00:00There are many thousands of people here at Coogee Beach in Sydney's east where we're
00:06celebrating what's known as Orphan Christmas. The name of course referring to the fact that
00:10many people here are international tourists and backpackers who are away from home for
00:14Christmas and they're choosing to spend it with friends and adopted family, people they've
00:18made friends with here in Australia. Now usually the focal point of Christmas in Sydney's east
00:23is Bronte Beach, just a little bit further north of here. Last year there were about
00:2715,000 people that gathered there and it was met with quite a large backlash, large amounts
00:32of rubbish and noise complaints and the local Waverley Council urged people not to go there
00:36this year. So it appears many have heeded that warning this year and instead opting to come
00:41to Coogee to spend Christmas under the Australian sun. Now of course there's a lot of cause for
00:46celebration and a lot of joyfulness here at Coogee Beach this afternoon but there is also
00:51a bit of a heaviness that hangs over the eastern beaches here in Sydney following what was the
00:56worst terror attack just a bit over a week ago at Bondi Beach just a bit further north. Now as a
01:02result of that there is a heightened police presence right across Sydney's east. There's also a heightened
01:07presence of council rangers across some of the beaches particularly in the Waverley Council area
01:13where extra checkpoints have been put in place to enforce alcohol and glass bans. Though here in Coogee
01:18it appears there's not as big a presence of rangers, some are making their way around the crowd,
01:23reminding people to celebrate responsibly and be thoughtful about picking up rubbish and not
01:29making too much noise as they make their way out of here.
