Weekend in Perth

We finally got out of Kal for a few days over last weekend and headed to the big smoke.  It was my first time in Perth so very exciting...

little Chip went to a workmate of Mals place for the weekend - he had 5 adults to himself and got thoroughly spoilt by all of them....so much so that when we picked him up he wasn't his usual over excited to see us self..infact I think he would have been quite happy to stay there instead of coming home...

The drive to Perth, although a good 6 hours, didn't seem as boring as we were expecting.  There are quite a few little towns that you drive through and its only one stretch before you start hitting the outskirts of Perth that is a bit barren and boring.  Having said that, I don't think I would want to drive by myself all that way in one hit, it gets very mesmerizing driving along and easy to start nodding off so it was good to share the driving with Mal.

After getting over the initial shock of driving in a big city again our first stop was the Caravan and Camping Show being held at the Claremont Showgrounds.  It was a bit disappointing, in that it was no different to the other shows we have been to in Brisbane before and we actually left empty handed  even though we had a list of things we wanted for our caravan makeover.  It was humorous though watching the overweight oldies (of which there were many) trying to squeeze their large frames in to caravans..how they think they could live in one is beyond me when they can hardly fit through the door!!!

We then drove through the City to find our accommodation which was on Adelaide Terrace and then headed off to Fremantle Beach.  One good thing about Perth is that the beaches and it seems everything really, isn't that far apart.  Fremantle is a very nice area and we sat at one of the restaurants at the Pier and had some fish n chips and a beer enjoying the day...that was after getting some lovely sand beneath our feet again...we so miss the beach and the sea...

having fish n chips and a beer on Fremantle Pier

around Fremantle

around Fremantle

sculpture at Fremantle Beach

driving around Perth

in the City

driving around Perth 

the Swan River

heading down towards the Swan River 

around Perth

We had a lovely dinner at one of the local restaurants close to our hotel on Saturday night.

Sunday we were up early and headed off to Scarborough.  We had a list of shopping to do at Bunnings, Ikea and Spotlight for the caravan reno which were all out in that direction.  We hit the Scarborough Beach first for a look and to have brunch.  Scarborough is a lovely area too and the beach was just beautiful

beach

beach

thank god we didn't see any snakes!

beach

brunch yum yum 

After finishing our shopping and getting all that we had on our little list, we headed for Cottlesloe Beach for a look - and that was absolutely packed!!!  There was a sculpture display spread over the beach here like at Fremantle so I am not sure if the beach is usually as packed as it was, or was especially so due to the exhibition.  Again, a lovely beach and lots of little cafes and drinking spots alongside the beach

Cottlesloe Beach 

sculpture

sculpture

sculptures

sculpture

ahh sand.....the water was lovely and warm too

On the way back to the Hotel we headed for a drive around Subiaco which is prime real estate but where all the main hospitals are.  I wanted to see where we refer our women and babies to - I could definitely work and live around this area, however its really expensive

King Edward Memorial Hospital

King Edward Memorial Hospital

Royal Perth Hospital

main shopping street in Subiaco

We then drove around Perth again alongside the Swan River which is a lovely blue river unlike Brisbane and on a beautiful day its just gorgeous

Exhibition Centre in Perth 

one of the lovely parks..lots of these all around the city

Swan River looking across to the City

interesting building alongside the Swan river 

driving alongside the Swan river 

Sunday night we went to an Irish pub for tea which was down the road from the Hotel.

Monday morning we headed off to a place I found online that sells carpet and lino squares and got a really good deal for the flooring in the caravan and then found a Clarks Rubber to buy some more squab cushions for the seating in the van - then with the ute loaded to the brim we headed home.

All up it was a lovely weekend and we both absolutely love Perth!