G'day mate! Greetings from Australia!
Happy Chinese New Year! Welcoming the Year of the Snake!
The weather in Perth is hot, hot, hot. Was a smoking 44C (111F) on Thursday when I left for Margaret River which is about 4 hours south. While it's still warm (low 30s C/low 90s F), being in the shade actually makes a difference. Temperature is an important decision variable, along with cyclones, as I think about traveling north from Perth later this month. It gets much warmer as you travel north.
For context - Western Australia has a total population of about 3 million people with about 2.1 million of them living in Perth. It's Australia's largest state with Perth being the fourth largest city in Australia. There is about three million less people in Western Australia than all of New Zealand. Lots of open space with fewer people.
Keeping track of bushfires is something new to add to my driving itinerary. I think the magnitude of the possible bushfire threat is reflected in a store clerk's comment to me about the fire ban now in place is about two months earlier than in previous years. I want to avoid first-hand learning how dangerous they can be including causing road closures. I've downloaded a couple apps - one that provides the latest road conditions along with fire threat and an app that gives me access to emergency services should the need arise.
My wish, if I need to drive, to have long stretches of flat, straight highway has been answered in Western Australia. The highways, so far, have been great to drive on. Petrol is less expensive than NZ; about $1.98 NZ/litre vs. $2.50+/litre ($4.15/gallon - USD or $1.62/litre - CAD). I also rented a little more comfortable car for my travels.
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| My Toyota Camry |
Travel Administration
This week's focus is on prepping for airport security.
Travel Maps
Goodbye New Zealand. Hello Western Australia!
Tracking this past week's travel including the Auckland to Perth flight (Inter-Country Travel link below) and my initial travel destinations within Western Australia starting in Perth (Western Australia link below):
Inter-Country Travel: New Zealand to Australia
Western Australia: January 27 - February 1, 2025
Goodbye New Zealand
A few words as I leave Auckland. The Parnell Hotel and Conference Room staff (Gwen, Hazel, Kal, Ashish, Brent and Amelia in reception; Lagi in housekeeping) were kind, thoughtful and helpful. Kal and I spoke about Ethiopia where she was born. I shared my Ethiopian blog with her for my experiences there. Ashish, who is originally from India, offered his assistance in my travels should the need arise. He knows people in both Sri Lanka and Nagaland, India. He also shared that his wife was a former Mrs. India - with photos attesting to her beauty. Hazel is originally from the Philippines. Lagi is from Fiji. Both Brent and Ashish were kind enough to use the reception microwave to pop the popcorn I carry (three minutes is the key popping duration!) I gave Brent a bottle of wine I received as a gift at a previous hotel. In gratitude for all the kindness I received, I left a carrot cake for the staff, made fresh by Nio at Pandoro Panetteria.
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Carrot cake - thank you for the Parnell Hotel
and Conference Center reception team |
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| City view from hotel balcony |
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Those three trees made the most beautiful
sound when the wind was blowing! |
Perth
In less than eight hours flying time, I was transported from Auckland to Perth, the capital of Western Australia, A couple on the plane, who were returning to Perth, were kind enough to share travel insights once they heard my travel plans. Going north of Perth is definitely means much warmer temperatures! Will keep an eye on the weather.
The one thing I forgot to account for was the five hour time difference between the two cities. I gained back five hours (13 hours difference from Toronto) so adjusting my sleep accordingly!
I breezed through customs at the airport. I was prepared to show my flight Bali flight ticket along with the Indonesian eVisa which no one asked for. On the train ride from the airport to downtown Perth, I met Jeannie who was just returning from 17 days in Kenya. Interesting woman. She had disposed of her home and most of her possessions deferring to a life of house sitting for others. She was in Kenya to attend a former student's wedding. She also went on safari where one highlight was watching a lion eat its prey - from the safety of their safari vehicle. She also set me straight on the train station I should alit from. She saved me a long walk on a hot day cuz I had messed up interpreting my Google Map instructions. As we got off at the same station, Perth, she took the extra step to connect me with a Transit employee to confirm how I got from the station to my hotel - about a ten minute walk. Today's travel bonus was the transit system was free to ride until February 5.
