Perth , Western Australia Trip January 9-16 2023
On Monday evening , January 9 2023 i flew in a Boeing 737 to Perth , which had only a few empty seats. QF 653 left Mascot at 625 pm ,and arrived in Perth at 815pm, due to the 3 hour time difference. We had some turbulence over the Great Australian Bight – i watched the flight‘s progress as i read a book . I collected my luggage, and then went to the well organised drop off /pick up area to await Anne . A train is now operating to Perth Airport.
I have been attempting to return to Perth over the last few years . Covid and the Western Australian border closure unfortunately had other ideas . The planned trip to Perth and then Monkey Mia in mid -2020 did not happen. The next time that trip was rebooked, a cyclone had hit Kalbarri and wiped out our accommodation . My last visit to Western Australia had been in March 2017, when i travelled with a friend to Perth, and then on to Albany to acknowledge the 5 years since my Message in a Bottle went out to sea in the Southern Ocean. The friend and I, then drove a considerable distance north from Albany , and stayed in York for a couple of days, before flying home to Sydney.
I took the opportunity of the long fllght to Perth to read “Bulldozed “ by Niki Savvas, a political journalist . It was the story of Scott Morrison’s fall , and Anthony Albanese’s rise at the last Federal election on May 10 2022. I concur with Laurie Oake’s comment “ The gripping inside story of a fatally flawed leader ,who trashed his Government , his party , and his legacy . “ Niki’s book made for compelling reading, and i could not put it down .
Tuesday, Anne and i had a more leisurely day. In the afternoon , we went shopping at Cockburn Gateway Shopping Centre, a huge shopping centre in Success. Four year old Oscar, Annes nephew’s son joined us and kept us on our toes. Wednesday we lunched at the popular Boatshed Restaurant , Coode St Jetty in South Perth . The day was hazy as a result of the bushfires in the SW of Western Australia. Flooding in the north in the Kimberley, and fires in the south west …..
Thursday morning, we drove to Mandurah ( Mandjoogoordap),south of Perth to see the Giants Exhibition . Mandurah is a spectacular playground for recreation and holidaymakers. It is also part of the Peel Yalgorup wetland systems , one of Australia’s outstanding examples of biological , aquatic and natural beauty ,and a Ramsar listed wetland of international importance.
The Giants Exhibition was built by Thomas Dambo ,the world’s leading recycle artist from Copehagen , Denmark. It is the first time any Giants have featured in Australia. Thomas is an activist and artist, who has exhibited extensively throughout Denmark , USA , France , Germany , Chile , China and South Korea. Thomas Dambo’s Giants have come to stay in secret locations in and around Mandurah, carefully selected ,so that people can enjoy the unique environment.
Thomas’s practice celebrates the diversity , beauty and importance of the natural world with the artists larger than life sculptures handmade using recycled and locally sourced materials.
We visited Santi Ikto and Seba’s Song . Sadly , Vivi Cirkelstone was lost to arson before Xmas 2022. We did not see Little Lui , Bille Bob, which is in Subiaco Gardens nor Jyttes Hytee .
Later that day, we saw Blueback ,the movie based on Tim Winton’s book ,which was written in the mid- 1990’s. Winton has a passion for environmental advocacy, and Australian stories built on small communities.
The cinematography was excellent . The movie had been largely filmed in Bremer Bay , Western Australia which is where my Message in a Bottle washed in in 2012. i visited Bremer Bay in March 2017 and loved it…….. The scenery in the film is wonderful.
Blueback is the coming of age story seen through the prism of a child’s unlikely bond with the wild blue groper fish, and the passion it sparks for protecting marine life more broadly. It is a story of friendship, family and facing environmental threats head on . i saw myself in Dora, who was played by Radha Mitchell . She was an activist, who was trying to establish a Marine Park and keep the developers away.
The film shows how amazing our ocean is .This may inspire some activisim around issues that we are facing according to the Director ,Robert Connolly. Eric Bana, who was the diver in the film said “that Connolly makes the Australian landscape part of the story. “
Friday morning, Anne and i drove to Freemantle to park the car. The markets were on, and the day trippers to Rottnest island had arrived early and parked their cars. We had difficulty i finding a park. The ferry trip took ½ an hour and we arrived in time for lunch . The Bakery has been enlarged since my 2017 visit , and now has a wonderful selection of food. We had an enjoyable lunch sitting outside The Bakery , and saw a number of quokkas.
The hotel, where i had stayed in late December 1993 on my Monkey Mia trip,is no longer hotel accommodation .The building -theQuod was built in 1864 by Aboriginal prisoners, and served as a prison building for many years. It was then converted to hotel accommodation , and stayed as such until May 2018. The Quod was returned to the management of the Rottnest island Authority and is closed to the public . Its future is to be decided by consultation with the Rottnest Island Authority , the Whadjuk Noongar Traditional owners and the Department of the Premier and the Cabinet.
Time did not permit us to do a bus tour of Rottnest island .i had noticed some improvements from my previous visit in 2017. Each visitor to the island pays a $20 charge ,which goes to the Rottnest Island Authority. The Rottnest Island Authority has now removed the long standing ballot for accommodation. Bookings for accommodation on Rottnest Island will be now done in order of receipt.
The next time i visit Rottenest , i intend to stay 4-5 days to enjoy this beautiful island . i will not visit during school holidays ,as it is too busy and there are too many bike riders. I had a 4.5 hour spinal operation in 2015, and i am somewhat nervous around bike riders- i could not bear the thought of a bike crashing into me.
Anne and I left on the 430pm ferry, along with the many other day trippers, and holiday makers, and had a bumpy ride back to Freemantle.
Saturday late morning, we drove to the Swan Valley to join my cousin, Rosanne for lunch at Pinelli’s Winery. Saturday night , Anne’s brother, Barry joined us for a meal at the popular local fish and chip shop.
Sunday morning , i attended Anne’s Church in Bicton, and then in the afternoon , a BBQ. Sunday evening i had to pack as my week was almost over.
Monday morning , QF 648 was due to leave at 11.40am and arrive in Sydney at 650pm . We left at noon , and obviously had a good tail wind , which allowed the plane to make up time across the continent. There were again only a couple of empty seats on this airbus, which reflects the high current volume of travel across the continent.
I am thankful that i left Monday morning, as on Tuesday morning there was a massive IT meltdown at Perth Airport. There were considerable delays with flights and the check in process, which is all automated at Perth Airport .
I have some plans for what i will do on the next Perth trip -it is called forward planning !
See photos below :
http://www.annefield.net.au/2023/01/19/perth-holiday-january-9th-to-16th-2023/
January 26 2023
