We left early today to make a round trip of the suburbs of Perth. Our first port of call was the amaizing strawberry farm where you can try before you buy. Then onwards, anti-clockwise into the Perth Hills, to the east of Perth where we visited Arthur Hutson and his two sons in Lesmurdie. Arthur is an old friend (101 years old) of Winks and Sue's parents from Rhodesia days. He may be the oldest living Rhodesian! Chris made us a lovely tea and we added some of our Mum's Rock buns, which she always used to make for the tennis parties we had at Marlow' - our family home. The conversations were all based on our shared history of Rhodesia. We hurried on northwards to Tony's breakers yard, where Terry was able to purchase a ... read more

Today was rainy and overcast and a rest and recovery day for us all in Mandurah, a time to catch up with things like clothes and car washing, emails, phone calls, cake baking and for sisters to talk and look at old photos. In the afternoon Sue went shopping while Terry took Winks and Al to look at the marina where the 'en plain air' painting festival will take place on Saturday (See photos). Tomorrow will be another 'at home day' to get things done. If the weather holds we might fit in a bike ride or a trip to town.... read more

We headed north for approx 58km to the busy port city of Geraldton. Population approx 39,000. The roads are excellent and not too busy. The countryside inland is mainly cereal crops, with beef and sheep grazing. There were several large ships waiting out to sea to load up with grain and other cargos. The display at the visitor's centre stated that there were approx 380 ships each year, exporting the following commodities:- Talc, Iron Ore, Mineral sands, Barley, Wheat, Lupins, Canola, and Copper concentrates. These are exported to: China 84% Australia 4% South Korea 4% Indonesia 2% Rest of the world 6% Forgot to check on imports! The city's waterfront has been modernised and makes a pleasant area to walk, with cafes and well equipped children's play areas overlooking the sea. The museum has a really ... read more

Another lovely day dawned, so Alan and I walked along the sea shore towards the fisherman's lookout, with great views over the ocean. There were some hardy surfers out in the bay. We found the local shops with all we needed, plus a fish shop selling freshly caught red snappers. We definitely need to have fish to eat when we are by the sea! We packed a picnic and and set off approx 55km inland to Mingenew, where we stopped to explore the wild flowers. We climbed Depot Hill, which was so called as it was a training area for Australian soldiers who were going to fight in the WW2. The flowers and plants are so different and interesting. It is amazing that they manage to grow in what seems to be a very difficult climate. ... read more

Today we were up early and drove to the station in Mandurah where we caught the train into the centre of Perth. For much of the way the train runs in the centre of the motorway, between the lanes. Perth is a lovely clean modern city with sympathetic blending of the old and new architecture. After coffee and doughnuts we walked around to the Art Gallery where we spent some time before making our way to the Apple Shop where Winks got her phone sorted out. From there we took a free bus to the Kings Park Botanic Gardens where we had lunch. We then had a very pleasant walk around the gardens before catching the bus and train back to Mandurah. A very interesting and successful day in Perth.... read more