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Published: February 17th 2007
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Another longish flight then shuttle bus into town arriving a bit tired and worn out. Booked into hostel - nice room then went for wander round town. First impression - we were glad we're only here for a couple of nights (sorry Perth). Place was certainly a bit of a come down from Melbourne (which we both liked) but tomorrow is another day.
Friday woke up to overcast sky and when I went out for my first cigarette of the day it was actually cold - almost pleasantly so.
Found a decent internet cafe the connection speed in the hostel was abbyssmal (10 mins to get into e-mails then 5 mins to actually open them!). Booked ourselves a hire car then went to tourist office to get some better idea of where we might be going (south and west is about all we had decided up till this point).
Then headed for Botanic Gardens (frequently our first port of call when visiting a new city). On the way we passed a huge flock of (uncrested) cockatoos, there must have been at least 50 or 60 just sitting in this park. Having taken what looked like the most
Jacob's Ladder
Jacob must have been f---ed by the time he got to the top - I was. Some of the guys in the picturewere jogging up it! direct root to the Botanics we found ourselves some several hundred feet below the actual gardens and confronted by Jacob's Ladder 221 steps to he top I only know cos there's a plaque at the top says so (I gave up counting to save my breath for the climb).
The view back towards the town and across the Swan and Canning(?) rivers and the escarpment behind was impressive. Perth suddenly looked almost beautiful. Were disturbed by flock (ok half a dozen) huge black parrakeets (at last as large as ravens) swooping from the trees.
The Botanics was interesting - we saw a Jarrah tree growing: Jarrah's a kind of eucalyptus. (My brother reclaimed a whole garage full of Jarrah floorboards from an old school last year and has already used them to floor his new extension: it's gorgeous wood). Part of the walk was elevated so that you were in the tree tops, which gives you a different perspective on the many kinds of eucalyptus prevalent hereabouts
We dropped in at the Art Gallery in the way back and Willy had more cake. We found a restaurant recommended in the Lonely Planet guide book and had
Moreton Bay Fig in Botanics Perth
I really like these trees the roots are like huge butresses an Indian meal on the pavement terrace - I was just outside the canopy and the rain came on, but gently enough not to cause us to rush inside. The food was South Indian, which I don't think we get much in the UK and was excellent. Our set meals even came with a pudding - a cardammon flavoured rice pudding, which I really enjoyed.
We organised a hire car this morning and we leave Perth tomorrow,so we probably leave behind the luxury of internet cafes that stay open past 4.30 pm. It could be a while before we write another blog entry, but we're still here ! Starting to think about home now - 4 weeks would normally seem an unbelievably long holiday, but we've been away so long that it seems a relatively short time to go.
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alan g
non-member comment
superb stuff
Have been reading your blog and especially how dry Australia is as the rain pours down here. Willie I hate to say this but retirement is obviously doing you good as you look years youinger in the pics. Or maybe Wendy has found a toy boy and it's not you. I have loved your photos and Wendys tales and photos of her breakfast cake fetish. Well you may only have 4 weeks but I am sure you will both cram loads into that period. Remember to sell Wendy in Cairo and you may get a few more months out of your trip, joking Wendy. Look forward to hearing your travel tales next time we meet. Slangevar./