Redleaf, Double Bay

On a sultry afternoon last Friday we headed for the harbourside pool of Redleaf, a hidden treasure in Double Bay. It was renamed the Murray Rose pool after the Olympic swimmer last year, but as with the case of Albion instead of Sydney, the new name might not take. The pool is big enough for good long laps and netted off from sharks and other creepy crawlies. There’s plenty of room for sprawling in the sun on its sandy beach, boardwalk and pontoons. It offers panoramic views yet is peaceful and unpretentious.

Patrick, Max, Tom and Danny are diving and somersaulting off the boardwalk.

Their flips are graceful but there's an occasional bellyflop, signalled by the sharp smack of flesh on water.

Kids being towed from their parent's speedboat give them the finger as they zoom past. One of the lads says; 'Welcome to Sydney', and they laugh about the cheekiness of the young ones.

Back on the sand Tom approaches me for a chat. Originally from Slovenia but now living in Edgecliff, he's here for his daily walk. We compare photographs of the lads somersaulting.

 

Kookaburras unleash their strange stacatto cries as dusk descends and an almost full moon rises. Crickets and frogs replace the cicada song of the day.  

Sebastien is enjoying his last evening in Sydney with friends. Tomorrow he will fly to France and travel on to his home town of Lyon.

We walk bare foot up the concrete steps that still carry the warmth of the day. Couples  descend, wine bottles and glasses in hand and greet us as they pass. I overhear a boy tell his friend "In all this time I've come here, I've never done a front flip..... 'til now."