Today is our last full day in Sydney. Tomorrow afternoon we’re flying home, back to reality and our Northern California winter. The weather these last two days has been wonderful; overcast and slightly breezy in the morning, with a little more sun and heat in the afternoon.
Heather, Katrina and the two younger offspring (Elena and Lucy) are off to the shops to buy stuff for our beach picnic later today. We’re planning on going to Balmoral Beach located in the spiffy suburb of Mosman, not far from Willoughby where the Ellises live. Thanks to its scenic location on Middle Harbor, it’s been popular with locals since the 1920s, with buildings such as the Balmoral Rotunda and the Bathers Pavilion dating back to that decade. It’s amazing how many beaches there are in Sydney, both harborside and along the ocean. I’ve never seen a city that has that many miles of shoreline—Sydney Harbor alone has over 150 miles of shoreline and 35 miles of city beaches! And that doesn’t include the Pacific Ocean beaches stretching from Palm Beach in the north past Bondi, Tamarama and Bronte in the middle to Cronulla in the south.
Maps © IA Connections Sydney Australia
We got to Balmoral at 11ish, and to our surprise found a prime parking space. Reflecting the upscale nature of this slice of paradise, the fee was AU$8.00 for the first hour and AU$6.00 for each additional hour—certainly the highest we’ve paid so far but soooooo worth it.
There’s a large grassy area studded with palm trees between the houses, street and the beach proper, and we staked a claim to a shady spot for our picnic. The adults shared a chilled bottle of Audrey Wilkinson 2008 Rosé from the Hunter Valley (north of Sydney) and a very tasty basil-and-cashew dip that Katrina had prepared this morning while the kids quickly wolfed down their sandwiches and then headed off to go swimming.
As you can see from the photos below, the beach is picture perfect: fine sand with a pinkish tinge, turquoise water, sensuously nestled in this protected spot on Middle Harbor. Actually, there are two beaches, separated in the middle by island-like Rocky Point from where you have beautiful views of Middle Head across the harbor and the bush-like Grotto Point Reserve to the north.
In the photos below, you can see the Bathers Pavilion, originally built in 1921 as a changing shed and after a multi-million dollar renovation now a fine-dining restaurant. The setting is so timeless that it’s easy to imagine Victorian-era couples in their finest dress strolling arm-in-arm down the promenade.
Balmoral is certainly no secret to Sydney locals. Next to our picnic spot, a group of people set up for what turned out to be a baby shower (complete with white table cloths and origami table decorations, not to mention tasty looking nibbles and cakes). Further down the beach, next to the Bathers Pavilion, there was a wedding in the Rotunda, located in a shady spot between huge trees. But the park and beach weren’t crammed with bodies, which I really appreciated. Since Balmoral is located on the North Shore, I’m not sure how many tourists actually make it here. For purely selfish reasons, I want Balmoral to remain as it is now, and not turn into another Bondi. (I’m sure zoning laws are on my side.)
I’m so glad that we saved this excursion to Balmoral until the end of our trip because it provided a fitting finale. Having seen quite a few Sydney beaches, both on the harbor and on the Pacific Ocean, Balmoral is hands-down my favorite. That’s quite a feat in a city that has more natural beauty than any other I’ve ever visited.
For dinner, we went to Bill and Katrina’s favorite restaurant in Willoughy called Bombe Alaska. It’s run by a Chinese couple, but the food is French/international fusion. The meal we had was not only delicious but also slow and relaxed, and it gave us a chance to celebrate our visit and the bond between the Bock and Ellis families. We were at the restaurant for a good 2 1/2 hrs and by the time we’d walked back home--just up the a couple of blocks--we all felt sated and content. Really, the perfect note on which to end our trip.
Tomorrow will be packing, maybe a last-minute walk, and then it’ll be time to head the airport for our flight home. I don’t expect that saying goodbye will be easy.
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