemed no better or worse than a dozen beeches we have here in California or the ones I've seen in Florida.

By the way the beaches in the South of France, Nice in particular, are some of the worst I've ever seen. Pebbles intead of sand. What's up with that.

Any Aussies in the house care to explain the special appeal of Bondi?
Posted by: rjschwarz   2004-11-18 11:05:16 AM  

#6  Elmer Fudd's pants
Posted by: Frank G   2004-11-18 10:56:02 AM  

#5  "wowsers" - definition, anybody?
Posted by: BH   2004-11-18 10:51:52 AM  

#4  Actually I swam at Manly in '97. Couldn't get enough of it.
Posted by: Bryan   2004-11-18 3:45:28 AM  

#3  Narrabeen?

Narrabeen there, narradone that.
Posted by: Bryan   2004-11-18 3:43:49 AM  

#2  I've always avoided ALOHOL. And, for the last 20 years, alcohol, as well.
Posted by: .com   2004-11-18 1:50:58 AM  

#1  Spoilsports. Oh well, there's other great beaches to head to, like Manly, Narrabeen, or Cronulla. Hopefully the killjoys haven't reached those places yet. :)
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2004-11-18 1:01:03 AM  

00:00