A Reply to Rex Hunt on Byron Bay
Well that’s a bit of an inflammatory title isn’t it! I am becoming controversial in my old age. It was recently all over the media about a so-called attack in Byron Bay on Rex Hunt, the television celebrity fisherman. It was reported that the town has become hostile to outsiders and dangerous. As a place which has been known as a retreat for people living alternative lifestyles and with a relaxing, holiday atmosphere, this caused a bit of a sensation.
First of all, Rex’s allegations were revealed to be rather exaggerated and it emerged that there were two sides of the story with Rex’s party being equally aggressive and insulting towards the people involved although the Hunts have denied this. There have been no police reports made so the validity of the claims is questionable. Apparently the cut on Rex’s head which there was a huge photo of published on News.com.au was from his wife’s stiletto which she threw at the youths!
I’ve been visiting Byron for the past ten years or so and during that time, it has never been the alternative, hippie backwater which it probably was in earlier times. It has always been swarming with backpackers and other tourists in the Summer. You can understand why the locals get sick of that especially those who have lived there for a long time. There is also a high unemployment rate and it must be discouraging for young people who live there to see all these rich people (houses are leased out for thousands of dollars a week in the Summer) when they don’t even have access to jobs. Apparently most real estate purchases there are by people from Sydney.
It certainly isn’t a dangerous hotspot for violence and crime. Apparently some people have cancelled their plans to go there in the holidays. I was there last weekend with Andrew visiting Mum and I want to refute Rex’s claims by describing some of the wonderful activities we enjoyed while visiting.
First off there are some great places to dine and wine at. On Friday night, we visited the Balcony which serves tapas until 11pm and has a very convivial atmosphere. Our waiter was a Chilean man with a fantastic sense of humour and also very efficient. The roasted field mushrooms and haloumi tapas were great. We had a bottle of wine which was on the expensive side. It is nice sitting out on the balcony. It’s also open just for having drinks.
At home, Mum had a treat for us. It happened to be my birthday the day before (had a wonderful birthday celebration in Sydney too) and Mum had picked up a delicious flourless orange and chocolate cake i.e. jaffa flavours. Yum!
On Saturday night, we went to Muoi’s Feast, one of Mum’s favourites. It had superb food ranging from Asian flavours to modern Australian, at very reasonable prices. The service there was also excellent. It was bookings only that night, no walk-ins off the street which shows how popular it is. It’s also quite unassuming and casual - no airs and graces.
Sunday was fantastic. We did the walk up to the lighthouse which is a must when visiting Byron. The view from on high over the ocean and surrounding beaches is magnificent. It’s a circular walk, one side winding up through the bush with wild turkeys wandering around and the other winding down past the beaches and coast. We saw about four water dragons too hiding in the brush on the way down.
At the bottom, we walked down onto a beach and had a gorgeous swim in clear, blue and warm water. There weren’t many people swimming in that spot (unlike city beaches which are crowded). It was so relaxing paddling in the calm waters. The waves were only small. I like the surf like that, so calm and peaceful.
That night we enjoyed a delicious BBQ. How much better does it taste after a long walk and swim. Andrew did a sterling job of cooking it and chopping the wood beforehand.
The drive to Byron from the Gold Coast is only 45 minutes now which is so convenient. Pity about Jetstar. I don’t have much good to say about that airline. I much prefer Virgin Blue any day. Jetstar was cramped, delayed and the boarding process is like cattle herding. Awful. That’s for another rant though!
You forgot to mention the fantastic new art gallery at Murwillumbah (http://www.tweed.nsw.gov.au/artgallery/artgalleryhome.aspx). This was a fantastic gallery that has to have one of the most amazing outlooks. The view from the gallery spans the tweed valley and I challenge anyone to find a more exquisitely located gallery in the world. The surroundings are purely stunning.
It was such a relaxing weekend (even though it was short and went by so quickly). I found the locals to be pretty nice. I think that if you are respecful and treat others in the way that you yourself want to be treated you rarely go wrong. If you go into a town expecting there to be trouble then you tend to get it. I lived in Lakemba in Sydney (a part of Sydney that has a high muslim population that is targeted frequently by the media for the actions of probably 2 percent of the locals). I had no trouble there, and even though I occasionally joke about having survived it, there are some wonderful people there. It was also a great place to get a taste of the middle east with many wonderful food stores and Halal butchers around the place. But back to the point. It doesn’t matter where you live in Australia or where you visit. If you respect the locals then you never really get into trouble.
