Day 102 - Perth

Very busy day yesterday. But first, the girl from Friday night turned out to be on pills too, but she was KO-ed the third time she was brought back to the room. Thankfully. And still alive the next morning.

Chad dropped by the hostel at 9am, and we headed out to Whiteman Park, home to Caversham Wildlife Park. It's like a zoo, but many of the enclosures are open, so one can wander in and pet a koala, or feed the 'roos. They have a "meet the animals" show, as well as a farm skills display - sheep shearing, whip cracking, mustering, etc. Great way to spend a morning, and I can only imagine how fantastic it'd be as a child.

Chad feeding the wildlife

Out to Swan Valley next, cheese and wine tasting at the Lancaster winery. Dessert wine was particularly delicious. Then the Duckstein brewery for some German beer and cuisine. Chad was beginning to drop off then, so we stopped back to his place in Mt Lawley so he could have a quick snooze. I indulged in some retro TV - Cheers and MacGuyver, and then we were off to the coast. Hillary's Bay first, a wonderful marina area with a pleasant mall, family friendly beach, playgrounds - the kind of thing we just don't have in Ireland, unless it costs an arm and a leg. A walk on Scarborough beach, past the Cot, and on to Freo.

Dump bags at the hostel, which is a little mad. Guys are strolling around in women's clothing as if nothing were amiss. After a quick look around, I regret not having stayed here before now. Chad and I head to Little Creatures for dinner and drinks, and meet his mates Jez and JT. JT is hyper, like he's just done a line, but he says he's full of caffeine. Banter for an hour or so, then Chad departs. Absolute gent - showed me so much of Perth, he's well suited to the hospitality trade. Hope I can return the favour in future.

Sunset in Freo

Head to meet Jake in Benny's, but fall foul of the dress code. Change in the hostel. Good to see Jake again, and Bec. Club is too loud to talk properly really, but we chat for a bit. He's got a job for the moment, and they're moving into a place in Mt Lawley next week. Band are great, thought I'm not au fait with most songs. We all leave at 1am when the place closes.

Have a lazy morning, due to there being a mini-party in my room at about 5am. All friendly lads, but quite merry. I doze, despite their presence. Watch Cowboys & Aliens. Get out around lunchtime, down to the Maritime Museum, but it's $10 in. Stop by the roundhouse for $1. Oldest building in Freo, and probably Perth and WA too. Watch the sailing champs for a while, then get a Perth Guinness in Rosie O'Grady's. Not bad, but not great. $10.60.

***

I'm a little disappointed in Australia so far, and in myself. I think the budget worry has prevented me from being any way outgoing, so I've met very few people. But Aus has so far been full of long stay tenants, who have their patterns and friends. I'm regretting not getting a working visa, and spending a decent amount of time here, to really experience Oz without the money worries. And meet some people that.

***

Funny seeing Irish and English names crop up so often in placenames. Harcourt Street, Michael Close, Fitzgerald Street, and even Glendalough. Homesickness on the part of the founding fathers? Or else places are named after explorers - Stirling, Fremantle.

Day 100 - Perth

Took today as an admin/"don't spend anything" day. Did my laundry ($4 + $4), some Internet to-dos ($10), and read my book in a little nearby plaza ($0). Just killing time 'til M and J dropped by at 6.15. Recognised her waiting outside. Drove out to Cottesloe beach.

We stop for fish and chips, eat them at the beach while the gulls wait and watch, "vultures of the beach", as M calls them. Whiting is delicious. The colours of the sunset light sky - pink clouds, orange horizon, fishing ships off shore, and some island beyond them. Lighthouses blinking in the far distance, barely visible. Venus appears, the chips get cold, and we head to the Inglewood, a lounge-y bar with an informal dress code.

Bars and clubs in Perth have very rigid standards of dress. J relates how he was refused entry wearing $300 Italian leather shoes, because they were white. Shorts, flip-flops sandals and vests are particularly frowned upon.

Over a couple of drinks I quiz M about her pregnancy. Five months in, first grandchild for her parents, second for J's. There's excitement in their eyes when they talk about it. We move on to Home & Away, AFL, rugby. M grows quiet - I'm not sure if it's spot or tiredness, but I take the hint in case it's the latter and drink up. They drop me back to the hostel, and we say goodnight.

