"Way down-under the SWANee River"...Perth Australia

Perth...The Capital of Western Australia

Up at 5:45AM, we dressed quickly in case our breakfast arrived earlier than requested. The room service crew is amazingly busy and efficient, especially on days when early morning tours are offered. Our Aussie guide had migrated here 30 years ago from Germany, and her slight accent helped Mark with his hearing problems since Germans emphasize their consonants well. She was a wealth of information and fun facts. With a Mediterranean climate and no rain since October, the city is on constant water restrictions. Exports include wheat, cattle, and sheep which are brought in from “stations” (farms) and exported live. This is now causing controversy.

We drove through charming Fremantle 45 minutes to its sister city Perth, the capital of Western Australia and considered the most isolated city in the world. Built in 1829, around the same time as Freemantle, it too rapidly increased in size with the 1893 Gold Rush. Today, along with government jobs, its main industry is mining…petroleum, iron ore, coal, and gold mines. The mines are east of the cities so workers live in the cities, fly to the mines, work 12-hour days for two weeks, then fly back home for a week off. Perth is where most of the headquarters are for these operations. It has a booming economy with an average income of $80,000/year, miners making $120,000.

War Memorial in King's Park and Gardens

We were impressed with Perth’s 990-acre King’s Park and Botanical Gardens, much of it untamed bushland for walking and biking, and other parts cultivated. Our guide offered to give a tour during our stop at the Botanic Gardens and we were the only ones who took her up on it. She pointed out many beautiful plants and wildflowers which West Australia is famous for as we walked through a collection of fauna from the different regions.

She had us taste the leaves of the Old Salt Bush with its pleasing salty taste and told the story of the 750-year old Boab tree that had been transplanted when a road was built in the North. 

Boab Tree

We also learned more about the Eucalyptus trees called “gum trees” because of all the sap in the wood...so much sap that in a forest fire the tree will explode like a ball of fire. Settlers called them “ghost trees” because every year they shed their bark in the fall becoming a white color that glows on a moonlit night. The Aboriginal people called them “widow trees” because of the tendency or large trees to suddenly drop a healthy appearing branch to the detriment of anyone using the tree for shade. 

                                                 

Banksia Flower

Eucalyptus

The eucalyptus plants get their name from the Latin name for cap, since all varieties have a protective cap on the flower that falls off right when the stamen is ready to release its pollen.

Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree

Our guide then encouraged us to continue walking since we are fast and would have time to make a loop over a walking bridge back to the bus. Halfway through, the path was blocked for an event, so we ended up running around the space and back to the bus with 30 seconds to spare!

Black Swan on the Swan River with Walking Bridge
Connecting Downtown to New Stadium

Our tour took us around the rest of the city…passing the huge casino and the new walking bridge over the Swan River linking its sport's “oval” to the downtown.



Our driver then dropped us off at the Bell Tower by the riverfront and continued back to Fremantle. There was so much to enjoy in Perth... the art around Elizabeth Quay, St Mary’s Cathedral, the Perth Mint, and towering skyscrapers alongside Victorian buildings, 
again built by convicts. 

Bell Tower by Waterfront

St Mary's Cathedral

Supreme Court

St George's Cathedral

           

Government House

Miss Maude's...a Charming Swedish 
Restaurant

We watched the city’s town clock strike one causing its figures to joust, walked the circular stairs inside the new city library, and overall just enjoyed this polished, culture-rich city.

Tudor Alley off Pedestrian Mall

Jousters on the Hour 

Grubby Tourist Standing by a Street Acrobat
Known for Being Grubby

    

City Library

Pole of Western Australia's Minerals by Kangaroo Family...
Dad likes his Chest Scratched

Elizabeth Quay's Waterpark
 

Elizabeth Quay's Art

   

On the ferry ride back to the Fremantle wharf, the Skipper pointed out the main sights and beautiful homes on the banks of the Swan River, named for the black swans native to the area. We were happy to have a few more hours on land to explore Freo before spending EIGHT days at Sea… crossing the Indian Ocean to Africa. Oi-Oi-Oi!!

View of  the  King's Garden Walking Bridge from the Ferry

Sailboats Ready for Class

One of Many Black Swans

Houses Along the Swan River

   

        

and finally...as we leave the Land Down Under and this blog entry...Carol's Aboriginal Dot Painting Masterpiece telling Our Story

                                                   and two of our Chef's Masterpieces...