Back to the weekend, it was great to see Rose again and we had alot of fun. As you can see if you follow the photoset in the links, I can organise a mean barbeque (have had much practice through completing the Duke of Edinburgh’s award - yes it is the one that has Prince Phillip as it’s patron, but we’ll forgive it that
. I must admit though that I was getting some hungried looks on the flight back as I smelt like barbequed meat. Must have confused any vegetarians on the flight 
, and I agree with you, Jetstar wasn’t the best airline to fly with. I felt like I had my knees behind my ears, the seats in front were so close. Even Virgin Blue wasn’t that bad when they started out. I wouldn’t be surprised if some people got DVT after flying Jetstar….
I think Andrew’s account of Jetstar was hilarious. I have yet to hear one good thing about it. I really like Virgin, though. Have always found the crew to be helpful - except on a trip back from Canberra when I had basically walked out of a nightclub and onto the flight and wasn’t feeling too perky. They kept coming around and badgering me about leaving the window shades up etc. It was my own fault.
Rex Hunt has always struck me as a bit of a yobbo. Too much time spent with bait and tackle.
I liked your photos. It looked like a fun weekend. We are having a barbecue tongith wiht friends. I have made a Jamie Oliver dessert - raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and grapes in a gelatin with Italian sparkling wine. Should be nice I hope.
Wow that dessert sounds stunning. Yum! Andrew’s description made me laugh too - especially the bit about smelling like a BBQ. I much prefer Virgin Blue as well - a lot more leg room and the crew are always really upbeat.
You did BB proud, Ruth. I really enjoyed your pics which are very professional. No wonder people love to come here. It was one of the best w/ends I have had for many a long day. Thank you both and Andrew you are welcome anytime if you produce a barbie like that….good old Prince Phil!! You also didn’t mention the three hour’s sleep we all had on Sat arvo!
Yes it is mandatory to have a siesta when you go to Byron! It was a great weekend. Thanks for your hospitality too.
Melbourne here I come to see the sights and bright lights!!
Rose, you are welcome in Melbourne anytime. I know Mum and Peter would love to see you down again. I also know you’ll get down here soon because you have a great excuse to come down. Ruth and I are now both down here. We can take you to some of Melbournes excellent attractions and fantastic Restauarants.
Siesta is a good thing (sleep is one of the many things that Ruth and I have in common 
).
Thanks Andrew. I’m really looking forward to visiting you all down there and getting to know more about Melb. Yes, it would be so good to meet up with your Mum and Peter again. I really enjoyed the lovely afternoon I had at their place. It’s hard to believe Ruth is on her way. “When one door closes another one opens”!!
Yes I’m looking forward to that. I must admit there were a few tears from me last night about leaving as it suddenly dawned on me that I am leaving behind a life built up over 16 years! As Andrew says, it is easy to keep in contact and get cheap flights these days. There will be new adventures to tackle and new people to meet but there’s nothing like family and old friends who I’ve become close to over the years.
Never a truer word said. You never really lose your close friends though, and no matter how far away they are, they are always just a phone call, an email (or Blog
) or a drive or flight away. The only constant in life is change and it is how we deal with change that makes us who we are anyway. I have also missed some very good friends from Sydney and Newcastle, however I have always kept in contact with them and they are still close. It was another challenge and change to move to Melbourne for me, but just remember that you always have support wherever you go 
Ruth, it will be a big adjustment for you but I know you will cope so well. You will get a lot of support from Andrew and his family, that’s for sure. Don’t worry I’m coming down very soon when you get your place. I think you’ll be inundated with visitors.
Can’t wait for visitors - I will get used to living here soon enough and Andrew is very welcoming and that makes me feel at home right away and that I already have a bit of a life set up.
It’s true that you don’t ever lose contact with the people you are closest to. They are always there in one way or another and always at the big events in your life even if you are living in different cities. I guess you just have to be prepared for the fact that the relationships where you weren’t so close, do tend to fall away a lot when you move. Maybe that’s a good thing in a way as it leaves more room for the new people you will meet. They say you can never have too many friends - well …. doesn’t it get a bit tiring?!!
I think you’re right. The good friends are always there and, even if you don’t see them very often, the friendship remains the same and you can pick up where you left off when you do see them again. I have many friends from the different places I’ve lived and worked - I’ve probably only made a couple of good friends in each place but over a lifetime that adds up to a number of great, solid friendships.