Home, Sweet Home

We're home and knackered. We seem to have been travelling for days but in fact it's only been about 24 hours.

Can't think of anything much to say right now - other than we had a rather 'bouncy' and 'swervy' landing at Heathrow - either the plane needed the tyre pressure checked or that particular runway needs a new top coat - and we taxied around the airport looking for a parking space for ages - at least 20 minutes.

Oh, and we got an excellent bargain in the Duty Free shop after you go through customs - two bottles (75cl) of Pimms for £15!

The Perth Mint

No let up, even though it is our last day in Perth, and Australia.

Well worth the entry fee (and because we had tickets from our tram tour earlier in the week we got two tickets for the price of one!) to watch the pouring of the gold that occurs on the hour, which is preceeding by a short tour.

We then decided to have a light lunch in the The Perth Mint Tea Room. My human, despite being in the land of Oz for almost a whole month, had not yet had a pie, so she opted for the gourmet pie (chunky beef) whilst our two companions had the Traditional High Tea - finger sandwiches, scones with jam and cream and cakes.

We then made our way home, stopping off en route to send a couple of parcels back home by air :-)

This trip is not our last adventure however. Lynne and Kim (who dined with us on Sunday evening at the lunatic asylum if you remember) have invited us all round for a pre-flight meal (we don't have to be at the airport until 10 pm).


Posted 17/08/06 4.30 pm

Homeward Bound

You know the Frank Sinatra song that goes 'It's oh so nice to go travelling to London, Paris or Rome. Yes, it's nice to go travelling but it's oh much nicer, yes it's so much nicer, to come home'? Well he was wrong.

We make our way to the airport late in the evening and our flight takes off in the early hours of Friday, We have a brief stopover in Singapore and reach Heathrow around 3.30 pm on Friday afternoon (I dread to think what this is going to do to my human's body clock).

So this is probably the last posting for a day or so. Do keep checking in for a few days more, as I hope to work out how to upload photos or point you to elsewhere to view them.

I hope you've enjoyed my holiday reports; I appreciate I'm not in the Bill Bryson class (my human has been reading his book 'Down Under' while we've been here) but I don't think I've done too badly for a hat - and a pink one at that.

Posted: 17/08/06 5.45 pm

Rottnest Island

I'm pleased to say that the weather was good enough to make the trip over to Rottnest Island. That said, the ferry over was a little 'bouncy' as the cap'n described it.

There was a bit of drizzle on arrival but it cleared up soon after and was dry for the rest of the day.

We had a bit of lunch (and did some retail therapy) before taking the bus tour of the island. We managed to see (and take photos) of some Quokkas and off 'West End' caught a glimpse of some dolphins swimming amongst the waves - although the whale that had been spotted during the morning tour had obviously moved on.


A very pleasant day out - rounded off by some good Italian food at Tracy and Steve's local family run Italian restaurant (which wasn't so local when they lived an hour's drive away!).

Our last day tomorrow :-(

Posted: 16/08/06 9.05 pm

Monks, Music & Mystery

Not so good weather wise today. Perth was hit by a rain storm and it was very wet and windy all day.

Fortunately we spent most of the day two hours north of Perth visiting New Norcia - Australia's only Monastic town, which was founded in 1846 by Dom Rosendo Salvado, a Benedictine monk as an aboriginal mission.

We visited the Museum and Art Gallery. We had timed our visit just right - 20 years ago a number of paintings had been stolen and all bar one had been recovered. Unfortunately they had been cut out of their frames and were in a terrible state and it is only now that they have been restored and the exhibition opened yesterday.

After checking out the Museum, Art Gallery and Gift Shop (which sells the bread and cakes baked inthe Monastery's own bakery, the wine they produce and the olive oil they produce) we took a guided tour of the various buildings associated with the monastery - including the prayer rooms used by the remaining Benedictine monks and the male and female colleges they established for aboriginal children (now closed).

After our visit to New Norcia, we then endeavoured to find our way to the Pecan Farm. This was easy said then done. However, we eventually find the place with five minutes to spare (it closed at 5 pm) only to discover that it wasn't open today anyway.

Very disappointed we made way beack to the town centre of Toodyay to see if it was possible to purchase any of the products in the local shops. However, it seems that almost everywhere in Toodyay closes at 5 pm.

However, salvation was at hand when we spotted the Licks and Lollies cafe still open, so we took some refreshment there before heading back home.

Tomorrow, all being well weather wise, we are making a trip to Rottnest Island - so it looks like there's no letting up in our final days here in Australia.

Posted 15/08/06 9.45 pm

Swan Valley

We were taken on a lovely drive around Swan Valley by Sharon (one half of our hosts for the first half of our few days in Perth). Although there had been some rain early in the morning by the time we set off at the rather civilised hour of 12 pm, it had stopped and turned into a warm and sunny afternoon.

It did indeed include wine, chocolate and, rather unexpectedly, nougat - how could we not drop into the World of Nougat? Goodies were purchased at each stop and now we have to work out how to get them home.

A rather nice dessert wine was purchased from the Lancaster winery, several purchases from the Margaret River Chocolate Shop (not all of them chocolate - my human was very taken with the Onion and Thyme marmalade) and a relatively small purchase from the World of Nougat.

We were also shown the venues for Sharon's daughter, Leonie's, wedding and reception.

Oh, and we were also shown where Hank Marvin used to live (he's moved to South Perth now) and his old place is now a B&B!

