We are nearing the end of our trip. We have this one last day in Perth and then we're on the way home with just the three day stop in Cape Town before we arrive back in the UK. I will post one or two more reports from Australia, but unless our Cape Town hotel provides free wifi or a business centre with free PC access, I will not be able to post our Cape Town reports until we get home
In the USA, New Zealand and here in OZ it has made sense to buy a local SIM card. In South Africa, I don't expect that to be a viable proposition, so we'll take our chances and see what our hotel there is able to offer.
Sunday exploring Perth.....it's a beautiful day. The sun is shining out of a cloudless deep blue sky, but we could be walking out into a ghost town. There is absolutely no sign of life. Where is everybody? After a short walk, we have found them - the population of Perth, that is. Since 7:00am this morning they have been taking part in a triathlon event that seems to have the whole city occupied. Swim 400m in the Swan River, cycle a 10km course that runs along the Esplanade and back and then run 4km in the increasing heat of the day. This city is no less sports mad than the rest of the country!! It seems that there are tens of thousands of participants of all ages all competing to see who dies first. We leave this throng of mad Aussies and head for the oasis of peace that is Kings Park.
To appreciate the best of Perth you have to go to Kings Park. This is a glorious 1,000 acre space high above the main part of the city and the river. The views from the park are wonderful. You can see for miles in every direction, both upstream and downstream and you also appreciate the sheer size of the river. We reached the park by climbing Jacobs Ladder. This is a set of 242 concrete steps with half landings every 20 or so. It's not a huge climb, but it does require some effort, especially as it's quite warm this morning. So we climb the steps. After a while it occurs to us that the same people are passing us going up and then down again and then up and then down again. When we finally reached the top we asked two girls who had passed us twice at least why. It seems that while we soft Europeans go to gymnasia and play gently with our aerobic step exercisers, the fitness-mad Aussies of Perth run up and down Jacobs Ladder. The girls seemed relatively pleased that they had managed three ascents on the trot, but were admiring the efforts of a fellow nutcase - a man of at least 50 - who was about to start his eleventh circuit of descending 242 steps and then climbing 242 steps. Perhaps it's as well that Perth's Mount Hospital is only yards from the foot of Jacobs Ladder. I bet their rescusitation unit is busy. Your fearless correspondent and his accomplice have completed a single ascent of Jacobs Ladder and, following a three hour period for recuperation, have bravely completed a single descent. That's quite enough exercise for one day!
During that three hour period of rest we have walked around the edge of the park stopping every few yards just to appreciate the beauty of this spot. Perth in it's own way is every bit as lovely as Sydney. Perhaps we'll buy an apartment in Kings Park overlooking the city and the river. It's a relaxed very tranquil place. Those residents of Perth who haven't been trying to kill themselves on the triathlon course have come up to the park with their picnics and their families just to enjoy the space and the weather and the views.
Once again, the female population doesn't seem to wear much in warm weather. So many legs, so little time in which to appreciate them all!
We decided to have lunch in Chinatown. The choice of different types and styles of Asian cuisine was bewildering. In the end we went to one of the 'food courts', the modern equivalent of the old Hawker Centres that used to exist in places like Singapore. We struggled to spend £20 and ate ourselves to a standstill.
The afternoon is asking to be enjoyed. I think lazing in the sun on the banks of the Swan watching the world go by may be in order. We've been away almost six weeks. Only Cape Town to go. We don't want to go home.
In the USA, New Zealand and here in OZ it has made sense to buy a local SIM card. In South Africa, I don't expect that to be a viable proposition, so we'll take our chances and see what our hotel there is able to offer.
Sunday exploring Perth.....it's a beautiful day. The sun is shining out of a cloudless deep blue sky, but we could be walking out into a ghost town. There is absolutely no sign of life. Where is everybody? After a short walk, we have found them - the population of Perth, that is. Since 7:00am this morning they have been taking part in a triathlon event that seems to have the whole city occupied. Swim 400m in the Swan River, cycle a 10km course that runs along the Esplanade and back and then run 4km in the increasing heat of the day. This city is no less sports mad than the rest of the country!! It seems that there are tens of thousands of participants of all ages all competing to see who dies first. We leave this throng of mad Aussies and head for the oasis of peace that is Kings Park.
To appreciate the best of Perth you have to go to Kings Park. This is a glorious 1,000 acre space high above the main part of the city and the river. The views from the park are wonderful. You can see for miles in every direction, both upstream and downstream and you also appreciate the sheer size of the river. We reached the park by climbing Jacobs Ladder. This is a set of 242 concrete steps with half landings every 20 or so. It's not a huge climb, but it does require some effort, especially as it's quite warm this morning. So we climb the steps. After a while it occurs to us that the same people are passing us going up and then down again and then up and then down again. When we finally reached the top we asked two girls who had passed us twice at least why. It seems that while we soft Europeans go to gymnasia and play gently with our aerobic step exercisers, the fitness-mad Aussies of Perth run up and down Jacobs Ladder. The girls seemed relatively pleased that they had managed three ascents on the trot, but were admiring the efforts of a fellow nutcase - a man of at least 50 - who was about to start his eleventh circuit of descending 242 steps and then climbing 242 steps. Perhaps it's as well that Perth's Mount Hospital is only yards from the foot of Jacobs Ladder. I bet their rescusitation unit is busy. Your fearless correspondent and his accomplice have completed a single ascent of Jacobs Ladder and, following a three hour period for recuperation, have bravely completed a single descent. That's quite enough exercise for one day!
During that three hour period of rest we have walked around the edge of the park stopping every few yards just to appreciate the beauty of this spot. Perth in it's own way is every bit as lovely as Sydney. Perhaps we'll buy an apartment in Kings Park overlooking the city and the river. It's a relaxed very tranquil place. Those residents of Perth who haven't been trying to kill themselves on the triathlon course have come up to the park with their picnics and their families just to enjoy the space and the weather and the views.
Once again, the female population doesn't seem to wear much in warm weather. So many legs, so little time in which to appreciate them all!
We decided to have lunch in Chinatown. The choice of different types and styles of Asian cuisine was bewildering. In the end we went to one of the 'food courts', the modern equivalent of the old Hawker Centres that used to exist in places like Singapore. We struggled to spend £20 and ate ourselves to a standstill.
The afternoon is asking to be enjoyed. I think lazing in the sun on the banks of the Swan watching the world go by may be in order. We've been away almost six weeks. Only Cape Town to go. We don't want to go home.
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