The Bathing Boxes by the Beach at Brighton


Our second day in Melbourne started out at the beach!

Due to my flight connection, my luggage didn't make it to Melbourne when I did...so I had to spend a second day in the same clothes. Eek! (Note to self: always pack an extra set of clothes in the carry-on.) But I almost didn't care because we were going to see the colorful bathing boxes!

The Brighton beaches are actually not in Melbourne but a beach-side suburb that is part of the City of Bayside. The bathing boxes, originally used by Victorian sun bathers to preserve their modesty, are located on Dendy Street Beach in a neat row along the shore. I loved seeing the different designs and colors, which apparently are strictly regulated by the Bright Bathing Box Association.

These bathing boxes aren't just eye-candy for the beach-goers. They are currently an expensive commodity. My eyeballs nearly fell out when I saw how much these bathing boxes were being sold for. I thought, all this for a 2.4m x 2.0m x 2.0m box by the beach that has no electricity or plumbing?

But it's a great way to raise funds, which the association is doing by building a few more bathing boxes to put on the market. And I can't really complain because although I'm pretty sure I will never personally own a bathing box (you have to be a resident of the City of Bayside to own one anyway), I wouldn't mind seeing a few more colorful designs at the beach! And we can always dream, right?

What would you do if you owned a bathing box? (I'd fill mine with large brimmed hats and books!) x

Here are some photos:

Brighton Beach Station is on the train line headed towards Sandringham Station.
Their train cars were huge (compared to Tokyo)!
I saw creative graffiti all over the place and Brighton was no different.
The beach was calling me to come swim...I so wanted to!
Pretty wild flowers were blooming all over the place...I love the start of spring!
Taking a photo of R taking a photo of the bay. 
It really was a beautiful beach made even better by the great weather!
Exploring the rocky area! (photo by R)
These rocks were a great place to sit and eat lunch!
I love how you can see the downtown area of Melbourne in the mist!
Turning the corner to see...
...rows and rows of bathing boxes along the shore! (There are over 80 of them!)
I could look out to sea all day long.
And there is no way you can keep your shoes on at the beach! (photo by R)
It was a really hot day so what better way to cool down than to step right into the water?
Look at the colors! So pop, so bright!
I loved the gradation of color on this bathing box.
Of course R is wearing an American flag in Australia...so we found a red, white and blue bathing box!
Beautiful combination of pastels and bold colors!
This is the view from between the bathing boxes.
Next time I come here, I will be in those deep blue waters!
Look! I even found a slightly Japanese-y bathing box!
I'd never seen bathing boxes before so it was really a treat see them for myself!
Learning to take selfies with R :D

Labels: , ,