Michelle Eichenberg

Today we were going to Rottnest Island which is best known to be the home of Quokkas, the "happiest animal on Earth".
We were picked up by our bus driver and driven to the jetty in Perth where we hopped onto the ferry.
On the Swan River we could not only enjoy the very nice sunrise but also the dolphins that followed us along. It was a rather lovely little boat ride. As soon as we left the bay and entered the open ocean however, the waves got bigger and bigger. Monica and I wanted to use the waves to have a little fun and jump with the bumps, but the Australians are so deep in their safety that they wouldn't allow us to.
So, we just endured the ride without having fun until we arrived at the Rottnest Island jetty.
We all made our way to the bike rental on the island, to get some bikes for the day. Lana, Monica and I got the bikes and helmets but then made our way to the Segway guy. We would have a short Segway Tour around the island first. As I have never been on a Segway before, I was glad we did an introduction and training first. It's so weird standing on that thing and merely doing anything for it to move. I must say, I thought it way harder to drive the training Segway with its 3km/h than the normal 10km/h one. The latter was far more responsive to just small gestures.
After everyone completed the training and got on their Segways, we started our little tour. With that, we learned how Rottnest once was a prisoners island, how they used to make the famous Rottnest Yellow in former days (mixing rusty nails and white paint) and how easy it is to fall off your Segway. Annika, who was in our group, fell off her Segway and hurt herself, not severely, but still. The tour came to an end pretty soon after that and now it was time to get our rented bikes and explore the island on our own. Lana and I sticked together as usual and rode along the island until we arrived at a deserted beach. Nobody was there or anywhere around, so we sat down and just enjoyed the sun and quiet for half an hour. I let the sand run through my fingers and I listened to the waves crashing in front of us. It was so beautiful to just sit and listen undisturbed.
After a while, we headed toward the Discovery Glamping Site where we'd have lunch today. But first, we looked at the different types of tents that they had. Although you can barely name them tents. More like little houses with tent fabric covering them. That had real kitchens and bathrooms inside as well as very nice beds. But it's also quite expensive, starting around $400 a night. Finally, our site inspection was over and we got some food down our throats. During lunch, loads of Quokkas hung around us, sniffing around to find some food that probably fell on the ground. One of them was super busy, trying to get into an empty Pringles box of Lanas. She had to put it away properly to stop the Quokka trying to get some crisps from it.
After lunch, Lana and I got back on the bikes and cycled around some more, trying to get the picture perfect selfie with one of the many Quokkas being around. Lana was very lucky, I wasn't and tbh I didn't care enough to try harder and disturb the little creatures more than I was comfortable to do.
The day went by and it was time again to go on the ferry back to the mainland. This time, the sea was way more smooth than before, but because of technical issues, we had to get off in Fremantle already and take the bus to our next point on our To Do list: A Walking Pub Crawl Tour by Two Feet and a Heartbeat.
That was a rather odd experience, to be quite honest. First, we met the group of Module 1 for the first time, being super smelly and sticky from the sunny day on Rottnest, while the others were freshly showered and dressed nicely. Then, the tour guides tried to separate Simona, Betty and me from our group and put us together with the others because of our dietary needs (Betty and me Veggies, Simona gluten free). We rebelled against that, as we really didn't see us going with the others. We didn't know them one bit. Why would we go? So, we all just ignored them and went with our Module 2 group anyway. It would turn out as no problem whatsoever, as most of the food they served to us, was veggie and glutenfree. But stirring the pot before...
We stopped at the first bar and it was just way too small to hold such a big group (~30) at a time. It was super odd that the tour guides just stood beside us, watching us drink our drinks and pouring water like waiters. Also, Jack, the male guide was coming ridiculously close to us younger girls all the time, which made us feel rather uncomfortable. It seemed as if he'd really tried to hook up with one of us. The other guide wasn't much better, as she just stood there, looking out of place, and stating that this would be her first time doing that tour over and over again. Finally, we went on to the next bar to have our little snack dinner. Again, both guides just stood there not doing much and I started to wonder, why I should go on such a tour. I didn't learn anything but that the current bar we sat in was called the Aquarium and the owner was very passionate about it. Sorry, but that I could have just googled. I don't need a guide for that. Also, we were only allowed to get ourselves drinks up to $12, however that was basically just beer, cider or wine. So not much variation there whatsoever.
We walked to our last bar which was "hidden" behind a painting. We had to move random things so to open the hidden door and get into a huge ballroom like saloon. The Module 1 group was already there and the weird vibe was all around yet again. They sat all in one booth, sticking together. We had to split up randomly and so I sat down with Kasper, James, Nick, Monica, Lorena, Simona and Sean in the other booth. Lana was already sitting amongst the other half of my group at another table. A waitress came and asked for our choice of drink (which was a bit broader now). We sat there and waited for about half an hour but only the two Whiskeys on Ice for Nick and James arrived. Not one other person in our particular booth got anything, but at least the tour guide from Module 1 came around like 15 times asking us if we had ordered yet, taking our orders again (!) and not delivering them at all. Looking at Lanas table group, they weren't getting much more luck. The beer had arrived but from her (or my) mocktail wasn't any sign. As our bus has arrived in time, but our drinks haven't, we headed out of the bar more or less as fast as lightning to end this uncomfortable experience. So weird... Yet another tour that was basically ruined by bad organisation, wanting too much and delivering way too little.
Luckily, we could check into our next and final hotel: The Crown Metropol.
It belongs to the Crown Complex, holding three different hotels, several bars and restaurants, a casino and a cinema. It's way out of the city centre and has the vibe of Las Vegas to it which was considerably strange. But the rooms were gorgeous and lucky me had a single room as well!Read more