About ten minutes walk from my hotel was Elizabeth Quay on the Swan River. Lots of restaurants, boat rides to Rottnest Island and those touristy kind of things. Great place to walk around and people watch!
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| Pedestrian Bridge at sunset |
The Park was a twenty minute walk from my hotel. Early start to avoid the expected daytime high of 40C (104F). My path, which I thought was the more direct route, meant I needed to climb Jacob's Ladder. The Ladder is 242 concrete steps that many locals, like the 60 year old Andy that I met, use for exercise. Part of Andy's two hour exercise routine is climbing up and down 15 times (up and down). He monitors his time - about 54 minutes on a cooler day; up to 63 minutes on a hotter day (like the day I met him). He also had travel tips for my Indonesian trip.
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| Perth downtown from Park viewpoint |
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| Swan River |
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| Queen Victoria reigns supreme |
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| Downtown revisited |
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| Looking to Fremantle |
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| Lest we forget |
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| Botanic Garden entrance |
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| Walkway leading to glass bridge |
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| Glass sided bridge |
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| Acacia Steps |
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| Water feature - on a break |
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| Just so I remember where I am |
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My flat white - made with love
by Vikal from Bali |
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Fraser Avenue - tree lined street leading
to Kings Park |
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Where it all starts - except for me who
sometimes inadvertently takes the more
difficult path! |
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| An interesting building |
Perth has permanently blocked off a couple downtown streets to create pedestrian malls. Again, this shopping area was within a ten minute walk from my hotel.
My first stop on Tuesday (first morning in Perth) was to get an Australian SIM card. Santhosh, my Telstra agent, was a superstar for both service and price. I got a SIM card for 28 days with 40 GB of data, unlimited domestic talk time (and more) for $13 AUD ($12 CDN/$8 USD). The regular price was $39 AUD. I also learned he was from the Chennai, India where I am planning to visit my friend Praveena's parents in April. He suggested that, if I was interested in hand made silk, I was in the right part of India to get what I wanted.
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Telstra - best mobile network for coverage
in Australia |
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| Sarah at Visitor Info Centre |
I also met Sarah and Tammy at the Perth Western Australia Visitor Centre. I'm now fully armed with the required travel information for my trip. I was also on a mission to extend her greetings to Richard, a former Perth Centre employee, who is now working in Margaret River.
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London Court - shopping avenue
styled on English architecture |
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More London Court - this shopping
area gains significance during my
three days. See Chocolate Tour |
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| Decorations in courtyard next to hotel |
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| Chinese New Year (as of January 29) |
Perth to Margaret River
Give people a wall to draw on and see what happens. Western Australia takes great pride in their wall murals. Today's total travel time would be about 4 hours with an hour of that traversing Perth.
Two hours drive south of Perth brings you to Wellington Dam, the world's biggest mural on a dam. Add to my ever growing list of unique sights and/or destinations.
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| World's biggest dam mural |
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| Context |
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| More detailed mural photo |
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| More detailed mural photo |
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| More detailed mural photo |
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| More detailed mural photo |
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| Small lake behind dam |
About 15 minutes from Wellington Dam is the small town of Collie with multiple wall murals. I'm sharing a small sampling of murals for your viewing pleasure.
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| Mural map |
“This artwork pays homage to the Wardandi Bibbulmun people whose tribal lands extend from Leschenault to Augusta". This piece of art has found a home on Koombana Beach in Bunbury. There are multiple photos as the end of day light highlighted the metal sculpture's features from the different angles.
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| Wardandi Boodja |
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| Koombana Beach |
In a race against what I thought was a 7 pm motel check-in time (wrong - it was 5 pm), I drove to Busseltown to visit the famous jetty - all 1.8 km (1.1 mi.) of jetty. I changed my plan to walk the jetty in favour of getting to the motel for one main reason - to avoid driving at dusk. You see, kangaroos (wild animals in Australia) are much more prevalent on the roads at dawn and dusk. I want to avoid the chance kangaroo encounter - both for the kangaroo's life and the potential car damage.
I will return tomorrow!
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| A train runs the length of the jetty |
I arrived at the Adamsons Riverside Motel just before 7 pm (Thursday evening) only to discover reception closed at 5 pm. This an example of where having a local sim card was handy. I rung up the owners who were only too happy to check me in for the night.
