A dry year in Perth

Monday 28th. 

Here's a look at the new B&B. As you see, we have a pool outside our sitting room door. There is also a spa pool ready for use when you come out of the pool. Up to the left there is an outside barbecue and dining area. All this and a cooked breakfast every day. 

We decided to stay local today and explore the Mundy Regional Park. This park covers the coastal plain to the top of the Darling Scarp to Lesmurdie Falls. So, right on our doorstep. The Darling Scarp originated as the local expression, in the Perth area, of the extensive Darling Fault, a major and ancient geological discontinuity. As some stage, tectonic plates shifted and the Scarp was pushed upwards. Perth now stands on land that used to be seabed when this shift first occurred. 

Unfortunately it has been a very dry summer in the Perth area and the falls were hardly flowing. We had also forgotten that it was a bank holiday and that there would be loads of families about. 

So we decided to follow one of the longer walks around the falls in the hope that everyone else would stop when the going got rough. And, they did. But so did Brigid, nearly. 

Here we are climbing up a path that resembled more a stream bed. We weren't too sure that it was a footpath but there were footprints now and again and, if we looked backwards, the occasional marker post. When we finished our walk/scramble we realised that the path had been signed anti-clockwise whilst we had been going clockwise. If you set off anti-clockwise you had a marker at the beginning of the trail and in other key places. By going round backwards we had missed some of the paths as the exit point was obvious if you were doing everything properly. Never mind, we had a good walk and slept well when we got back. 

Easter Sunday

Sunday 27th. Christ is risen - He is risen indeed! Happy Easter to you all and to all our friends and family. 

By the time you read this the above will be a belated greeting, I'm sure. The time lapse is still playing havoc with my personal calendar. 

Anyway, Easter Sunday saw us in church in Lesmurdie. 

We had an uplifting time with them and made even more friends in Australia. We all got soaked in the service when we were sprinkled by the vicar after having renewed our baptismal vows. 

Afterwards we drove up to Kalamunda to spy out the land for restaurants and takeaways. 

We then drove around to Lesmurdie Falls to get a feel of the location where we were. The views over Perth are stunning. 

And then we drove down to Perth to see what was going on there. 

Nothing much being Easter Sunday afternoon. 

The juxtaposition between old and new buildings is quite fascinating. 

This is London Court, an open-roofed shopping arcade. 

We managed to get lunch before popping along to the cathedral. 

They were rehearsing the choir for a champagne choral evensong. 

The artwork outside represents the fight between George and the dragon. 

We then drove along the seafront and visited Kings Park, a 1003 acre park overlooking the Swan River and Darling Range. We could have stayed there hours and will probably come back again. 

View toward Perth. 

Panorama view. 

Now looking forward to the rest of our time here. 

The Indian Pacific

24th, 25th & 26th. I was quite right in my thinking that we would not have wifi on the train, so, after 3 days of lost contact, we are now back online. 

I'm not going to detail each day of the journey as it was basically, wake up, breakfast, look out the window, sit in lounge before lunch, lunch, look out the window, sit in lounge before supper, supper, back to lounge, go to bed, etc. Actually, it was much more than just that. We met many people, some straight off the 'block of flats' we'd seen in Sydney harbour, saw some wonderful scenery and consumed some wonderful food and wines. 

Unfortunately, only one of the off-train events took place and that was the stop at Cook, right in the middle of the desert. The train staff did their best to make up for it but we didn't see the Blue Mountains, we missed out on sunrise at Broken Creek and we didn't have a walk through Adelaide. There just wasn't time. 

Anyway, some pictures from those 3 days. 

Sunrise from the train. 

Dried up lake from the edge of the trees to the horizon. 

Travelling through the desert area. 

Our stop at Cook. Once home to over 200 people but now only three live there. 

We did manage to get invited into the cab of the train. 

The train was very long - looks like it goes all the way to the horizon. 

Getting near Perth and the first rain for months, for them and us. 

Two of the Indian Pacific crew. 

Managed to arrive in Perth early! Collected our hire car from the airport and made our way to our home for the next nine days. 

The train standing at platform 3?

