Swimming Really Is Popular Down Here

Sydney-I arrived safely into Sydney after another 12 hour flight. I really thought that Australia was close to China, but somehow the distance was the same as NYC to Beijing. Being half-Aussie (or maybe it's full Aussie since both my parents are from here) I had an idea of the popularity of swimming and swimmers here in Australia. Just how popular wasn't apparent until a classroom full of 7 year olds really did seem pleased to meet a Canadian Olympic swimmer, and I was able to have my own longcourse lane for 45 minutes of swimming in the heart of Sydney.

Today was eventful, I went and spoke to my cousin's grade 2 class at Narraweena Public School. They had been studying the Olympic Games and Beijing for sometime, and they were a very inquisitive bunch. I have spoken to kids all over the world, and never have I had a class ask so many questions. From "what is your favourite fruit ?" (dragonfruit) to "did you win a medal?" (asked by 4 different kids, all with the same answer, "no, I got 6th"), their questions were very colourful. When I spoke about making friends from all over the world because of swimming, they proceeded to tell me where they were from: New Zealand, Italy, Spain, Greece, Malaysia, England, and China. The Chinese boy kept speaking to me in Chinese. It was like I was back in Beijing.

Then Lee and I met up with an old swimmer friend, Chloe F. who has just had a baby boy. Chloe swam for Australia, but we really only became friends when she moved to NYC. Prior to that we met on a pooldeck in Vancouver…turns out that she lived on the same street in Sydney as my mum's best friend from primary school.

Next up was a visit to the aquarium with Lee and Clare. It is the best aquarium in the world, with a massive shark tank filled with sharks and stingrays bigger than an area rug from Ikea. They swim overhead as you walk through an underwater tunnel. I also saw seahorses, which are my favourites. I thought they were magical creatures like unicorns until I saw them at the Sydney Aquarium 4 years ago.

Lee lives in Rushcutter's Bay, but we have gotten out, doing (half of) the coastal walk yesterday from Bondi to Bronte Beach. My mum grew up in Bondi, so we posed for pictures by the Bondi Baths where my mum learned to swim. Sea water fills the pool, and yesterday there were only a few brave souls in wetsuits trying to swim laps as huge waves broke over the side of the pool.

The first day I was here, Lee, his girlfriend Kate and I went to see my cousins for a BBQ. They are loads of fun. Sally B. is actually my second cousin and her 3 kids are my second cousins once removed. The next night Lee and Kate had a BBQ at their flat on the rooftop overlooking the bay. Yes, 2 BBQs in 2 days; that is Australia for you. Remember, it is winter, so it gets pretty cold out of the sun, but this does not seem to phase the Aussie BBQers.

I went swimming at the Cook and Phillip pool as well. I just showed up and paid $6.20 for a swim. There is no need to call ahead and find out when adult lap swimming is because there is always lap swimming in Australian pools. It was a 50 metre pool, which was tough after having been out of the water for 4 weeks, but I felt I had to do at least 2KM to get my $6.20 worth.

Having arrived before the Aussie Swim Team returned from Beijing, I have been glued to the TV to watch their homecoming. You wouldn't believe the reception. The airport was packed for their arrival. First out, Stephanie Rice, who is the darling of Australia after winning 3 golds in Beijing and carrying the flag for Australia at closing ceremonies. The first person to greet her was Aussie PM Kevin Rudd (a.k.a. K-Rudd). While I knew swimmers were big-time down under, I really didn't understand their celebrity until I went out for coffee with Ian T. yesterday. We had to sit at the back of a local coffee shop so as not to attract attention. I really had no idea how different their lives are here in Oz.

Tomorrow I head up to Port Douglas on the Great Barrier Reef for 3 days of R&R. I can't wait to scuba at the reef; it is a livelong dream and certainly something that no swimmer should miss.