Quick Internet check - email from P about Orwell party at the weekend. Get chatting to Dutch Martin in the dorm for a bit, and French Pierre. Suddenly the door opens and one of the wardens and two girls carry in a semi-conscious, extremely drunk blond Finnish girl. They lay her on the floor until she throws up - a heavy, black liquorice fluid. Her friends abandon her to us. She refuses to lie still, constantly shifting, lurching about the room before leaving, and returning in the company of two wardens and two girls. This will be a long night.

Day 99 - Perth

Great night's sleep, woke around 6.30 for no reason, up at 7.30 for breakfast. Hostel provides bread, butter, jam, teabags, cereal, but no milk. wtf? Have my porridge and black tea. Bus picks me up [for Rottnest Island]. English girl, Melbourne couple. Joined by two Sydney lads and a wee family. Clouds are gathering. Pick up my bike and snorkel at the pier, get on the ferry and sit aft, which is the only outside section. Get talking to a German girl, Catherine, auf Deutsch. She is here with a school trip, while visiting a friend who is a TA.

Off the ferry, team up with the English girl from the bus, Jenny. She's here on a working visa, has a job lined up in a pub down south. We bypass a few busier beaches, finding a quiet spot. I get in for a swim, test out the snorkel. She just paddles. Later I find out she can't swim, so I advise her to do as I did - just take the plunge (boom boom!) and get some lessons.

The sun is out, but the water is relatively chilly. We sit on one of the beaches and chat for a bit. At another I use the snorkel extensively, seeing lots of tiny fish, one large flatfish, and another about a foot long. It's an odd sensation, seeing this alien landscape, especially while breathing like Darth Vader. Slightly magical though, the fronds and detritus on the seabed swaying with the tide.

The flies are a pest, but we several quokkas, including a baby one. Lots of photos. Hordes of teenagers back near the pier. School tradition to come drinking here at graduation. Ferry, bus, dinner of bolognese, shower, bed.

Day 98 - Perth

I'm slowly warming to Perth. Despite the warden denying me porridge at 09.55 because the kitchen closes at 10.00, I was buoyed by a text from J seeing if I wanted to meet today. Went down to the art gallery after a breakfast of an apple. Coincidentally there was a tour of the indigenous art starting as I arrived. Great variety of styles - from works of pure abstract colour to political statements. Photographs of Aussie PMs superimposed with Aboriginal features, or paintings or desert wildlife, both native and introduced. Tour was an hour, took lunch outside where a screen was showing short films, then back inside for an hour in the modern galleries.

Met J then, who instantly offered me a JB & coke. He looks like a Home & Away extra, tanned with blond wavy hair. Affable and easy-going, I think my Irish accent throws him off sometimes. We fall into an easy rhythm, and head for King's Park, driving from scenic spot to scenic spot.

Swan Bell Tower

Head back to his and M's for some GoW, and he talks about his job at the coke plant. He drops me back to my hostel like a gent. I book the ferry to Rottnest for tomorrow, and head to the pub for the CS meetup. Can't find them in the pub at all. Sad face. Drink my pint while reading the paper.

Read for a bit in the hostel, get chatting to two Irish and a German. Realise how tough it must be here, looking for a job, trying to survive, scrounging. New found admiration and sympathy.

Day 97 - Perth

Disappointing so far. Australia is so expensive compared to SE Asia, it's a hell of a shock to the system. Time zone is now even further out from Dublin. Hostel is fine for facilities, but too big to meet people easily. Full of lads in vests, and more Irish people than the rest of my trip combined. Seem to be looking for work, or working, and their 'family units' are well defined. A lot of hostels offer weekly rates, obviously aimed at those staying here for the long haul.

Went for a wander around Perth today. It's a nice enough centre, but not much warmth to it. Museum is good - exhibition from the British museum was excellent - a lot of artefacts with more personal aspects. Also had a gallery dedicated to Aboriginal social history, including a room on the Stolen Generation. Powerful stuff.

Was raining heavily, but went down to the waterfront anyway. Lots of roadies about, commuters really. I miss my bike. Got a meal at a Pho place, then back to the hostel to Internet, then some porridge and bed. Residents of hostel really aren't respectful - toilets are dirty, eating in rooms, generally not the friendliest atmosphere. Hate having to pay for Internet as well. Hope all of Aus isn't like this!