Summer in Sydney means ... jasmine, mojitos and Waverley Cemetery

What does Sydney mean to you?

I grew up in Dubbo in western NSW and as much as I loved the country I always wanted to live and work in Sydney. It wasn’t until I was in my early 20s that I got here. My first job was at the North Shore Times in Chatswood and that suburb was the first I called home. Since then, I’ve lived in 12 suburbs on the north shore, northern beaches, western suburbs and eastern suburbs to my final home in the inner west. I’m proficient at packing boxes and have definitely got a feel for the place. I love the beach but, for me, the inner west is best: I love the vibrancy, beauty and people. It is home.

Earliest/first memory of summer in Sydney?

The first week of moving to Sydney I met a friend who had a very cool convertible VW. The top was down, the sun was shining, music was playing, sunnies were on, and we cruised across the Harbour Bridge with the water sparkling below us and the Opera House glistening. A perfect day.

When the weather gets hot I …

As a self-respecting Sydneysider does, I head to the beach. Bronte is my favourite. Rolling with the waves in the Bogey Hole is bliss or, if I’m feeling energetic, a few laps in the ocean pool.

First place you take visitors?

The Bondi to Coogee walk. You can’t beat Bondi and its sights, sounds and smells.

Favourite cafe?

The Grasshopper cafe in Haberfield. It’s my local: small, family-owned, great food and, more importantly, great coffee and away from the Ramsay Street weekend crowds who head to Papas and Happyfield.

Secret spot you escape to?

Waverley Cemetery atop the hills of Clovelly. It’s peaceful (for obvious reasons) and the view from the cliff-tops out to sea always takes my breath away. Great for thinking and contemplating life.

Best summer food?

Mangoes and mojitos, separate or together is fine with me.

I know it’s summer when I smell …

The perfume of abundant jasmine wafting across the ’burbs – but also that childhood-memory inducing smell of summer rain on a dry road or parched garden.

My favourite summer song is …

Love Shack or Rock Lobster by the B52s always make me think of summer: earlier days of sweating it out on the dancefloor or barbies in the backyard.

Worst thing about summer?

The overcrowded beaches and lack of parking.

My closest bolthole is …

The Royal Hotel in Leichhardt and Petersham’s White Cockatoo for the food, but I have a soft spot for the Toxteth in Glebe – many fun nights over many years have been had there with friends and family.

Guilty pleasure?

Paesanella cheese shop in Haberfield … the smell is pungent but the display cabinets laden with cheeses from around the world are like works of art, particularly the Mascarpone Reale, which resembles a walnut-topped cake with layers of blue cheese. Decadent but delicious.

What should change – and what should stay the same?

More trees and green space, less car parks, freeways and traffic. Sydney is such a naturally beautiful city that should be more wholeheartedly embracing ways to reverse the impacts of climate change.

Summer in Sydney is a series where Herald staff reveal the best – and worst – of our city in the hotter months.

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