Walking around Perth

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I put the wrong days in my last post - today is Sunday morning here (and Sat. night in US).

I had an opportunity to walk around Perth yesterday (my Saturday) and went to the art museum, a little craft market, shopping areas, etc. Perth is growing rapidly because of the mining boom and all the lucrative jobs here. So, there is tons of construction. See all the cranes on their skyline below. There are tons of young people out and about and it seems a little rough around the edges here. I guess after coming from Sydney which is very international and cosmopolitan, it's hard to compare. However, people are very friendly and helpful here. Later today, I am going with Andy and Val to see the Aquarium here (which is supposed to be incredible). Tonight I have been invited for a homemade Indian feast by my host's roommate. My host here, Leisa Armstrong, has been amazing - carting me from here to there, introducing me to everyone and really providing first class treatment all around. She lives with a latin music percussionist who is Indian so they invited me over for dinner. We also got to see him play the congos for one of the ECU's dance classes. The actor Hugh Jackman went to ECU so I was walking in the same halls :)

I had some great Chinese food yesterday at one of the food courts in a shopping area. The restaurants in the food courts have real food though and it was good/cheap. I also forgot to mention in previous post that I have become a big fan of the meat pie - yum! I had an awesome beef/guiness pie with the flakiest crust on Friday for lunch. Hearty and delicious!


Everyone is really into the Olympics here (as well as all sports!). In Sydney and Perth I saw these large outdoor screens with people sitting around watching the sports in common outdoor areas. It's been interesting watching the Olympics from a different perspective.

I am also posting a picture below of Oz money. It's so colorful, it seems like monopoly money. I will be going on a two day tour of the Margaret River area very early tomorrow so won't be online for a couple of days, but hope to take lots of pictures of the wineries, scenery, etc. I haven't seen a kangaroo yet so maybe tomorrow. ?? Cheers!

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