Wednesday 23rd. Last day in Sydney so we need to check out of the hotel. We will miss Glenferrie Lodge after spending so long here. 

We left our cases in the hotel and took a walk around the local area and discovered even more activities that could have occupied our time. Oh well, next time, perhaps. 

We caught the ferry again to Circular Quay (for the last time) and stopped for a coffee on the quay. 

Then a short train journey to Central Station where we managed to pass on our Opal travel cards to a couple of young ladies queuing to buy tickets. There was about six dollars on each and we were glad that this would be put to good use. 

We checked in our bags and then waited on the platform for the train to arrive. The table should have been full of canapés but the train was late. 

Signs of life - only the shunting engine! When the train arrives half of it goes in platform 2, the other half, platform 3. 

While we waited, a talented young man played for our entertainment. He was very good. 

At last the train arrived and the customary photo had to be taken. The canapés arrived and we waited while passengers got off the train and staff got on to start cleaning. 

After that, quite a wait because of rush hour, Royal Easter Show, an accident on the line - the train is privately owned and has to be allocated a 'path' and so, we wait. 

After a time we made our way to the lounge. 

Got ourselves a couple of drinks and after a while the train started moving - side to side, granted, but somehow it didn't seem to matter by then - all the drinks are free on this leg of our journey! 

Our journey started four hours late which meant that we missed the Blue Mountains and the dawn stop at Broken Creek had to be cancelled as we wouldn't be able to make up the four hours delay. 

Oh well, let's have another drink before supper! 

Darling Harbour today

Tuesday 22nd. Another day walking around Sydney. This time we started off by taking the train to Central Station first. 

Once again, across the bridge. 

The train was a double decker and we were up top so we had a good view. 

At Central Station we found out where to catch the train on Wednesday and then walked through the town to Darling Harbour. 

We found a cafe nearby and indulged ourselves with fish and sweet potato chips. 

Further along the harbour is the National Maritime Museum with several retired fighting ships including a submarine. 

Also several sailing ships, one being the James Craig. 

We went on board to have a good look round. 

This boat was built in 1874 to carry coal and timber. Left in later years to become derelict it has now been restored and is sailed regularly round Sydney harbour. 

Most of the volunteers who help restore and crew are well into their 70s. These Aussies certainly have stamina! 

We then walked back through the main shopping area in Sydney and returned by ferry to Glenferrie Lodge. When we first booked in here we missed our good old B&Bs but it has proved to be an ideal base for our time in Sydney. The multiple choice cooked breakfasts have really set us up for the day. 

Tomorrow, the train across to Perth. Not sure if we will be able to get wifi so the blog may go quiet for a day or three. We'll have to see what happens. 

Friends reunited

Monday 21st. What a lovely day today. It started well and ended well. We messed about until lunchtime catching up with washing, emails, etc., and then caught the ferry to Circular Quay to meet with Christopher and Nancy who had travelled down from Newcastle just to meet up with us. Christopher was Brigid's supervisor for her South African project (many years ago) and I knew them both from Pleshey and the Chapel services. 

Chris put me to shame as he is in training for his next marathon. Makes me tired just watching people jogging along the waterfront! 

Lunch lasted well into the afternoon with Brigid and Christopher catching up with news about the diocese, new appointments and comparing UK and Australian churches. 

When they had left, we nipped back on the ferry to change for the opera. 

(Looks a bit like a bishop's mitre.) 

As an aside, here is the cruise ship reversing out into the harbour. 

No tugs in attendance, just the harbourmasters launch to see it out. 

While they all made merry on board, we made our way to the bar overlooking the harbour. 

A quiet moment together enjoying a glass of wine before the performance. 

Then into the theatre. 

As you would expect, we were not allowed to take pictures during the performance but we did manage to snap a couple of celebrities sitting in the stalls. 

We had great seats in row B, right at the front. We were almost on the stage in the middle of the action. 

The setting for La Boheme was Berlin 1930s and it worked! We had a memorable evening and I've now got Brigid worried since we've found out that I like opera. 

Afterwards, back into the night in time to catch a late ferry home. 

A wonderful sight by day, even better by night.