The next thirty or so minutes were the more remarkable part of the evening. I met David and Janet, from Brisbane, who were on a nine day holiday in the south. They were sitting in the motel's courtyard area. I made some comment about how I heard they were the rowdy ones and the convo was started. Janet was particularly enthused about what they had already seen. They were traveling in the opposite direction than me so Janet got her tablet out to show photos of their various stops that I was about to see. She mentioned she had been on a Contiki bus tour in Europe in the late 1980s. Their next destination was Busseltown to meet up with someone from the bus tour who she had stayed in contact with over the past 30 years, but had not visited in person. The Contiki bus tour experience was another point of common interest as I had been on one of their tours in the early 1980s. We wished each other safe travels and that was the last contact I had with them.
It's now Friday am. I'm traveling south from Margaret River for about an hour to visit this lighthouse. Going to meet multiple objectives by visiting this specific lighthouse. Its the tallest on mainland Australia plus is on the most south-westerly point of Australia. Added bonus, this is also where the Southern and Indian Oceans meet. Remember, it's all one body of water, we've just decided to give the different sections of water different names.
Tia, a staff member, shared the back story on the 'pirate' cow statute. It was 'purchased' in a regional charity auction and donated to the lighthouse. The cow will be liberated soon through an upcoming charity auction to continue raising funds locally. There are several cow statues, especially in the Cowaramup area, home to the regional dairy business.
I'll be heading north for the balance of the day's travel. My eventual endpoint will be revisiting Busseltown Jetty.
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So many people avoid Australia
for this very reason - snakes |
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| Pirate cow on lighthouse property |
Visiting caves is relatively low on my list of places to visit. I decided to make an exception to visit Jewel Cave and I think I was rewarded immensely. This part of Australia is full of caves given the limestone that found here. This cave is the largest commercial cave with three large caverns. Spectacular natural beauty. We had to be reminded that all these structures were crystal; just not the shining crystal commonly available. I wish the photos would do better justice to my cave experience.
Our guide, Tom, was entertaining and informative over the hour long cave tour. The cave is about a million years old making it a baby in geological time compared to other Australian caves that date back 340 million years.
Couple basic cave terms for a refresher (if and as required):
Stalactite: A calcite speleothem which grows downward, icicle-fashion, as a result of deposition by dripping water.
Stalagmite: A calcite speleothem which grows upward fromms a cave floor as a result of deposition by dripping water.
Speleothem: A cave feature produced by deposition of mineral
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Those things hanging from the ceiling are hollow.
The longest is 5.8 metres (~ 19 ft.) |
My intention in visiting Hamelin Bay was to get a sense of small town Australia. Not to be. This is strictly a beautiful beach location with a couple food trucks and campsite office. The road and carpark are sealed making this a great place to set up camp. Swimming with the sting rays is a big attraction for this beach. I've inserted a link if you wanted to know more the Bay.
My second intended small town experience was meant to be Prevelly. While the community has a general store, this is an upscale town with very nice summer homes in subdivisions. I came upon this beach after passing through what was the townsite. This part of Australia, south of Perth onward, has endless beautiful beaches with reasonable temperatures - even in the summer time.
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Most locations have these marker
signposts to help emergency services
quickly identify where the emergency is |
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Good reminder for what can
be lurking in the water |
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| How many people do you see on this beach? |
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| Even instructions for you and your pet |
Third small town attempt. Denied once again. I did watch a couple people windsurfing. The link I've provided will supplement my brief commentary.
There is a 142 km Cape to Cape trail that spans between the Cape Leeuwinn Lighthouse in the south (where I started my day's journey) to this lighthouse in the north. I'm glad I started in the south, as this lighthouse was somewhat anti-climatic. The lighthouse is a fair distance from the coast so the dramatic cliffs, crashing waves and scenic beaches are missing. It's a lighthouse with an enormous carpark which I suspect reflects its popularity. Another lighthouse to add to my lighthouse checklist.
BTW - My premier lighthouse experience was in Ireland when I visited the
Hook Lighthouse It's claim to fame is being the oldest intact Operational Lighthouse in the world. It dates back to 1201.
