Our last day in Perth

Sunday March 21, 2010 our last day in Perth.
Today we are taking a wine tasting cruise on the Swan River with Captain Cook Cruises. We were up early and in the lobby waiting for our ride to the jetty by 9 am. Our cruise began at 9:45 and our captain was a lady. As we were sailing away from Perth we were offered coffee and muffins and by 10:30 they began serving samples of white wine followed by red wine from the vineyards we will be visiting. The Swan River Region is very picturesque with lovely homes and vineyards all the wide riverbank. We travelled for about an hour before we stopped at “Sandalford Winery” for our first tasting well...not our first taste of the day but our first tasting at the winery. This is a fairly large winery and they have more vineyards in the Margaret River area The wines were pared with various cheeses and combined with the heat from outside, I believe I had a buzz going. Once we were back on the boat more wine was served but I had to pass...I’ve had enough for a while....Who in their right mind passes up free wine????Me I guess at least for ½ hour. We stopped again around 2 pm at “Water’s Edge Winery” Where we were served lunch...there were three choices of fish, chicken or pasta plus salads, rolls and dessert and of course wine. After lunch the tastings began again. Needless to say we were a cheerful bunch of cruisers on the way back to the city. The wine continued to flow like water until we docked. Everyone was singing and dancing on the deck. I almost felt 25 again. After docking, we hired a taxi to the Hilton. . Tonight I must organize our suitcases and pack up everything. Tomorrow we fly to Sydney and we are staying overnight before making the long trek home. This has been a dream vacation. We have sampled a bit of this wonderful country and its’ people. I don’t think I have ever met such a friendly bunch of people. They don’t seem to lead the fast paced lifestyle that we seem to live even in the cities. We have just touched the tip of the iceberg of this amazing diverse land. We have seen the beaches, the cities, a portion of the desert areas and we have encountered the native animals up close. Now it is time to mentally prepare for our normal routines. Sheldon is anxious to get back to hockey and start golf and I am just anxious!!! It has been fun doing this blog of our travels and sharing some of our pictures. Until we travel again. Will see most of you in a few days
Toddie

A Day in Perth

Saturday march 20, 2010 A Day in Perth
We had a wonderful sleep last night. The first order of business was to dispose of the rental car...it was far easier than we thought it would be. The hotel concierge called Avis and requested on our behalf that the Perth office come pick up the vehicle and they agreed with no charges involved for a different drop off location. We then checked out of our room and immediately checked into our suite for the next 2 days. Our balcony is much larger. We then set out for Kings Park. We caught a city bus which are all free which dropped us off at the far western part of the park. It seemed like we walked for miles but was in fact about 2 kilometres to get to the top of the park where the visitors centre is. The views of the city were fabulous. The park covers over 400 hectares and is split up in sections i.e. botanical which did not have any flowers in bloom as it is the beginning of the winter season, bush lands, synergy is a large play area for children. There are also many large open areas for picnics. We spent about 2 hours here wandering around. We then caught a Double Decker explorer bus to do a tour of the city. The ride felt great as there was a wind blowing and it didn’t make the heat of the day seem so bad. We saw lots of areas such as Burswood which is where the casino & tennis dome is located, Northridge which is the older part of the city, and the Riverside area where the swan bells are located. We also got an overview of the inner city streets and where the eateries and shopping areas are located. We finally hopped off the bus at the waterfront area and wandered around for a while before heading back to the hotel which was about 1 ½ kilometres away and mostly up hill. By the time we got back to the hotel, I was having excruciating pain in both knees and my feet were throbbing. You would think after 5 weeks of a lot of walking I would be more used to it but that is not the case. I couldn’t find my Aleve so I had to substitute with a stiff drink of rum & coke. After putting my feet up for a while, I felt much better. We were served chocolates in our room. This was a lovely touch. Later we set out again to have a late supper. I’m so tired of walking today that I wasn’t very hungry but Sheldon needed his vittles. I was so glad to get back to the room and I’m not leaving until the morning. We booked a cruise on the Swan River and wine tasting for tomorrow. I can hardly wait.

