Concrete Playground

For most Sydneysiders (the ones born here at least), a weekend trip to Newcastle is not at the top of their to-do list. For the weekend upcoming though, I strongly recommend that changes. The reason: Summer Vibes at The Croatian Club.

For the unacquainted, The Croatian Club is an actual Croatian bowling club in the semi-industrial Newie suburb of Wickham. It has only one permanent employee, a suitably taciturn bartender called Parvo, and most nights of the week you will find only a handful of grumbling old men from the mother country there. Sounds like a swell joint, right? Well, there’s also an assortment of summery outdoor activities, a community veggie garden, a wood fire pizza oven and this Sunday, the Summer Vibes festival.

Starting from 11am, you can chill on the bowling green with a beer, play bocce or giant chess, and take advantage of really cheap (and delicious) pizzas. Oh, and then there’s the bands, a stunning line-up featuring Thee Oh Sees (USA), Straight Arrows, Circle Pit, Absolute Boys, Kirin J Calinan and several handfuls of excellent others.

If you still need reasons to make the trip, try this one: it will only cost you $30 to get in. For an event that is guaranteed to contain no Southern Cross tattoos or Australian flags, this is what you might call a 'ripper deal'.