8: Learn to surf

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It’s fun, it’s a great way to keep fit, it instils a deep and abiding respect for the ocean and the environment, and it might just kindle a lifelong passion. Surfing was first observed by Europeans in Tahiti in 1767 and in the intervening centuries it has gone on to become one of the great Australian sports – and the good news is it’s never too late (or too early) to start wiping out… er, hanging ten, we mean.

Anyone who’s admired the cool, impossibly laidback surfers as they seamlessly slide through barrels and weave across waves could be forgiven for thinking it’s easy – we assure you, it ain’t. That’s where surf schools come in and luckily there are plenty of them across Australia.

A few sessions with the pros will equip you or the kids with the smarts and the skills to start your own love affair with this addictive water sport, which inspires so much passion in so many others. And there’s a bonus for parents: enrolling the kids in a week of surfing lessons frees mum and dad up for some relaxation time. Plus it’s exhausting, guaranteeing sweet dreams after a big day on the waves.

Surfing also teaches resilience – if you fall, there’s always another wave; you’ve just gotta keep getting back up. As a wise surfer once said: “There are a million ways to surf, and as long as you’re smiling you’re doing it right."

Try these

Let’s Go Surfing Bondi, NSW – From $95 a lesson or $350 for a family private lesson. 02 9365 1800.

Surf the Bay South Coast, NSW – From $40 a lesson; special family (four people) surf or stand-up paddleboard deal for $120 (until end Feb 2014).0432 144 220.

Coastrider Surf Academy, Clifton Beach, Tas – From $50 a lesson or $70 one-on-one. 0419 324 921.

Get Wet Surf The Spit, Surfers Paradise, Qld – Learn at the beach or in the wave pool. From age five and up. From $45 a lesson. Family lesson (includes two adults and two children) for $180. 1800 438 938.

School of Surfing Trigg, Mullaloo, Leighton and Rottnest Island, WA – From $40 a lesson, or $70 for a private one-on-one lesson. 08 9448 0004.

Torquay Surf Academy Urquhart’s Bluff, Lorne, Cosy Corner, White’s Beach and Bancoora River, Vic – From $60 a lesson. 03 5261 2022.

Kingo Surf School Goolwa Beach and Port Lincoln, SA – From $40 a lesson.0427 842 085.

 

 

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How a $1 deal saved Bendigo’s historic tramways

    Megan Arkinstall Megan Arkinstall
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    The passionate community that saved Bendigo Tramways has kept the story of this city alive for generations.

    It was an absolute steal: a fleet of 23 trams for just $1. But such a fortunate purchase didn’t happen easily. It was 1972 when the Bendigo Trust handed over a single buck for the city’s historic collection of battery, steam and electric trams, which had transported locals since 1890.

    inside the historic Bendigo Tram
    Bendigo Tramways is a historic transport line turned tourist service. (Image: Bendigo Heritage)

    The city’s tram network had been declared defunct since 1970 due to post-war shortages in materials to upkeep the trams and declining passenger numbers as motor vehicles were increasing. However, determined locals would not hear of their beloved trams being sold off around the world.

    The Bendigo Trust was enlisted to preserve this heritage, by converting the trams into a tourist service. The Victorian government approved a trial, however news spread that the Australian Electric Tramways Museum in Adelaide had acquired one of the streetcars for its collection.

    a tram heading to Quarry Hill in 1957
    A tram on its way to Quarry Hill in 1957. (Image: Bendigo Heritage)

    An impassioned group rallied together to make this physically impossible. Breaking into the tram sheds, they welded iron pipes to the rails, removed carbon brushes from the motors, and formed a blockade at the depot. The community response was extraordinary, and a $1 deal was sealed.

    A new chapter for the city’s fleet

    the old Tramways Depot and Workshop
    The old Tramways Depot and Workshop is one of the stops on the hop-on, hop-off service. (Image: Tourism Australia)

    Today, Bendigo Tramways welcomes some 40,000 passengers annually, operating as a hop-on, hop-off touring service aboard the restored trams. Fifteen of the now 45-strong fleet are dubbed ‘Talking Trams’ because of the taped commentary that is played along the route. The trams loop between Central Deborah Gold Mine and the Bendigo Joss House Temple, which has been a place of Chinese worship since 1871, via other sites including the old Tramways Depot and Workshop.

    a Gold Mine Bendigo Tram
    The fleet comprises 45 trams that have been restored. (Image: Visit Victoria/Robert Blackburn)

    Keeping things interesting, throughout the year visitors can step aboard different themed trams. Tram No. 302 becomes the Yarn Bomb Tram, decorated both inside and out with colourful crochet by an anonymous group of locals.

    During the festive season, Tram No. 15 operates as a tinsel-festooned Santa Tram, and the big man himself hides out somewhere along the route for excited children to find. And on selected dates, the adults-only Groove Tram runs nighttime tours of the city, accompanied by local musicians playing live tunes and a pop-up bar.

    the historic post office turned visitor centre in Bendigo
    Visitors can hop on and off to see the city’s sites such as the historic post office turned visitor centre. (Image: Tourism Australia)

    As well as preserving the city’s history, however, the continuation of the tram service has kept the skills of tram building and craftsmanship alive in a practical sense. Bendigo’s Heritage Rail Workshop is world-renowned for restoring heritage trams and repurposing vehicles in creative ways.

    Locally, for example, Tram No. 918 was transformed into the Dja Dja Wurrung Tram with original Aboriginal artworks by emerging artist Natasha Carter, with special commentary and music that shares the stories and traditions of Bendigo’s first people. You can’t put a price on preserving history. Nonetheless, it was a dollar very well spent.