Visiting Elisabeth and familiy in Perth

View of Perth from Kings Park

Hmm, the winds a bit strong...

We spent just under two enjoyable weeks with Elisabeth and her family in Perth. Elisabeth is an old school friend of Iren's. Elisabeth's husband, Kristian, had accepted an 18 month secondment to his company's office in Perth and so they have all been there for almost a year now. They are renting a good sized house in South Perth with a large swimming pool in the back garden. It was great to see how much fun their 3 children had in the pool (as did we!). Their english has improved dramatically and the youngest has even developed an authentic Aussie accent. We got a chance to join in with their family activities like barbequing in the park, sailing a small catamaran and visting their favorite ice cream cafe.

We used our time in Perth to relax, do some day trips and to plan for some of the rest of the trip. We were able to borrow their bikes on many occasions and used them as our main mode of transport so we got to do a bit of cycling in Australia.

When Elisabeth came to visit us when we lived in Manchester, we went to the theater twice. Not to be outdone when we visited her in Perth she took us to the theater. We watched Private Lives by Noel Coward at the Subiaco Arts Centre. It was a full house and it sounded like everyone enjoyed it judging by the laughter, we certainly did. Phil thought it equally amusing when the Australian actors didn't quite manage to pull off 1930's upper class English accents.

Cottesloe Beach

Cottesloe Beach is an iconic place to visit in Perth. There was not enough room for all of us in Elisabeth and Kristian's car so we cycled. After about an hour cycling there in the heat, we were ready for a swim. It has a long sandy beach and good waves for surfing. However, it was difficult and cold to swim since it was very windy and the surf was up.


Cycling on Rottnest Island





A mother and baby Quakko



We caught a ferry out to the beautiful Rottnest Island where we all cycled. The island is famous for its small Quakkos which look a bit like rats but are more like small kangaroos. We were lucky enough to see several that were just sitting around on the road.

One of the day trips about an hours drive from Perth was a boat trip that included swimming with dolphins, if they decided to turn up. It was a full boat with everyone hoping we would see some. The first hour or so was spent cruising along eagerly looking around to spot the dorsal fins of swimming dolphins. We were divided up into two groups so that not everyone was in the water at the same time. The leader of each group was a guide on the boat. Each person was to hold on to the belt of the person in front and then look down into the water to see the dolphins swimming under us. At last the dolphins turned up and we were ready to jump in.



Waiting for our turn...



Dolphins playing in the boat's wake

Whilst swimming we could hear the clicks and squeaks of the dolphins. It was amazing to swim so close to them and to watch how fast they could swim when the boat sped up so that there was a large wake behind. The dolphins loved to play and jump out of the water whilst following the boat. Kristian came with us on the trip and decided afterwards that this would definately be something that the children could do later in the summer.

A trip to Australia would not be complete without seeing some Kangaroos and Koala Bears at close hand. We had seen a few Wallabies crossing the road (or most of them dead from being hit by cars on the road). We headed to Caversham Park to see them.

Feeding the Kangaroos

An inquisitive koala

Iren was like a child and couldn't wait to get in and feed the kangaroos from her hand. You could not feed the koalas but you could stroke them. Their fur was incredibly soft.

Enjoying it whilst it lasts

Perth is one of the most isolated cities in the world since it''s over 2700 km to drive to Melbourne, the nearest city of any size. However, it felt like a great place to live. We are sure that Elisabeth and familiy will enjoy the rest of their time in Perth when they get back from a Christmas break in Oslo. Thank you all for a lovely stay! See you when we all get back home next summer.