Around the World (Again) Perth and Fremantle

Perth Arrival and Fremantle

I left Adelaide on an afternoon flight, Virgin Australia, flight 717 to be exact, this I had done for two reasons, the first being that the earlier one left at 06:00, far too early to be traveling on aeroplanes and sitting around in airports, the other was that the pickup service would be running, so no lugging backpacks around to bus stations.

I was super early, but was able to check in my backpack, once divested of this weight, I could have a coffee, watch a bit of cricket (dismal, quite dismal, the worst touring side ever), drink a wine and just relax.

The flight was a very nice one, it flew up to the head of Gulf St Vincent, then crossed the Yorke peninsular (not to be confused with the York Peninsular in North Queensland) and then across the Spencer Gulf and the Eyre peninsular and then out over the Great Bight, before hitting land again at the western edge of the Nullarbor Plain, the place I had so wanted to visit. Then over the area that made Western Australia rich. A little further inland and you will find the manmade scares left by mineral mining. Below you could see the old Gold workings and then came the announcements, fasten your seat belts we about to land in Perth.

 

We took off at 13:50 and landed at 14:40 after a 3 hour flight, it is not too bad crossing 3 time zones. What had I said about there being no trouble getting a shuttle from the airport to the YHA? Thinks who! The shuttle doesn’t run between 12:00 and 18:00, now how silly is that? So it was a 30 bucks taxi ride, I think someone should get their act together and explain that a lot of people arrive in between these hours so why don’t they want to transport them, or is it a cunning ploy to put money into taxi driver’s pockets. Never mind I was here at Perth Central YHA, it is housed in a very impressive Art Décor building, that was originally a St Johns Ambulance main office, (Bloody big St Johns, may be that is why they moved out, or may be because it is right beside the railway tracks). I got myself sorted out into my bunk; stuff stowed in my locker, and went to have look at the facilities. This has everything, WiFi, 2 internet rooms, a small TV in the lounge, a very large TV room with leather easy chairs, it has smokers balconies, two kitchens, a library, a laundry a swimming pool with BBQ area and also a franchised pub, how good is that, this is defiantly one of the top YHA’s in Australia.

 

It was Sunday and I just got to the Supermarket before it closed at 17:00, this is only a couple of blocks away and in the main shopping mall. I took a look at the Perth Cultural Centre, this is situated all together just behind Perth’s main railway station, It has the WA art gallery, the Perth Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA), this is housed in an old schoolhouse and the Western Australian Museum.

 

There is a wonderful area to sit out, it is planted with garden fruits, vegetables and fruiting shrubs, it is to represent the first allotments on the Swan River Colony (founded not here but at Fremantle).

I then took a walk around town to get my bearings, visited the Town Hall and walked down Barrack Street to the Jetties through Stirling Garden (these are some well set out gardens called after the first Governor of Perth and West Australia), passing the Supreme Court, with the oldest building remaining in Perth, the Old Court house now a museum. The gardens end at the Swan Bell Tower a very impressive triangular metal and glass structure standing at the Barrack Street Jetty. The bells actually came from St Martins in the Fields in London. It is here that the Ferry across to over the Swan River to Perth Zoo (didn’t go, I am not a zoo type of person).

There are a couple of pubs (I took a photo as I thought it may just raise a smile on a couple of the boys faces).

The terminals for the Captain Cook Cruises that take you either down river to Fremantle and the Indian Ocean or up river to wineries and the upper Swan valley, but in all there is not a lot there of interest.
On the way back I found a smashing jewel of a shop, selling all manner of herbs and spices, loose wares, you buy just the amount that you require, I suppose back home the health and safety bods would shut it down, but this is how the sale of spices has been carried out for hundreds of years in the lands to the East of Western Europe.

I returned and cooked my evening meal (a curry), watched a bit of TV in the large lounge, chatted to some of the other inmates and headed for bed, I wanted to be up early as I was going to Fremantle the next day.

Morning again 30^th December.

I went down to have a look at the swimming pool area, it was very pleasant, complete with a BBQ area, I then went to the adjacent pub for an early morning coffee (flat white).

I retraced my steps from yesterday evening, this time taking a few photos, even chatting up a Japanese tourist to take a photo of me (role reversal) at the Swan Bell Tower.

 The entrance to Stirling Park

 An Australian Willy Wagtail (Rhipidura leucophrys), they wag there tails from side to side not like ours up and down.

 Western Australia's Supreme Court











Below the City of Perth's Council House, we never had them that big in Shiremoor!

 The old Court, now the Law Museum, the oldest remaining building in Perth

 The Swan Tower with a peel of bells from St Martins in the Fields and me taken by a passing Japanese Tourist!

I then decided as I was there and a cruise was about to leave, that I would catch a boat down to Fremantle.

Heading down river, you first pass under the Narrows bridge and then on your left is Kings Park and the Botanical Gardens (we shall visit these later) with its impressive glass walkway bridge.
There is also the old Swan Breweries (I remember Swan Lager very well, the head aches still come back to haunt me). They have moved to some other place and the breweries turned into desirable (expensive) residences and up market offices and restaurants).

The next place of interest is the old flying boat harbour, this was erected during the Second World War by the Americans after the fall of Singapore when the threat of an Invasion was very real.

Looking back you get a wonderful view of the Perth Skyline!

The Swan river is joined at this point by the Canning River and is a really large bay, this area of water is even greater than Sydney Harbour, the trip is very pleasant with the boat guide explaining who lives where and who built what (if you are really interested that is). All the way down the lower reaches you pass one Yatch Club after another, it would seem that everyone has a yatch, boat, or tinny of some description (A tinny is an aluminium fishing boat, with an outboard motor, it may or may not have a canvas awning).