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I've omitted the poisonous snake
sign that was on the path |
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| I'm a little teapot... |
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| The gift of more information |
I almost missed this destination. In a twist of good fortune, I missed a turn so I wound up turning into a Shell service station for petrol. When I was paying for my petrol, Kea (the station attendant) wondered if I had visited Canal Rocks. He thought many tourists missed this beautiful destination which is about 13 km from the service station (that is, if you follow Google Map directions correctly). He kindly wrote down the name and wished me safe travels. I overheard him saying to the people behind me that part of what he does in his job is to help tourists (as he was apologizing for the delay in serving them). Meeting Kea was a great reminder of how many kind and thoughtful people we have in the world.
The big deal at this location is how the Indian Ocean has created channels in the rock. Great place for waves crashing into the rocks. I've discovered much more of this ocean drama that I like in this part of Australia than my time in New Zealand.
I returned to the jetty around 5 pm on Friday afternoon to commence my walk. I discovered the $4 fee to walk the jetty is waived after 5 pm. Great stroll, sun shining, breeze blowing - it is such a gift to have this opportunity to experience life in this way.
At the end of this jetty is an underwater observatory where you can pay to descend to see what is swimming around the jetty. Sarah, the Visitor Center person, mentioned there was a live feed from the observatory into the ticket office so you see how clear the water was.
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| Train station |
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| Jetty Express |
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| These signposts are everywhere |
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Took a few photos to capture
all the destinations |
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| Your friendly train engineer |
On Saturday, I started my day by visiting the local Visitor Center where I met Chantel. I asked for her help to identify any key sights I should see based on the destinations I'd already seen. What follows is those additional places I decided to visit including the last three chocolate stores listed in the Chocolate Shop Tour below.
Yet another beautiful beach where you can swim and snorkel.
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| You and your best friend(s) guidance |
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| More beach related info |
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| Beach looking north |
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| Beach looking south |
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| More beach. Notice the clear blue water. |
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| Endless summer... |
I learned from Chantel that I had driven past this location on my journey to see Prevelly. Surfers Point happens to be a key surfing destination in the world. The big names in surfing compete in these waters. There happened to be a competition underway when I arrived. This location is set up for people to both participate and be spectators. There is even a bbq area.
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The beach in the background is near the mouth
of the Margaret River |
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| I missed the skateboard at first glance |
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| More local sculpture |
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| Closer view of beach near Margaret River |
I made a quick visit to see the opening to Lake Cave. There are 350 steps leading down into the cave. Another beautiful place to visit.
There are multiple olive orchards in Australia. Chantel mentioned this location should I be interested in enjoying lunch in a pastoral setting. I decided to stop by around mid-afternoon. What a wise decision. I ended up ordering a bowl of fresh olives coated in fresh olive oil. I sat in the shade under a tree and savoured my olives. I started reminiscing about my travels to Italy and Greece where I had also enjoyed fresh olives. There might have been retsina and perhaps ouzo involved in those olive eating occasions. My memory is a little fuzzy about those details. I'm clear about the warm sunny days.
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| Olive orchard |
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| My delectable olives |
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| Restaurant |
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| Where I enjoyed my olives |
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| Olive orchard |
Chocolate Shop Tour
As fate would have it, I found (with Google Maps assistance) a number of chocolate shops/chocolatiers in my week of travels starting in Perth. Both chocolate shops in Perth were within an easy walk from my hotel.
My first Western Australian chocolate encounter was at Sue Lewis. The store, which also houses the chocolate creation magic, is below street level in a co-location with a vinyl shop. Lucky me, as this chocolatier makes dark chocolate with salt - my favourite. Sue also makes a wide range of flavours to tease your palate. I had a brief chat with the sales attendant, made my purchase, and was on my way!
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| Chocolate, Chocolate & more Chocolate |
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You truly need to be looking for
this shop given its location |
I fortuitously discovered this store later in the day as I was looking for a currency exchange that would offer me a reasonable rate to convert the $60 NZD I was carrying. Unsuccessful in that regard. As I was exiting the exchange shop (this is in London Court), I noticed the chocolate shop next door. This is where Charlotte, the store attendant, enters my journey. I witnessed her do a fabulous job help the customer in front of me select eight chocolates to give his partner to celebrate their first year anniversary together. What made this transaction more special was that I learned Charlotte was new to the business so the skill she demonstrated in this situation was masterful. We ended up having a great convo about traveling which she aspired to do more of. When I went to post a Google review, the store was non-existent on Maps. So, I created the location on Maps and posted my review.
