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Swimming Pool Stories

Helen Garner and happy memories of Fitzroy Baths

Helen Garner and happy memories of Fitzroy Baths

Driving to @wyliesbaths just before 10 this morning, I realised to my delight that The Book Show on @abcradionational was about to come on. With this year’s RN Top 100 Books focusing on Australian tomes, this morning Claire Nicholls was interviewing Helen Garner about her first book, Monkey Grip, published in 1977. It was a fascinating discussion about fact and fiction, love and addiction, the 1970s, shared houses, diaries and imagination, and towards the end of the conversation, Fitzroy Pool, an important place in the book. ‘Why was it so important to celebrate the ritual of going to the local pool,’ Claire asked Helen.

‘Oh, because of the kids!’

Helen said she doesn’t like to return to Monkey Grip as it causes her some pain and at an event about five years ago when the person interviewing her asked her to read a passage she was reluctant, ‘I said, oh no, it’s all full of sex and drugs. I can’t read that out now.’ But then the interviewer handed Helen a section from the book about going to the pool.

‘It was an account of Nora and one of the men in their household dinking two of the children on their bikes to the swimming pool, and it was so lovely and I thought this is actually quite good.

‘It was about the happiness of being with the children in the heat, speeding across the park on pushbikes, the hot concrete and dipping into the water. Oh, those were happy times, and being at the pool was kind of like a paradise, the Fitzroy Baths.’

And then I arrived at another paradise, Wylie’s Baths!

#fitzroypool #fitzroybaths #helengarner #monkeygrip

Reflecting on parallel lines… #ashfieldpool #inne

Reflecting on parallel lines…

#ashfieldpool #innerwest #sundayswim #afternoonlight

Three views and hues from a warm, low tide morning

Three views and hues from a warm, low tide morning at Wylie’s.

#wylies #wyliesbaths #winterinsydney #oceanpool

Back to the 1930’s at day two of the reopening of

Back to the 1930’s at day two of the reopening of North Sydney Pool! #northsydneyolympicpool

Winter at Wylie’s! #wylies #wyliebaths #wintersw

Winter at Wylie’s!

#wylies #wyliebaths #winterswimming #oceanpool #seapool

Previewing the ‘new’ North Sydney Pool. It’s tak

Farewelling Leichhardt’s 65-year-old 50-metre pool

Farewelling Leichhardt’s 65-year-old 50-metre pool and diving pool last Sunday with last laps, last aqua, last underwater rugby! A big part of my life since I moved to the inner west in 1991. Will miss the retro tiles, old-style feel and the classic monumental diving tower but optimistic about the new version to come.

#leichhardtpool #swimmingpool #redevelopment

History, art, swimming and sustainability combine

History, art, swimming and sustainability combine in a careful restoration in Copenhagen.

When we arrived in Copenhagen I googled the city’s swimming pools. Impressive new ones like the DGI-Byen Aquatic Centre came up as well as several harbour baths but the one that caught my eye was Frederiksberg Svommehal opened in 1934. Like the Valhalla Baths in Sweden’s Gothenburg, the Frederiksberg Pool contains striking mosaic artworks, in this case by Danish modernist painter Vilhelm Lundstrom, a central figure in the country’s early experimental and cubist art. The day before I went to the pool, I visited the National Gallery of Denmark @smkmuseum and was delighted to discover some of Lundstrom’s paintings from the 1920s, similar in style to his masterpieces at the pool. I liked how two of my favourite worlds - pools and art - were colliding and connecting in Copenhagen.

But back to the pool, which I visited the following day and did some relaxing laps in the 25-metre pool, which following a careful restoration by @corneliusvoge has been returned to its former 1930’s glory. There’s so much I could say about this place where you can still leap off a diving board, race down a slide, enjoy a sauna and relax in many small pools with different temperatures and qualities, but the most significant thing is that it was saved and restored.

