Australian coast is all about the surfing

Before coming to Australia I knew that surfing is a big thing here. But I didn’t expected it to be that big. It is practically a lifestyle of so many locals and travelers as well. When you travel along the coast you kind of wish you would also know how to surf.

Mario is really keen to improve his surfing skills so I knew that at some point I’ll also say: “Ok, I want to learn how to surf.” Because of my fear of the waves, I knew it will be hard for me. I used to be (not anymore! :)) the person who stares at the wave and waits till it breaks on me. Yep, I know that’s the worst thing you can do. So you can imagine how many times the waves smashed me. It felt like being stuck in a washing machine with the door locked. Every time that happened, I went out of the water half crying, without a breath and with my eyes red of the salty water, saying to myself: “I hate waves.” I knew I need to keep on trying to get over the fear and learn how to become friends with the waves.

My very first hours in the water with a surf were actually pretty good and fun. I was trying to catch the white foam and once the power of the water pushed me forward, I tried to stand up.

When I was in Byron Bay, I had a chance to go for a sunrise surf with a friend. Before we started to paddle out, she explained me the conditions of the waves and the water. The current was going from right to left and you could tell it was pretty strong. So my friend said: “Be aware of where you are and always paddle towards the current.” That morning I experienced for the first time what a strong current is. Evendough I was paddling (obviously not enough), I was suddenly on the other side of the beach, approaching the rocks on the shore. The waves keep on coming and I was fighting with them big time. I was afraid, I’ll hit the rocks and hurt myself. Thank God I came out of the water with just one tiny bruise. I was without a breath and scared. When I was explaining my story to other people who surf already for a long time, they said to me: “That’s part of the surfing. Even if you know how to surf, something like that can happen to you easily. You always learn from the ocean. The most important thing is to stay calm in the water.” So I guess that’s part of the learning process. I still want to paddle out to catch a wave and won’t give up so easily. The next time I’ll just make sure the conditions are more beginner friendly. :)