Hi, I’m Lior, I teach at Citizen Café and work as a Chinese medicine and shiatsu practitioner, but my main employers are Alma (11 YO) and Be’ery (6 YO), two particularly demanding bosses, and some of the toughest landlords you could imagine. We live in a small neighbourhood near Byron Bay, Australia, a coastal town known for its nature, surfers, and hippies.
In 2021, after five years in Melbourne (two of them spent in COVID lockdown), we packed up our home, strapped boxes to the roof of the car, and headed north with no real plan. We were searching for quiet, sunshine, and waves. We found all three in the Byron Bay Shire, and we’ve been here since.
We’ve lived through floods, fires, a cyclone, near-misses with sharks, and even a snake in the house. Despite all that, it’s still one of the most incredible places there is (after Tel Aviv, of course 🙂).
1. Where do I get my coffee?
📍Old Maids Burgers and Coffee – 30 Tweed St, Brunswick Heads NSW 2483
I’m a vegetarian, so the burger side of things doesn’t really speak to me, but the coffee here is perfect, as are the banana bread and the sea breeze.
I come here when I’ve had enough of working from home and set up a little office at a corner table, go through a fair number of matcha lattes, and write lesson plans. But really, the main reason I come here is Shahar (in the photo). She runs the café with a big smile, gloriously over-the-top curls, and a matching vocal volume, which makes me feel more at home than anywhere else.
2. Where do I go when I’m feeling fancy?
📍 Byron Twilight Market – Railway Park, Jonson St, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Well… I never feel fancy.
I honestly can’t remember the last time I wore a jacket, tailored pants, or proper shoes. The dress code around here is flip-flops, a tank top, and a surfboard. If you really want to dress things up, you can always add a necklace with some crystals for good vibes.
When we really feel like treating ourselves, the bosses (Alma and Be’ery), the operations manager (my husband), and I head to the Twilight Market. We watch a live performance by a local musician, roll out a picnic mat, and devour pad thai (You can also buy that crystal necklace at the same market).
3. Cultural hub
📍Shevet (tribe), Chabad House Byron Shire
Despite the koalas and the English around me, my cultural centre of gravity is the Israeli and Jewish community here in the Shire. That sense of community, especially over the past two years since October 7, and right now in the aftermath of the Bondi shooting, has been a place for shared tears, mutual support, a feeling of safety, and a touch of needed cynicism.
We’re lucky to have a wonderful Chabad House in Byron, along with incredible community organizations like ‘Shevet’ and NRJCA, who work around the clock to create unifying community events and to represent our community in the face of the social and political challenges we’ve been navigating in recent years.
The photo here was taken at a candle-lighting event for the eighth night of Chanukkah, held in the shadow of the horrific Bondi shooting, and in memory of the victims. Like so many similar gatherings we’ve had since October 7, we cried, we hugged, we sang, and we ate (a lot). Yet this time, we were surrounded by armed police.
These events, this music, this sense of connection, are a reminder that our strength lies in unity, in love, and in the shared hope for peace.
4. My go-to outdoor spot
A little less famous than its neighbour, The Pass Beach, Wategos Beach is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful natural gems in the world.
It sits at the base of a cliff, with Byron Bay’s iconic lighthouse perched above it. It’s quieter and less touristy than many of Byron’s other beaches, and it brings together a breathtaking walking track, a stunning stretch of sand, crystal-clear water, perfect waves, dolphins, whales, longboards, and the occasional shark.
It’s so beautiful it feels like sitting inside a postcard, with the added bonus of a tan. It’s my favourite spot for surfing, for reading a book, and really for any time I’m not in front of a computer, or busy keeping an eye on my little bosses.
5. A place that I don’t like in the city
I genuinely tried to think of a place around here that I don’t like, and I couldn’t come up with a single one. But just so it doesn’t sound like everything here is perfect and people start flocking in droves, here’s a slightly less pastoral side of the story.
The climate is subtropical, which is wonderful on one hand because it means rainforests, waterfalls, and papayas, but also a bit terrifying on the other hand because it means cyclones.
In the latest, and one of the most severe cyclones to hit this area, a massive eucalyptus tree fell on our house while we were inside, completely destroying it. Just saying…
6. A significant person for you who was born in the city or currently lives there
So we’ve been here for four years now, but still I feel like a tourist. And honestly, I’m quite comfortable in the detached little bubble I’ve built for myself. I’m not proud to admit it, but I don’t really know the key people who were born or live here. If I’m being completely truthful, there are already more than enough heroes back home.
So I choose to dedicate this final question to Tamari Kedem, my cousin. She, her husband Joni, and their three young children were murdered on October 7. Tamari lived in Nir Oz, but she and Joni once took a long journey through Australia, under the same sun and across the same sights that I’m lucky enough to see today. I move through this landscape with them in my heart.
