It was another very hot day — reaching almost 90 — so I decided that another day with some sea breezes might be good. Especially since the forecast is suggesting rain for the next few days. So, I began with a lovely run through the Botanic Gardens and along the Yarra River, with hundreds of other runners and walkers. And these weren’t even the people who had registered for the Arnold’s Jimmy Walk, which was due to start shortly after I ran past Federation Square.
Here’s what I didn’t know at the time — this Family Walk was part of The Arnold Classic Australia, the world’s largest annual multi-sport festival taking place here from the March 17-19. An initiative of Arnold Schwarzenegger, the inaugural Arnold Classic Australia Multi-Sport Festival features live sports, health and fitness workshops and activities, and sports stars. And of course there was an expo, featuring over 100 exhibitors showcasing the latest in supplements, apparel, fitness equipment and technology. The schedule online looked jam packed with everything from armwrestling to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to Wheelchair Sports, along with the expected strongman competitions. I guess he needs something to do now that the Celebrity Apprentice was cancelled.
St Kilda Beach was humming with lots of people, again, mostly youthful and beautiful and exposing lots of skin, but also people on bikes and skateboards and just strolling the esplanade. And on Sundays is the weekly craft market, and (lucky for me) food trucks. It was really hot even at the beach, but the water was warm enough to swim in. I came across a statue of Captain James Cook in a little park near sea the St. Kilda pier and learned that it is a replica of the one at Whitby, England, at his birthplace. On April 29, 1770, the British HM Bark Endeavor became the first European vessel to reach the east coast of Australia after it landed at Botany Bay near modern day Sydney. At the helm was James Cook, a taciturn mariner who would go on to circumnavigate the globe twice and explore everything from the Bering Strait and the islands of the South Pacific to the treacherous ice floes surrounding Antarctica. Cook’s three voyages of discovery helped fill in many of the blank spots on Europeans’ world maps, but his mistreatment of natives in Hawaii eventually led to an untimely death. Cook’s voyages helped guide generations of explorers, and provided the first accurate map of the Pacific. You learn something new everyday.
A tram ride back to the CBD and that was Sunday.