I’m sure it didn’t come cheap but as an excellent article in @ccmagazine.es said: ‘The pool is not merely a sports facility but a key piece of the city’s architectural heritage and a compelling example of how restoration can combine history, art and sustainability. The article also called for preservation of everyday heritage like pools and libraries as just as important as major monuments, as they form part of the collective memory of a city.

I was very pleased I got the chance to swim at this pool and to experience the crossover of architecture, art and recreation in one beautiful public space. Tak Copenhagen!

#frederiksbergsvømmehal #copenhagen #vilhelmlundstrøm #swimmingpool #heritagepools

Grand designs in Gothenburg. Walking into the ci

Grand designs in Gothenburg.

Walking into the circa 1956 Valhalla Baths in Sweden’s second largest city is akin to entering a gallery and being completely taken aback by the beauty of a work of art. Adorning the walls above the 25-metre diving pool is a 700 metre square abstract glass mosaic designed by Swedish painter and graphic artist Nils Wedel. Influenced by Cubism and artists like Fernand Leger, who he studied under in Paris, Wedel used the mosaic to bring vibrant colour and movement to the highly functional public space designed by another Nils, Nils Olsson.

Nils Olsson’s design was awarded a bronze Olympic medal at the 1948 Olympic Games. Now the 70-year-old pool’s future is in jeopardy with Gothenburg Council voting to demolish it and build a new aquatic and entertainment complex. Locals, patrons and architects are up in arms and heritage groups like @fasad.gbg has started a petition campaign to save the much-loved pool. In 2025, the cultural organisation Europa Nostra listed it as one of seven European heritage sites most at risk.

I was very pleased to see inside the complex and especially to view Nils Wedel’s gorgeous, modernist, magnificent mosaic. You can see more of his work on his grandson’s Instagram account @nilswedelart where he honours and celebrates his grandfather’s creativity.

Good luck Valhallabadet!

#valhallabadet #valhallabadetgöteborg #midcenturypools #nilswedel

Bathing in Bergen! Since my post-sauna plunges a

Bathing in Bergen!

Since my post-sauna plunges at the lake at our friends’ summer house in Finland I have been out of the water due to a sprained wrist after a bingle on my bike in Stockholm. But yesterday I got back in the briney at Bergen’s Nordnes Sjobad, a beloved cultural landmark in Norway’s second largest city featuring a sauna, a 25-metre sea water pool heated to 30C and the fjord to leap into or in my case gingerly approach by the ladder. The water was 13 C, balmy for these parts and after the initial shock it was refreshing to get in a few times after warming up in the sauna. Thanks to Mary from Chicago for the photos and enthusiasm!

A few quick facts about the place:
It was established in 1910 by Johan N L Blytt, who also co-founded the Norwegian Swimming Federation that same year, to provide safe, clean sea bathing. While much of the area around the baths was destroyed in World War 2, it remained intact. Between 1959 and the early 1960s, the facilities were modernised and the 25-metre saltwater pool and a diving tower added. In 2018, the pool was connected to the city’s district heating network allowing it to remain open all year round.

On a final note, it’s a very relaxed, family-friendly, fun place to spend an afternoon and experience some Norwegian bathing culture.

#nordnessjøbad #bergen #swimscandinavia #norway

Helsinki Swimming Stadium: After my ‘no swim’ at A

Helsinki Swimming Stadium: After my ‘no swim’ at Allas Sea Pool, I investigated alternatives to do a few laps in Helsinki. Near where we were staying I discovered an art deco indoor pool recently renovated. Reviews said the Yrjonkato Swimming Hall was a lovely spot to swim but they also said it was largely a nude pool. Like the 6 C water at Allas, I wasn’t quite ready for that and then I discovered the magnificent Helsinki Swimming Stadium. It had been the venue for the 1952 Olympics and Bruce and I hopped off the ‘hop-on, hop-off’ bus to check it out and the 1952 stadium where the athletics events were held.

Designed by architect Jorma Jarvi in the functionalist style, work actually started on the pool in 1939 for the 1940 Olympics cancelled due to the World War 2. During the war, the pools were used to store herring and root vegetables.

