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Written by Therese

Petersham Pool 7, 21 April 2017, photo Therese Spruhan

April 21, 20171 min read

Fanny Durack Aquatic Centre Petersham, April 2017, photo Therese Spruhan.

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November 1, 2020

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Introducing The Memory Pool: Australian stories of summer, sun and swimming

October 21, 2019

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Swimming Pool Stories

swimmingpoolstories

The lifeguard lap! . #leichhardtpool #leichhardt

The lifeguard lap!

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#leichhardtpool #leichhardtparkaquaticcentre #mondayswim #innerwestsydney #walkonby

Immersed in memories at Parap Pool When I was in

Immersed in memories at Parap Pool

When I was in Darwin recently it was great to revisit Parap Pool, featured in my book, The Memory Pool, with rich recollections from author and academic Tess Lea. The previous time I swam there in 2015, the circa 1960 complex was largely in its original state, complete with diving boards, old-school gutters and 55-yard length. Following a 2017 redevelopment those retro features are gone. In their place are new shaded 50 and 25 metre pools, a cafe, and a spectacular art installation at the entrance called ‘Under the Surface by Jill Chism depicting the interplay of water, light and movement.

Another nice addition is a ‘memory wall’ inviting visitors to contemplate the colourful history of Parap and the pool. As I walked along the wall, I was reminded of Tess Lea’s vivid memories, in particular, training in the pool with the Darwin Swimming Club, the afternoon before Cyclone Tracy arrived as if everything was normal.

As she recalled in The Memory Pool: ‘…I remember stopping training for a few minutes to listen to the manager’s announcement over the PA about a cyclone coming tonight. He was having some me kind of Christmas party and he got onto the microphone and spoke in a very sloshed and slurred voice. After that we kept on with our training. That night the roof blew off our house and a bit of wall smashed into my finger as I lay in bed. I spent the rest of the night bunkered down in our kitchen with my family and some neighbours; I sat on my brother’s knee with the cat on my lap as the adults passed around a bottle of Tia Maria. The next day everything was flattened. You could see about 20 kilometres across Darwin and Parap Pool was filled with car bodies and palm trees. It was a complete dump site.’

Fortunately the pool was cleaned up after the devastation but over the years it battled many threats of closure. When Tess Lea returned to Darwin for Christmas 2018, she was pleased to see it hadn’t been turned into townhouses. And as she swam, she thought about what she would record if she could post a memory on that wall!
#parappool #darwin #larrakiacountry #thememorypool

Take me back to the wonderful waterfall pools at l

Take me back to the wonderful waterfall pools at lovely Litchfield on Werat, Koongurrukun, Waratahs and Mak Mak Marranunggu country!

#litchfieldnationalpark #freshwaterpools #florencefalls #buleyrockhole #wangifalls #topendtravel #nttravel #northernterritorytourism #northenterritory #waterholes #naturalpools #beautifulplaces #placesweswim

Colour my world at Wylie’s! . . #wylies #wylies

Colour my world at Wylie’s!

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#wylies #wyliesbaths #wyliesbathscoogee #oceanpool #oceanpoolsofsydney #oceanpools #seapools #seapool #winterinsydney #placesweswim #placesweswimsydney

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