Federation Square
I spent the last week in Perth traveling around and visiting with a friend. Perth was different than anywhere I have been in the last year and a half. It's a huge city, but one with lots of personality and so much to offer.
My friend Jess' best friend, Yvette, lives there so I stayed with her for the first 2 nights in the city. I got lost driving around trying to find her house and as it was getting dark I started to stress when I saw signs warning of kangaroos crossing the road. It's really dangerous to drive in Perth at night apparently for that reason. They can do some serious damage to your car. I rented the cutest little car, which I forgot to get a photo of, but it was the closest thing to my dream of having a smart car. It was a compact little Hyundai with a flat back so I could just about spin 360's in a parking spot!
Perth is hot. Like really hot. As in 40 degrees Celcius. They had a heat wave last week that had temperatures reaching a scorching 47. It's a very dry heat though so it lacks the humidity we suffer from in Alabama.
I spent my first day visiting the aquarium, which was all but exciting. I looked it up online and noted that it was the second largest aqaurium in Australia and they really talked it up. When I got there and all I could smell was fishy tank water I realized I'd made a rookie mistake, don't always believe someones website.
I visited Scarbourough beach, where they have a really awesome amphitheater that gets good live music and events.
I made my way down south to visit my friend Georgie for 3 nights in Augusta. Georgie and her father own the pub where I worked in Arrowtown. Georgie moved over to Perth in November to work. Wages in Australia are much higher than that of NZ. Especially in WA, where the minimum wage is $21 per hour. A majority of the work there is either hospitality or mining. It's got great appeal for young people to move there so it's no wonder there are so many kiwis moving there to work.
Georgie and I had the greatest time. It was nice to have someone around that knew me well and someone to hold great conversation with. We visited the little town, or as they call them "shire", of Margaret River. MR is known for its amazing wineries and beautiful beaches with clear green water and waves filled with surfers. We ate the most fabulous meal at a tapas restaurant called Morries, tasted some amazing rose at Xanadu Winery and enjoyed homemade pizza and a beer at the Cheeky Monkey Brewery and Cidery. Georgie lives in a little flat attached to the hotel where she works. She has beautiful views of the river and a good breeze, which makes Augusta cooler than Perth. She has made friends with some of the younger local guys who took us on a late night boat ride. We had such a great week that it was hard to leave.
Fremantle, or Freo as everyone calls it, is a really cool part of Perth that reminded me so much of New Orleans, other than the fact that it has a fraction of the crowd. Tons of cafés and shops and street traffic, with beautiful old buildings.
Margaret River, yet it's not a river, just the name of the town.
Part of Leeuwing National Park. This picture does it no justice but these trees were amazing!
A day at Cosy Corner in Hamelin Bay, which ps, all the little bays around the area look the same and all have surfers, but they just have different names.
Perth City
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