I returned to the store the following morning to share what I had done on Maps so the owners were aware and take the necessary action(s). That is when I met Lorissa, the store owner. What a phenomenal convo that followed. I learned more about her, the business, touched on spirituality, got some travel tips and an invitation to circle back before I leave for Bali on February 25.
As far as the Google review, Lorissa was most appreciative. She had creating the store on Maps on her radar. She had a six month lease on the current location and was looking for a larger location which now had opened across the walkway. All this potential change had created some uncertainty about site promotion. We shook hands and I was on my way - a much better person for having met her.
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Still setting up their full
range of chocolates |
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The store sign that put me on the
path to enrich my life further |
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| Store front |
This chocolate shop was about a ten minute drive from Margaret River where I was staying. Much larger store than Sue Lewis and Anuka. Another key difference is this store uses a chocolate base they purchase instead of making their chocolate from beans. My experience here was sampling the chocolate they had available (delicious!), wondering about the store and finally making a couple purchases. Far different experience given the lack of interaction with an owner or store attendant who was interested in a convo. Yes, that sometimes happens!
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| The dark side, my favourites! |
Gabriel Chocolate was another ten minutes down the road. I received the full chocolate experience courtesy of Franco who had worked at the store for the last five years. He shared samples of the different dark chocolates they made from beans. The chocolate taste was exquisite! The range of cocoa beans including Peru, Madagascar, Honduras, Kenya and more. Sampling different chocolate is like tasting wine. Each bean has a distinctive flavour, at least for some people whose taste buds are more astute than mine. Truly a combination of science and art to make the best product and customer experience.
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| Wall of dark and milk chocolate |
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| Ice cream and coffee |
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| Indoor and outdoor sitting areas |
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| Let's go beyond just chocolate |
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| The Story |
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| Exterior |
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| Interesting entrance |
Another five minutes down the road is a large commercial chocolate maker with a great reputation and much larger product base and distribution. This is the big time in Western Australia chocolate. The hotel I was staying at gave me milk chocolate from this company as a welcoming gift when I checked in. As the photos may suggest this company has a huge retail store at this location with all the different chocolate you could want at prices that are far less than the previous four chocolate stores. I wandered about the store taking photos and taking advantage of the free samples. I'm somewhat leery about the free samples as some people like to put their hands into the sampling container instead of using the spoon that is meant to help you get the samples hygienically.
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| So much chocolate |
Travel Administration
Best rule of thumb for airport security is Stop, Look and Listen. Most airports have signs with either pictures or English text describing what is required to run the security gauntlet. Take a moment to read what is required, ask questions if you are unsure and then put your stuff on the belt for screening. You should also give yourself sufficient time to clear security so you can avoid any anxiety about missing your flight. It's the anxiety, at least for me, makes the screening process potentially unpleasant as I think about the plane leaving without me! BTW - many airlines have staff monitoring the security screening area to identify anyone in the queue that may need to prioritized.
In most instances I've been in, the airport security staff are trying to be helpful in getting you through security screening. In New Zealand, everything (laptop and tablets included)can stay in your bag for scanning whereas other airports may require their removal because of their equipment. Liquids over 100 ml are banned in most airports. My security screening experience in Shanghai would be an example of hyper vigilant screening that still exists in some airports.
Also important to avoid saying or doing anything that could be misinterpreted. What you consider funny may just be the wrong thing to say or do. Smile, being patient and attentive and you'll be quickly through.
Next Week
In the next week I'll be finished traveling the section of Western Australia's south coast that I intended to visit. The three places I'll use as my base are Albany (three night stay), Hopetoun (overnight stay), and Esperance (three night stay). The total driving time from Margaret River to Esperance is about 11 hours max. I have booked a room for a few nights in Jurien Bay which is about 2.5 hours north of Perth. Still monitoring the weather forecast (temperature and cyclones) in the north.
Stalagmite: A calcite speleothem which grows upward fromms a cave floor as a result of deposition by dripping water.
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