WA '23

February - March 2023
Heading west to see family and my childhood "home state". Read more
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  • Day 1

    Day 1 - Brisbane to Perth

    February 24, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    It's never ideal knowing that you're facing a 5.5 hour flight across the country, so it was a pleasant surprise when the pilot announced after 4.5 hours that we would be shortly commencing our descent into Perth. The flight across from Brisbane was essentially uneventful, apart from the constant search for an appropriate cruising altitude to avoid what seemed to be a monotonous annoyance from turbulence.

    It was fantastic to see my sister's face in person and for her to finally meet Jen. In some ways, it was like the final piece of the puzzle being proudly put together.

    From the airport, we journeyed back to Janelle and Ric's place, which will be our home for the next few nights before we head off down south for a week. Of course, we tucked straight into some lunch, including freshly made homemade sour dough bread 🍞. Janelle was pleased with her bread box that I made and brought over as hand luggage.

    Later in the day, we met Ric after work and enjoyed a nice meal at the Camfield Hotel, adjacent to the now not-so-new, Perth Stadium 🏟.

    The weather was beautiful, not too hot, with a nice breeze blowing the keep the edges off the heat. The trip home was via the coast to watch the sunset over the ocean.

    If the amount of food and beverage consumed today is an indication of what the rest of the trip will be like, some serious physical activity will be required at some stage to counter-balance.
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  • Day 2

    Day 2 - Chittering & Bindoon

    February 25, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Chittering and Bindoon - not two well-known tourist hotspots. Chittering is where my brother and his wife live, Bindoon is where my niece lives. Both places are about 45 minutes' drive from Balga, a northern suburb of Perth where my sister and her husband live.

    We were invited to my niece's 30th birthday party at the Bindoon Hall for the afternoon. On the way, we called in to my brother's place. It's always nice to see h, m and this time, we got to see some more of his handy work - a beautiful 'granny flat', built adjacent to the main house, where his in-laws live.

    The property sits on 5 acres of mainly untouched bush, which really shows the dryness of the land at this time of year.

    The party was a great opportunity to catch up with extended family and Jen was excited to meet new members.

    After the party, the dryness of the land was again evident as we passed a bush fire being attacked by up to 6 water bombing choppers.
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  • Day 3

    Day 3 - Swan Valley

    February 26, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

    Not a great deal to report today. After a slow start to the day, we visited Ric's parents who are both in their 90s. I've known them since I was young so it was great to catch up with them again all these years later. They're both doing well despite their age.

    We then headed to the Swan Valley for lunch where we had a nice meal. After the chocolate factory and a quick visit to see my niece, we headed home for a night in, watching movies.

    A very relaxing day.
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  • Day 4

    Day 4 - Fremantle

    February 27, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    It was another hot day, so our first visit to the shops for Jen to get her nails done was a good excuse to relax with a nice cold drink with my sister.

    After that, it was a drive south along the coast to Fremantle. It was a beautiful clear day and the water was like glass, providing a perfect view of the coastline and out to Rottnest Island 🏝.

    We parked a little out of town when we arrived at Freo, which, at the time, seemed like a good opportunity to enjoy a walk. That proved a little careless later in the day as we had to walk back in the heat of the day, around 38°.

    Freo is always nice to walk around. It's a lot more inviting than it was when I was young. They've restored and maintained many of the old buildings, which adds to the character of the place.

    We found a nice pub for lunch before the slow walk in the heat back to the car.
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