Arrival in western Australia

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Sorry for being out of touch for so long, but been busy since i arrived on this continent! Spent my first 10 days visiting Perth city, which basically was done very quickly as this is not really a city but a town! Strolled around Kings Park where the crows make very loud calls to eachother and also did some window shopping and people watching in the main shopping streets of Perth. The sites were scary, the people badly dressed, and really if you're into fashion of any sort, this is not the place! They have NO dress sense here.
Anyway went up to Yanchep National Park which was close to where i was staying at my friends house. There, i was very fortunate to see several kangaroos for the first time in my life, in the wild. They honestly looked like stuffed toys. Two were mating, and the rest were hanging around with their joey's in their pouches! I also saw sleepy koalas up some trees in a sanctuary. It was interesting to see them out in the wild and looking so cute.
I then set off on a backpackers tour bus called Easyrider from Perth up the coast, stopping at the Pinnacles, which is an area of rare limestone formations. They looked very odd, and some were very strange shapes. Need i say more? From there we drove along the coastal highway up north stopping at Kalbarri national park, where i did absailing down a 30meter rock drop. Yes i did indeed. Was scared of dropping myself of the side of the cliff, but as i knew all the ropes were safe, i gave it a shot and faced my vertigo fears! Other stops along the way included Shell Beach, which is literally a massive bay and beach with only tiny shells instead of sand! Beautiful but not the most confortable of beaches to be lieing on all day! The stromatolites at hamlin pool are rock formations that have been there and still popping up in the lagoon since evolution started thousands of years ago, so suppose it was interesting to see something that has not been destroyed since the early days!
i stopped for a week in Denham believe it or not. A very sleepy and the most western of coastal towns in WA, but some how i had a laugh there as had met some girls on the bus whom i ended up camping with. Well we gave it a shot. ha ha anyway luckily there were 2 pubs in the town as nothing much more. the old pub and the new one. We spent several nights down there shooting pool or entertaining the local fisherman and other funny looking characters with our wonderful kareoke skills, only after several glasses of vino ofcourse! We spent a day at the little lagoon, a naturally formed perfectly circular lagoon which formed years and years ago just off the coast and is fed by water from the sea. That day i was feeling like some action and jogged around it with one of the other girls who is also a runner! we enjoyed the peaceful jog barefoot in our bikinis and then had some more well deserved drinks later in the pub! Monkey Mia was a nearby resort and another beach to choose from, so we spent some time lazing on that beach too. Here, there was no wind, so just the peace and quiet and tranquility of the secluded beach, where we saw dolphins meters from the shore and even pelicans and many other little fish! Sharks Bay and Eagles bluff were other stop off points especially to view from the high cliffs the sharks, turtles and manta rays that are swimming in the crystal clear blue seas. Not so keen on swimming on those beaches! We paid a visit to Francois Peron National park, which is also another world heritage site, and here we almost burnt our feet on the red hot sand from the bush that meets the white sand on the beaches below. The pictures will explain what i mean. The contrast of bright colours was amazing. You had to be there to believe it. Anyway, now further up the coast we have got to Coral bay which is basically another resort with a few camps sights and backpackers hostels and a beautiful beach. I have had the pleasure of topping up the tan here and spending a couple of lazy days soaking up the sun and swimming in the gorgeous sea which is different shades of blue and turquoise and where as soon as you step into the shallow water of the lagoon you can swim with sting rays (so got to be careful) and other big snapper fish which swim around you just meters offshore. The wind is up here so it is nice for sunbathing and keeping you cool with the breeze. When the wind does drop however, the flies are back! Not so nice to spend your time swatting the flies or trying to atleast! Now i understand why Crocodile dundee always wore that hat with corkscrews hanging off it. That was the reason for it!! Not had to buy anything of the like just yet and am hoping won't need to either, but hey, there are definitely heeps of flies, as the ozzies would say. Still, i would rather that than heeps of mozzies eating me alive. The ones that are around seem to be attacking the other girls in the dorms, thank god! Oh yes, have experienced the shared dorms now for the past 2 weeks and yes, has to be done here in Oz as everything is so damn expensive, but yeah, will be glad when i can stay in my own room in the future when on holiday and not have to deal with the stuff you deal with in these dorms. Still, suppose i feel about 15 again, except with more life experience! ha ha Now heading off on a road trip by car with some other backpackers whom i have met here and will head up to Exmouth and explore the Ningaloo reef and then on to the Karijini National park before making my way back down south to Perth. Will update more when poss.

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