At the end of our Swan Valley tour, we were dropped off at residence for our final few days in Australia. So a big thank you to Sharon and Alan for their hospitality since last Wednesday - *waves* to Sharon and Alan - it was great to catch up with you again and hopefully it won't be too long before we see each other again.

We're now staying with Tracy and Steve and have a rather full programme for our final few days - but hopefully no early starts!

Posted: 14/07/06 4.35 pm

Bluewater

No, not the shopping experience on the London/Kent borders. This is a restuarant in the Applecross district of Perth and where we went for dinner on Sunday evening.

Apparently it used to be a lunatic asylum - it only closed down about 10 years ago - but is now a restaurant. It's a listed building so all the external part of the building had to be kept but it has been completely refurbished inside.

My human had a lovely grilled mushroom starter, followed by a delicious portion of grilled lamb rounded off with with a wicked chocolate and almond tart with turkish delight ice cream (I'm just listing this to make Jazz jealous).

As well as Tracy and Steve, we were joined by Lynne and her husband Kim and it was a very enjoyable evening.

Posted: 14/08/06 4.40 pm

Tram Tour - Monday, 14 August

Today Tracy and I took the tram tour. This was ideal because Tracy has renal failure and hasn't been too well in the recent past and can't walk long distances.

We stopped off in King's Park to take a light lunch at Fraser's Restaurant, which has a fantastic view of the city.

Oh, and the weather was a lovely 20-22C (remember, this is their winter), so we sat outside.

We then continued our tour.

After the tour we visited the Swan Bell Tower. Tracy insisted on me seeing inside it (my other Perth friend, Sharon, is very anti the tower because it was build with taxpayer's money and is still making a loss). However, you do get a lovely view from the sixth floor viewing platform.

Posted 14/08/06 4.46 pm

A breach of human rights?

My human is now having to consider the whole 'hand luggage' issue for our return trip (indeed, I might even have to go into the hold!).

But surely it is a breach of a woman's human rights to be deprived of her handbag?


Posted 14/08/06 4.36 pm

Ahhhhhh

We're having a relaxing few days - thank goodness after all that rushing around.

Following our morning walk on Friday, we were taken on a visit to Sorrento Quays, which is a popular boating and recreation area a little way down the coast.

Yesterday was a bit more energetic. After a leisurely start, we drove over to Freemantle to take a look at the markets there (and bought a few souvenirs).

We had a pre-evening meal drink at a micro-brewery bar called 'Little Creatures' and then went for a meal at Joe's Fish Shack - highly recommended.

Oh, and we got a glimpse of the USS Kitty Hawk (as Freemantle is where the port is) and a few more sailors!

Today we're off on a tour of the Swan Valley (I think this involves visiting some wineries and chocolate shops - mmmmm).

Posted: 13/08/06 11.30 am

It's already Friday here!

And it's not raining! It's a bit cloudy but the sun is shining and athough there's a bit of a breeze, it's still warm.

We had a morning walk along the coastal path and my human even had a little paddle in the sea - and the water wasn't cold at all. In fact, it was warmer than the sea can be around the British coast!

We're really liking Perth!

Posted 11/07/06 12.15 pm

Hot Tip!

Are you a member of the National Trust? My human is, and as a result, on production of her membership card, we were able to visit the Old Mill for free.

So, if you're a member, don't forget to take your card with you - apparently it can be used in Australia and New Zealand and other countries worldwide, so you can really get your money's worth!

Posted: 11/08/06 12.12 pm

All the nice hats love a sailor .....

Mmmm, we hadn't been in town long before we spotted a few dashing young men in naval uniforms around the place.

Turns out the fleet's in town - or rather the USS Kitty Hawk - an aircraft carrier I believe.

And before you ask Jazz, yes, we do have photographic proof, as the human accosted a small group and insisted I have my photo taken with them.

Thank you boys! Here's your mention!

We were impressed to see that a few of them actually visited some of the cultural places and not just the bars as we spotted a few visiting the museum.


Posted 11/08/06 12.10 pm

A Nice Day Out

And so to our first full day in Perth. It was really nice not to have an early start. After a well-deserved lie-in and a leisurely breakfast, we were dropped off at the station to catch a train to the city. Fortunately we didn't have to wait too long and we soon found ourselves in the centre of Perth.

After visiting the visitor information centre, we made our way to Barrack Street ferry, from where we were catching the ferry over to South Perth (about a 7 minute trip which cost AUS$2.80 for a return ticket - about one pound 25!).

Once on the south side we had a great view of the city - as well as a Pelican that was floating near the jerry.

We then walked round to The Old Mill - built in 1835. It's had a chequered history but is now owned by the National Trust of Australia (W.A.) (See separate posting for a hot tip!)

The weather was glorious! A clear blue sky and the sun shining - it must be have been about 22C - it was hard to believe it was meant to be winter.

We then made our way back to the city and made our way to the Museum of Western Australia and then on to the Art Gallery of Western Australia. Both were very interesting, particularly the art gallery.

We then made our way home. Unfortunately the return trip was not so smooth - in fact it reminded the human of the public transport difficulties one can experience in London's rush hour. Apparently there had been a points failure somewhere and trains were being delayed. After waiting for an hour and not been able to get on 3 trains, we eventually managed to get on a train and make our way home to our current hosts.

Posted: 11/08/06 12.05 pm