In perth

Thursday March 18, 2010 A Day at Jill’s
We had a late start to today because I overslept...shame on me. After lunch Jill & I set out for some girl only shopping in Margaret River then in Augusta. I bought some wonderful treasures. Sheldon spent the afternoon with Greg at Greg’s work site. The evening was quiet with a lot of reminiscing of our school days. Oh what laughs we’ve had. I packed all our clothes as we are leaving in the morning.
Friday march 19.2010
We were up around 7 am . I hate saying goodbye especially when I know I’ll probably not see Jill again. We had a few tears actually a lot of tears on my part. What a great visit we have had. Sheldon & Greg hit it off as if they’ve always known us. What wonderful hosts they have been. Anyway we were on the road by 8 am heading south. Jill had given us maps and suggested a sort cut with a beautiful drive though a majestic forest of Karri trees which eventually brought us to Pemberton and we then followed a road thru farmlands of sheep before we finally hit the southern town of Walpole. We stopped at the visitor centre and bought our tickets of the Tree top Walk at the “Valley of the giants”. This is a wonderful walk 40 meters high among the giant tingle trees some of which are over 400 years old. Words cannot express their beauty. We spent over an hour here before we left for the town of Demark about 50 km away. Here we saw the world’s largest barometer which was brought over from Europe when the owner moved here. We then had a late lunch at a street side cafe before we continued on our journey toward the bustling seaside town of Albany. The town is known for its whaling industry in the past but is now a busy shipping port .We decided not to stop in the town as is was well after 3 pm. We then began heading north on the Albany to Perth highway with full intentions of stopping for the night at Mount Barker which is a beautiful town that looks out for the Sterling Mountain Range. We stopped at the visitor centre, gassed up the car and decided to carry on for a while longer as we would still have over 400 km to do in the morning before dropping off our car in Freemantle. The drive was through more farm country. We saw a lot of dead Kangaroos along the way and we saw the sweetest pure white kangaroo. We truly planned to stop along the way but we only saw what looked like flea bitten run down hotels and in no way was I laying my head down in one of these dumps. So I programmed the GPS for the Hilton Parmelia in Perth where I already have a reservation for tomorrow, & Sunday night. We finally arrived in the city after being on the road for over 13 hours. Dun said he was stressed...poor bugger. The only reason we were given a room is because we already have reservations for tomorrow & Sunday nights and because I’m an elite Hilton Honors member. The hotel is completely booked and the only room available was one with twin beds. We don’t care...I’d sleep in the basement at this point. Tomorrow we will need to change rooms to our suite. We ordered room service for supper and after eating we’ll hit the sack. Good night.

A Day with Jill

Wednesday March 17, 2010 Touring with Jill
What a wonderful night’s sleep we had. Sheldon & I were only up at 7:30. Jill had been up since 6 am and was just finishing the morning work in the barns and Greg was getting ready to go to work. After showering we left to go see the area. We began our drive leaving Augusta and driving through the Leeuwin Naturalist Forest where we saw huge Karri trees then we went to Hamlin Bay where there is the most beautiful beach I have ever seen then on to Boranup Forest to the look out. I think this is one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. From here we headed north through more wine country heading to the Margaret River surfing masters where the surfing competitions are being held. This is one of the world circuit stops for surfing and security is tight. The surf was high today and we could see the surfers out in the water. From here we headed to Yallingup and stopped at the wool shed where they shear sheep and there is a wonderful wool shop. I splurged and bought myself a wonderful sheep skin hat . Yallingup is a wonderful seaside town and Jill’s daughter Kate lives here. We then stopped in Dunsborough for lunch....wonderful Australian meat pies and then we went to Yallingup Ugg boats where I then bought myself a pair of wonderful brown soft winter boots. Dun is a bit distressed wondering where I’m going to pack this stuff. We made a quick stop in Busselton before taking the back roads back to Jill’s. Wonderful day we have had. Tonight we are going out with Jill & Greg. We visited the Augusta social club for the weekly lawn bowling competition. They have 2 large bowling grounds and there were about 200 people there. Dun got in on the action. They had tubs of beer and sausages on the grill. It was a really nice evening. It was fairly late when we got back to the farm so it wasn’t long before we called it a night

