Adelaide CBD
We borrowed the 1983 Holden Gemini (with a GM key) and head downtown to do a little exploring. On the way we stopped for a visit with Jean’s Mom, Jean, my great aunt. She liked hearing traditional Scottish songs sung…
Kangaroos, Koalas and Emu, Oh My!
A drive up to the Mt. Lofty summit provided a panoramic view of Adelaide all the way to the sea. We tried unsuccessfully to find two geocaches on the nature trail below the lookout, and then head down to Cleland Wildlife Park. …
Home Sweet Adelaide
In Adelaide we were warmly welcomed by my second cousin Jean and her husband John, my second cousin Veronica, and her mother Mary, my great aunt. Mary and Jean’s mother Jean were both sisters of my paternal grandmother, Ann. It…
Fremantle, Rockingham and Swan Valley
More driving round and round as we toured Fremantle: fisherman’s wharf and jetty, the Fremantle Prison (built by convict labor between 1852 and 1860) and the Roundhouse, the oldest remaining building in Western Australia, built as a jail, and the…
Brekky on the Beach
After a quick breakfast on the beach by the picturesque Geraldton Lighthouse, we head inland to the real Wildflower Country. In this section, the most common were pink, yellow, and white everlastings, along with banskia, purple scaevola and in a…
Wildflower Way
This morning we drove the 18 km loop through Leseur National Park, one of the most important reserves for flora conservation in Western Australia. There are many endemic and rare species here, and September is prime, spring wildflower viewing time. …
Pinnacles and Stromatolites
Our drive took us along the coast, past small towns, fishing villages and vast open spaces. We checked into the Cervantes Lodge in the crayfishing town of Cervantes. The town was named for some nearby offshore islands, which in turn…
Perth
We arrived safely in Perth yesterday at 2 am, though Donny’s bag was again MIA. It arrived a day late, delivered by the airport courier…but the bad luck of having the bag go missing 3 times in a row is…
Cango Ostrich
After a filling ostrich egg breakfast (one ostrich egg is equal to 24 chicken eggs, but 36-eggs-worth of cholesterol, while the meat is very healthy and low in fat), we head north to the Swartberg Pass, just as beautiful as…
Outdshoorn
Waking early, the farm and surrounding hillside was peaceful and quiet. There was a slight chill in the air, which disappeared with the rising sun, but which also created a smoky mist in the valleys toward the coast. We made…