Monday, June 13, 2011

Mother nature tries again!!. End of Oz and back to Bali....Hopefully.

Friday 10th June and all alone again, I tidied up and then left the apartment in Fremantle. I couldnt book into the YHA in Perth until 1pm, so I took the slowest bus I could find and arrived in the city just after half 12. Once booked into the YHA (In the exact same room I moved into nearly 2 weeks ago!) I went out into town and got a cheap haircut. I have the weekend here in Perth, so Im planning on one day out and doing nothing much else but running and maybe a trip to the cinema. Its going to be a lazy, easy and quiet end to my time here in Oz.

Saturday started with a 5 mile run, literally around the city and then a walk in the afternoon, up to and around Kings Park, where there is a great view over the city CBD. I had some lunch and went up there again later in the day to see the city all lit up and take some pictures.

On Sunday I had a lie in after 10am and then got a train about an hour down the coast to a town called Mandurah. This is a posh up and coming town, with some massive houses built alongside the venetion style canals that make up the marina area. I sat in the sunshine by the sea, reading a book and listening to an average band playing on the bandstand as familiea and kids enjoyed the sunny Sunday afternoon. It was a pleasant enough and cheap day out.

Perth by night

My new camera is ace - Perth again!
Monday was m last day in Oz, so I had one final run around the city and then I spent most of the day doing admin stuff. Laundry, final shopping for shower gel and shampoo. Money exchange and a final tour around the city on the free bus, stopping at the WACA for a quick look around. I bought some pasta for my dinner and went back to the hostel for the night. I havent had a beer now for 4 days and will have one more day off, before celebrating hitting Bali tomorrow with a pint – Hopefully I wont get caught up in any chaos caused by the cloud of volcanic ash that has made its way over here from Chile.(Mother nature tries to fuck with me again!!! haahaa!! She will lose as normal!!)If everything goes ok tomorrow, then I will be in Bali in less than 24 hours and my next blog entry will come from there.




So after more than 7 months I am finally leaving Australia. I spent a little time in New Zealand and Fiji, but most of the time since Novemver 20th, I have been here in Oz.
Its not how I thought it would be. In some ways it os much much better – The roadtrips, Uluru and the outback, plus the West coast have all been brilliant. Nothing has been bad, but just not how I thought. Sydney is a great city, but after a couple of weeks, apart from hanging around with Keri, I wanted to get away to somewhere quieter and less in your face. The east coast has some beautiful parts – The Whitsundays, Great Barrier Reef and the Rainforests, but too much of everything is overrun with backpackers. To be honest, I am a little sick of backpackers in Australia. They all seem to take the same route, do the same things (Mostly getting pissed and making a mess) and I like a little peace and quiet. It has its place, but its not how I want to travel all the time. Thats why I did a few bus tours, split up with travelling alone and getting hire cars, campervan relocations and the odd nicer hotel and cabin. I have done it my way, with a bit of everything from flying to backpacking and have loved it all.

The worse thing about Oz has been the cost – about £5-6 on average for a beer. Food is also expensive – at least £2 for a loaf of bread and nearly £2 for a snickers or mars bar. Over here they say the prices arent bad, but with a shit exchange rate and wages better for the aussies over here, you certainly feel it in your pocket. Shopping is also a pain in the arse sometimes – Im all for friendly shop assistants, but here in Oz it is well over the top. They just dont leave you alone. You enter the shop, they ask, Hows your day going? Then if you dont answer they follow you around. If you do answer then within a minute another one hassles you -Just let me shop!!!
I tested my theory in a shop yesterday and was followed around by an assistant who asked me 6 times in 3 minutes 'Hows your day going?', then the same in two different shops. Grrrrr!! I will ask you if I need help!!


The best bits have been the Opera House and Bridge in Sydney, plus of course seeing Keri. The Great Ocean Road trips, Tasmania and Uluru were all fantastic – thats why I did them all twice! Plus the surprise package of the stunning West Coast, with Coral Bay, Monkey Mia and the outback within a few minutes drive. My advice to anyone coming to Oz, is to see more of the West Coast before it gets spoiled. When you have snorkelled on Ningaloo reef, by just falling into the sea, you will know what I mean.

It has been brilliant though and I have met some great people and had some great times. All in all I have travelled nearly 25000kilometres around Oz, with about 20000 of it driving. You could say that I have seen a bit of the country now and most of it twice.
Early tomorrow I leave, but I will come back to Oz someday. I dont know when yet. But I will.

Now I fly to Bali and then head back up through Indonesia and Malaysia, hopefully stopping in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur for a day or two before returning to see more of Thailand and its beaches – Hopefully without any floods this time.

I have been travelling for 283 days. I dont have any plans to stop travelling yet and I am looking forward to seeing something new and exciting.
One of the bridges over the Venetion Canals in Mandurah

More mandurah

YHA Perth - Home for the last few nights in Oz

The WACA Perth


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