manudrah March 15,2010

Monday March 15, 2010 our cruise is over
Last evening found us rather reluctant to go to bed. At dinner the chefs and dining room wait staff sang a farewell song. Sentimental fool that I am cried...oh well, nothing new for me so I will have to get used to it. We then went to our regular haunt on the 11th deck with Eve, Jean, Les and Avril for our evening drinks before attending the farewell show. After shedding a few more tears we said our goodbyes with the best of intentions of keeping in touch. We have an open invitation to stay in Eve’s flat in London or to visit Les & Avril if we are ever in Queensland again. Les has mentioned that we should do a house swap for vacations at some point and we have not ruled this out for sometime in the future. The other night we tried Kangaroo for dinner. It was grilled. I thought it was terrible and I almost gagged. How do you daintily spit it out when at a formal dinner??? Well I chewed like a cow with its cud, and gulped a lot of wine until it went down...The remainder was left on my plate. The waiter graciously brought me lamb chops so I therefore did not go hungry.
This morning I was awake at 5 am and enjoying my morning coffee while we quietly slipped into the port of Freemantle. This is a bustling port with many container ships and other cargo ships. The passengers were all given departing color codes to put on their luggage last night. Our departing time was 9:40 so we had plenty of time to have breakfast before leaving the ship. This was the easiest we have ever found our luggage. Australian customs was quick. We then got in the queue for a taxi and the wait was about an hour. We now have an Avis rent a car. We are both very nervous driving on the opposite side of the road. We did manage to get out of the city with no problems but a few close calls and soon we were heading along the coast. Thankfully we have a GPS which tells us well in advance where to turn off and we follow the other cars when in a “round about”. We finally cut off in Mandurah and after going in circles for about ½ hour we found the “Sebel Mandurah”. It is a wonderful new hotel. We are on the 4th floor and our room has a nice balcony with wooden furniture overlooking a canal. There is a nice boardwalk with many restaurants. After checking in, we decided the first order of business was to find a laundry mat to wash our mounting pile of dirty clothes. Mission accomplished with only one minor mishap along the way but Sheldon forbid me to put on here what it was ha ha so I will obey! We later set out for a trek along the boardwalk and we ended up walking along the canal towards the centre of the city. The wind was strong so the air felt much more comfortable than we have had thus far on this trip. On the way back, we stopped at Cicerello’s for our dinner. Their claim to fame is the best fish & chips in Western Australia. We each ordered the senior’s meal which consisted of a cup of seafood chowder ( which was very thick and seemed to have more of a gravy base), two fillets of deep fried hokie (a new Zealand white fish) with French fries, black forest cake & coffee . It was a great meal and very tasty. We met a couple fishing for octopus. Dolphins are also plentiful in the canal but we haven’t seen any. It’s a beautiful evening sitting on the balcony. In the morning we head toward Bunbury, Busselton & Cape Naturaliste along the coastal highway before heading south to Jill’s.

Our last day at Sea

March 14, 2010 Our Last Day At Sea
I was awake very early this morning...5:30 am to be exact. There is nothing better than morning coffee, sitting on the balcony with just my thoughts and gazing out at the clear turquoise waters. After a late breakfast I decided that some shopping was in order as my cash is beginning to burn a hole in my pocket. I ended up purchasing an Australian opal necklace and matching earrings. Now I feel much better. Later I attended a napkin folding demonstration where we were shown how the cute towel animals are made (that are left in our staterooms each night) as well as dining room napkins. While this was interesting to watch, it will never be in my repertoire of talents. Sheldon went for his usual morning walk on the upper deck. I have most of our things packed up so I can now relax for the remainder of time on board. Tomorrow we depart the ship at 9:30. What a wonderful experience we have had. Our tablemates are wonderful folks who we have spent time with during the evenings and on excursions. We hope to meet again sometime down the road. We have exchanged e-mail addresses, snail mail addresses and phone numbers. My next post will be from on the road south of Perth.

Exmouth

Saturday march 13, 2010 Exmouth
This morning we dropped anchor at 5:30 am and I was sitting outside on our balcony with my first coffee of the day watching the sun slowly rise. This is a tender port and it was interesting watching the crew slowly lower the tenders into the water. Exmouth is a small, remote, isolated seaside town with a permanent population of appx 2500. It sits at the tip of North West Cape about 800 from Perth. It was established as a communications base for submarines. It is also known for its raw natural beauty, with Outback ranges, red rock canyons with over 700 caves. We left on our safari tour at 8 am in a 4WD vehicle heading directly to Caper Range. We began climbing up over a rough red dirt road. There are no trees due to lack of water and what shrubbery there is, it is low to the ground. It is very dry & dusty and soon we began to feel the dust on our lips. We stopped along the long windy road to see the wild kangaroos and emu’s. The canyon is a bright red which reminds me of Sedona Arizona and there are many caves that we can see along the way. The view of the Ningaloo coastline with many miles of white sandy beaches is spectacular after driving along the top of the range we began to slowly meander back down to drive through the town. All the buildings are made of cement to protect against cyclones as the town was completely demolished a few years ago. It is a quaint, neat little town and our guide told us that the emu’s come into town at night for water which the residents leave out for them. After leaving town we headed to the beach. The swim in the Indian Ocean was so refreshing. I am very buoyant and float like a harbour buoy. I could have stayed here for hours but alas, I must haul my weary body out of the water. While we were relaxing in the warm ocean water, our guide was boiling the “billy” for morning tea and homemade fruitcake. To be polite, I had the tea but I soon guzzled about 3 cups of water. It is very hot and the humidity is high. I now know why Australia is known as as hottest, driest continent on earth. Before returning to the ship, we visited the Ningaloo lighthouse, situated high on a cliff with a 360 degree view of the rough, rugged area. I will always remember the beauty of this place. We arrived back at the dock around 12:30. I was too hot to even go back into the town for any shopping. I have done no shopping yet. This trip has been about the adventure of seeing a new land. Can you believe that I am too hot to eat lunch? I headed directly for the pool where I remained for a couple hours before heading back to our balcony which thankfully is a bit shaded. Dun is having a nap and dreaming about playing golf in Pubnico. Tomorrow is another sea day and the last day of this wonderful cruise and I must waste part of the day packing up our clothes.