Second Stop: Cronulla

Welcome to Cronulla.


My Sunday Cronulla adverture really started the night before. Having a drink at the Coogee Beach Palace Hotel, I started talking to a Sydney girl. When I asked her where she was from, she said she was from Cronulla. I then mentioned the riots from December, and asked her for her thoughts. She leaned back a little and pointed to the bottom part of her chin like a soldier pointing to an old war wound. "See that," she said with only the slightest bit of paraphrasing from me to suit the story, "I got that scar when I was 17. A Lebo bloke slapped me." Whilst the 'scar' itself was obviously much greater in her head that it was on her chin, the fact that such a story is told reveals plenty about the suburb.

Beautiful beaches of Cronulla.


After spending over an hour on the train this afternoon, I finally reached Cronulla. Rather than being just another suburb, Cronulla feels like a beachside resort town, with shorts, t-shirts and thongs forming the unofficial uniform. After a short walk from the station, I spent an hour walking along the path just beyond the beach, frequently being passed by attractive couples of various ages, mostly Anglo in appearance. There are a fair share of arrogant surfie kids, with impossibly blond hair and a fuck-you look in their eyes. Still, it wouldn't be a surf town without them.

Makes you proud...


Despite plenty of negative press following on from last year's Cronulla riots, Cronulla is actually a very peaceful place: the most threatening thing that I saw were some three metre waves that meant that most of the beach was off-limits. Kids play happily in the sand, surfers make the most of the waves and couples do coupley-things. The supposed simmering tension between Anglo and Lebo seemed non existant. It is, of course, entirely possible that the events of last December has meant that Mid-Easterners stay away from the regional altogether. After all, the outcome of a war is often said to be peace on different terms.

If this is the worst of it, then it aint too bad.


Cronulla looks like it would be a damn fine place to retire, or at least head for an extended holiday. The city is close enough, the retail district is interesting and varied, the views and world-class and the surf is always up. It's a shame you can't find a decent kebab, though.

Cronulla sunset.

Comments

Deacon said…
Very nicee post

Popular posts from this blog

Thanks for all the fish

Welcome to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea

Can conspicuous consumption save the news business?