The afternoon I visited I didn’t have my cossies with me but the young woman on reception said we could have a very quick look from the viewing area in the grandstand but strictly no photos she repeated numerous times. I sneaked a couple, every time expecting to be yelled at or immediately expelled from the pool so I didn’t get great shots. I thought I would be able to return two days later for a swim and sneak a couple more but that Thursday was a public holiday and the pool was closed. We left Helsinki the next day so I had to be happy with our brief viewing of what looked like a beautifully preserved 74-year-old complex that locals flock to in summer time.

On a final note, when I looked up the results of the 1952 Olympic swimming events, the only Australian to medal was John Davies who was first in the 200 metres breaststroke, and like me spent his childhood at Northbridge Baths!

#1952olympics #helsinkiswimmingstadium

First immersion in Finland post sauna! Lake water

First immersion in Finland post sauna! Lake water temp estimated at about 10! The whole experience of the sauna, sitting outside by the lake, dipping in the lake and then doing it all again was sensational. Kiitos Paivi and Jouni!

#saunatime #finland #lakeswim #kalliomaki

Alas no swimming at @allaspool I had intended sw

Alas no swimming at @allaspool

I had intended swimming at the Allas Pool in Helsinki but unfortunately the outdoor heated pool was closed for maintenance. My only other option was to join the hardy Finns plunging into the 6 degree seawater pool post sauna. But with the air temp just 14 C I just couldn’t do it, so instead I watched from the restaurant balcony as I sipped on a glass of rose. Yes, I know I am a ‘soft Sydney swimmer’ less than a week ago basking in a mild autumn and sea temps of 20C. It might take me a little while to acclimatise to the colder water!

#allasseapool #helsinki #swimmingscandinavia

This time last Sunday celebrating Enfield Pool’s 1

This time last Sunday celebrating Enfield Pool’s 1933 style above and below the water and swimming a last lap to farewell Sydney’s first Olympic-standard pool. 🥲

#enfieldpool redevelopment #circa1933

New Substack newsletter out today on the theme of

New Substack newsletter out today on the theme of the swimmer as an explorer inspired by my recent aquatic experiences on Lord Howe Island, a memoir by travel writer @laura_hall_swimstagram about her journey into the cold waters surrounding Scandinavia, and an ocean swim off Coogee Beach. To read or subscribe for free click on the link above in my bio.

#oceanswimming #swimming #swimmers #lordhoweisland #scandinavia

Green days at Dawnies! #dawnfraserbaths #balmain

Green days at Dawnies!

#dawnfraserbaths #balmainbaths #balmain #sydneyharbour #sydneyharbourpools

Silhouette Sunday… #rossjonesmemorialpool #coogeeb

Silhouette Sunday…
#rossjonesmemorialpool #coogeebeach #oceanpool #seapool #autumninsydney

Awe-inspiring autumn day at Wylie’s! #wylies #wy

Awe-inspiring autumn day at Wylie’s!

#wylies #wyliesbaths #oceanpool #seapool #autumninsydney

News on North Sydney Pool Dropped by North Sydney

News on North Sydney Pool

Dropped by North Sydney Pool today to check in on progress. Earlier in the year I had predicted an April opening, perhaps the fourth, the same date as its official opening in 1936 but today I realised I was being overly optimistic. While the pools seem completed and contain water, externally it still looks like a construction site. After reading a report to council it seems there’s still a lot to do in terms of testing to make sure that everything works properly as well as defect rectification. There’s also a bit of sprucing up needed on the original external walls particularly the old entrance area. So I’m going to be more realistic and predict a September opening to welcome in spring and hope that good things come to those who wait!

When do you think it will open?

#northsydneyolympicpool #northsydneypool #iconicplace #lunaparksydney

Luminous, luscious light! #wylies #wyliesbaths #

Luminous, luscious light!

#wylies #wyliesbaths #oceanpool #seapool #autumninsydney

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