The Whirlwind Year That Was 2023

We've reached the finish line of yeat another year and it's time to take a look back on all that's transpired... 

It's been a wild year with the continuing conflict between Ukraine and Russia, the breakout of war between Israel and Palestine, political indictments and arrests, cyclones and floods, earthquakes and landslides, record-breaking heatwaves and radio-active capsules going AWOL in WA (don't worry, it was found again), just to name a few. 

There were some farewell tours and final appearances by Aerosmith and Elton John, both making the rounds of the world to say goodbye to their touring days. At Seven Network, David Koch also stepped down as co-host from Sunrise after 21 years, and sports reporter Pat Walsh retired from the Brisbane studio after 47 years.

🎥 The Truman Show

Who could forget the panic and insanity that ensued when Optus experienced a nationwide outage, affecting millions of customers and businesses, including 228 emergency 000 calls that went unanswered. It was a massive hit to the business, especially in the wake of the data breach hacking scandal of 2022.

It wasn't all bad though; we also celebrated some wonderful events around the world, within Australia, and here at Bondi Chai. 

Let’s end the year on a happy note and remember some highlights!

📷 Ian Schneider on Unsplash

WORLDWIDE: China finally re-opened its borders after almost 3 years of lockdown.

BONDI CHAI: The Faces of Bondi Chai project celebrated its 1st birthday in March.

WORLDWIDE: Prince Harry's explosive 'memoir' Spare hit the shelves worldwide, publicly throwing shade at Britain's Royals (his own family!). 

AUSTRALIA: Australia's largest cane toad 'Toadzilla' was discovered in Conway National Park, Queensland. He weighed in at a whopping 2.7kg!

📷The Guardian

WORLDWIDE: Mexico cracked down on public smoking with the tightest laws in the world, banning lighting up a ciggie in public parks and on beaches. The ban also extends to advertising, promoting and sponsoring tobacco products. New Zealand also tightened its smoking laws in 2022, but the newly elected government is planning to scrap the new rules. Will it be the same story in Mexico? Watch this space. 

AUSTRALIA: Aussie surfer Laura Enever set the women's world record for riding the largest wave (13.3m) on North Shore, Oahu, Hawaii.

BONDI CHAI: We turned 18 in May! Now we can drink those cocktail recipes on our website!

WORLDWIDE: New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stepped down in January after five and a half years in office, leaving behind a powerful legacy of compassion and kindness in politics. 

AUSTRALIA: Australia's women's ticket team scored a 19-run victory over South Africa in the ICC Woman's Cricket T20 World Cup, with Ash Gardner also being named Player of the Series. Go girls!

WORLDWIDE: March saw the sales of vinyl records overtake CDs for the first time since 1987 (that's 36 YEARS!).

📷 Luana De Marco on Unsplash

BONDI CHAI: Our National Sales Manager Karen celebrated 10 years with Bondi Chai 🎉 

WORLDWIDE: The first Malaria vaccine in the world was approved in Ghana, Africa. 

AUSTRALIA: Australia beat England by 89 runs in the Ashes Test.

WORLDWIDE: Germany closed the last of their nuclear facilities in April, focussing their future on renewable energy. 

BONDI CHAI: We won a Marketing Excellence Award in the Australian Business Awards in August for our Faces of Bondi Chai project. 

WORLDWIDE: King Charles III and Queen Camilla were coronated at Westminster Abbey, London in May following his mother's 70-year reign.

AUSTRALIA: FIFA Women's World Cup Final: Spain beat England 1-0.

WORLDWIDE: The FINAL instalment of the much-loved Indiana Jones franchise, "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in France, marking the end of a 43-year era. Just before the screening, mega-star Harrison Ford was also presented with a Palm d'Or Lifetime Achievement. Watch his emotional acceptance of the award below. 

BONDI CHAI: Co-founder Melissa featured in She's The Boss Maggie Magazine's 2nd Issue.

WORLDWIDE: The very first female Arab astronaut, Rayyanah Barnawi from Saudi Arabia, travelled into space.

AUSTRALIA: Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch announced his retirement from the boards of Fox and News Corp at the ripe old age of 92. His son Lachlan took over the reins.

WORLDWIDE: Fossils found in the Peruvian desert of a previously unknown prehistoric whale species may now take the top spot as the heaviest animal to have ever existed away from the Blue Whale. 

BONDI CHAI: We launched Bondi Chai's World Chai Day in September. 

AUSTRALIA: The Royal Australian Mint officially released the new $1 coins featuring King Charles III's profile on October 5. 

WORLDWIDE: Greta Gerwig's live-action "Barbie" movie passed $1.34 billion at the global box office, making it both WB's highest-grossing film of all time AND Gerwig the first solo female director to do so. 

BONDI CHAI: We shipped our first pallet of chai to Saudi Arabia's dr.CAFE COFFEE chain of cafes in October. 

AUSTRALIA: Australia voted against the Indigenous Voice Referendum, turning a 60-40 result.

WORLDWIDE: The human timeline took another step back in September (it's been doing that A LOT lately) with evidence of the oldest wooden man-made structure discovered near Kalambo Falls, Zambia dating back nearly half a million years. For reference, previously the oldest known evidence was a wooden well in the Czech Republic dated at 9,000 years old.

AUSTRALIA: The Sydney Opera House turned 50 on October 20^th.

📷 Liam Pozz on Unsplash

BONDI CHAI: We became the first official corporate customer of Earthy Beans, a new company producing beautifully decorated clay cups and tea sets, in November. Martin and Melissa met owner Pratiksha during the World Chai Day™ celebrations in Little India, Harris Park, NSW. 

WORLDWIDE: Late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was honoured and immortalised with a commemorative stamp. 

WORLDWIDE: Daniel Noboa was elected the president of Ecuador, the youngest ever to take on the role at age 35. 

AUSTRALIA: Aussie women's soccer team The Matildas won The Don Award at the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Awards.  

📷 Sport Australia Hall of Fame

And... that's a wrap for the year from the team at Bondi Chai! What were your highlights in 2023?