My Australian Journey: Lasting Impressions

As I settle back into "normal" life back in Versoix, I am conscious that during my 3 weeks in Australia, I have just scratched the surface of what this amazing continent has to offer in sights and sounds.

My lasting impressions will be:

The hauntingly familiar arching shapes of the Sydney Opera House,








the grandeur of the Harbour Bridge,








and the ubiquitous green and yellow ferries in the harbour.









Rainforest scenes around Kuranda.


























The splendour of Uluru


























and the magic of Kata Tjuta.

















Views from the road between Ayers Rock and Alice Springs








Of the red earth








Mount Ebeneezer Roadhouse








and a brilliantly cloudy sky....

At "A Town like Alice", the variety of art which decorated the School of the Air.









The Aboriginal Culture Galleries in the Museum of South Australia in Adelaide.

















The Fairies' Tree








and the spectacular Eureka Building in Melbourne,








not forgetting the view from the 48th floor...


















Lastly the banks of the Swan River wending its way from Fremantle to Perth.

















all these memories and so many more.

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Day 23: A visit to Fremantle and a ferry-ride on the Swan River

Just around the corner from the hotel, I caught bus 103 to Fremantle. The bus passed through a number of prosperous-looking suburbs with streets lined with lovely one-storey houses.
As the bus arrived in the city of Fremantle the buildings became less uniform, from balconied hotels...























to tiny one-bedroom bungalows, which were among the first residences in the city.












At the railway station I crossed the lines towards the harbour, from where the ferry back to Perth would depart. Fremantle is a bustling port, where many cargo ships dock, arriving mostly from Asia.

























There is also a passenger terminal, where the Queen Mary 2 had recently docked.





































As the ferry took me back to Perth, I delighted in the beautiful and relatively cool day and enjoyed the scenery along the Swan River.




































As the Perth skyline came into view I realized that my Australian experience would, all too soon, be coming to an end.























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Day 22: A Seaside Town, the Fremantle Prison and Down-Town Perth

Later in the day we arrived at the seaside town of Cottesloe, where a "Sculpture by the Sea" extravaganza was happening. Coincidentally the area was crammed with primary age groups enjoying the experience! What a beautiful day for a school trip!



































From Cottesloe we drove to Fremantle Prison, which had been built by convict labour in the mid 19th century. Although the Swan River Colony had not originally been a place to which people were transported, it quickly became clear that without a few convicts to provide manpower, the colony would not flourish! Our guide made it clear that no serious offenders came to what was to become Western Australia.


















The prison information says: "Step inside and join our experienced guides as we explore Fremantle Prison from its convict origins in the 1850’s until its closure as a maximum-security prison in 1991.
With a whipping post, gallows and solitary cells, Fremantle Prison is a monument to a system of punishment that is uncomfortably recent."
As the prisoners lived in harsh conditions, the governor had a much more congenial home.




More about Fremantle to come on Day 23.

Later in the day I took a walk in the Perth shopping area.



A former hotel from the 19th century, now being restored is across tye road from modern multistorey buildings.


Fountains and a weird sculpture on a shopping street.



The quiet courtyard of a wonderful little café, called Tiger, Tiger.



The savoury muffin was YUMMY!


An amazing bookshop, with new and second-hand books. How do they compete with internet shopping I wondered.

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Days 21 and 22: Arrival in Perth and a walk in the Botanical Garden

I arrived at the Parmelia Hilton in Perth's CBD aka City Centre to find that I had come down in the world, so to speak, from a 48th floor room with a view in Melbourne to a 6th floor room in Perth with not much of a view at all.



To be fair, there is not a lot to complain about at our base in Perth. The problem is that the Sofitel in Melbourne is a very hard act to follow.

On our first full day in Perth, we set off for a city sightseeing tour, which began with a walk around Kings Park, where the West Australia Botanical Garden is located. Thankfully the intense heat, which had assaulted our senses on arrival in Perth, had lessened considerably, so the experience was wonderful.















Sadly my knowledge of plant names is sketchy, but I do know that the first and last photos both show a type of eucalyptus.

Excellent information was provided about the way aborigines used plants, for food, fuel, medicine and for creating household articles.






How incredible it seems, now that the aborigines' culture and knowledge have been recognized, that they were for so long considered to be ineducable.

We went on a treetop walk above the garden, which was also amazing. This view is taken from the Swan River.



As we walked around this amazing garden I couldn't help thinking what a fabulous
place it would be for a school outing. It brought back so many memories of walking down to the Jardin Botanique with different Class 2 groups.



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