A mum out with her kids for a day on the water

The last Marina before entering Fremantle is the one that was used during the Americas cup back in the 1980s when they lost for the very first time (the Americans that is).

As you enter Fremantle proper, you pass under the new freeway bridge, this whisks you (if you’re in a car) onto the Stirling Highway, by passing the centre of Fremantle, this had not been so when only the provisional wooden supported structure was the only bridge.

This had been the case on my first visit 40 years ago when loading at the old North Quay (there is a much more modern harbour now). This had been my second port of call into Australia (the first being Bunbury, but more about that at a later stage). It now loads containers, these were just in their infancy when I was at sea and though bulk ore cargoes are still transported on cargo hold ships, most other goods that cross the seas are packed into uniform metal containers that can be discharged straight onto waiting lorries or trains.

We arrived at landing terminal, this is now where the large visiting cruise liners tie up, but it was once the terminal where the settler ships discharged their human cargoes, I read many of the names of the ships, a lot I remember as after the war a lot of Geordies decided that this was the place to start a new life away from the misery of war in Europe, some made it and stayed, others gave rise to the term “Whinging Poms” and couldn’t hack it, fools.

Some of the old cargo shed have now been turned into markets, so I had a stroll through these, they are in the main, the normal cheap reproduction “original” Aborigine art made in China. On leaving you are presented with a wonderful new building, The Maritime Museum (did you feel me go all weak at the knees), a superb purpose built building outside of which has been engraved on metal walls the names of the settler ships and there passengers, that arrived to first set up the Swan River Colony and then Perth and Western Australia.

Inside it is full with things that make an old (ish) seaman’s heart glad (no not the red-light district, shallow minds), full of sailing, steam and motor vessels, Luggers, canoes, midget submarines, wonder upon wonder. Outside is a Submarine HMAS Ovens, this you can take a trip around, I didn’t as I have been in quite a few in submarines my time (Brother George was on the very first RN Polaris submarine) and more to the point they wanted more dosh.

I spent a good 1.5 hrs in there, well worth the time and I may just visit it again when I return to Perth in mid-January, there again I may not, it has taken me 40 years to get back this time so what’s the hurry.

The deadly cargo carried by Submarines!

It was lunchtime and in Fremantle that means down to the fishing harbour, this takes you past the last piece of original Swan river settlement, the Round House, used as a fort, a prison and it was tunnelled under to make an access for whalers to bring their cargoes of whale oil and meat up from their ships tied up at the old jetties. It is from here that the time ball is dropped and a cannon is fired at 13:00 each day, this is a relic from the days when ships needed to know the exact time so each day they would set their chronometers by this (it is also carried out at quite a few ports around the world).

The whaling tunnel and the remains of the whaling harbour.

I then turned my attention to food, here there is no problem as there are wall to wall food outlets, you are out of luck if you don’t fancy fish though.

I plumbed for the most famous (No, I don’t know if it was there back in 1975, my memory isn’t that good) it is Kaili’s, they have their own fishing fleet and so you get the best and freshest of the days catch here.

If you are going to eat here at lunch, be patient as it will be full, it is always busy but at lunchtime even more so.

The selection of seafood is vast, I did have great difficulty in selecting what I would eat, but in the end I had grilled baby calamari’s and chips, washed down with a glass of the house Swan Valley red (I do believe it was a Shiraz). I enjoyed it very much, but then I enjoy my fish, well if the truth be told I enjoy my food.

 

I wandered around the Fishing Boat Harbour, there are a lot of fish eating places all selling the best, the freshest, the biggest, the first fish dishes in Fremantle. I also watched a tourist trip starting off from the quay; it was in a big inflatable and once out of the harbour, boy did it go lickety split.

I next visited Fremantle Jail, an interesting place, full of the horrors of the penal system as it was in the distant and not so distant past. It was built (with convict labour) in the 1850s and stayed as a place of internment for 140 years.

It also houses a nice little art museum, all done by female Aborigine prisoners.

Interestingly, next door is the Fremantle Aussie Rules football ground, this had once been the Warders gardens; here they would grow their vegetables and fruit to supplement the rations.

On walking up sloping road to the main gates you pass 4 very nice residences; these were used to house the Senior Wardens and the Prison Surgeon. The Prison Governor lived some way away from here, well no one likes living on the job In suppose, though some must.

 

Lower down are what remains of the warders barracks and then you’re into town again.

I walked down Queen Street and then to the Railway station as I had elected to take the fast way home.

I was going out to Perth East Railway Station as had found out that this was where the bus for Bunbury my next port of call was leaving and I wanted to get booked on it as early as possible (here I made a big mistake, but I shall tell you about that at a later date).

Ticket booked and it was back to the YHA and some food, just a light meal I must add. A bit of TV a write up of my blog and a chat with back home.

Night, Night, tomorrow is New Year’s Eve. (it isn’t I know, as I am writing this a few days later, a week in fact, but I can’t spend all of my time jawing with you lot)

PLEASE NOTE ANYONE THAT HAS BEEN TRYING TO CONTACT ME ON MY MOBILE WILL HAVE NOTED; IT IS NOT WORKING!!! IT IS OUT OF JUICE, I WILL SEE IF I CAN GET IT LOADED IN THAI LAND OR CHANGE THE SIM CARD: BUT UNTIL THEN USE MY E_MAIL (smith-richard@gmx.de)