Fun Times in Freo
After a month-long break to care for our pup while the kids enjoyed their own holiday in Europe (how dare they!), we returned to Perth to resume our anticlockwise lap of the Holway ‘Round.
Choosing to stay in Fremantle over Perth was a great decision. Freo really packs a punch with its rich history, vibrant arts and culture scene, and fantastic breweries. It definitely makes it into our top five places to live in Australia, and that's saying something!
A real highlight was catching with my friends Wendy and Meena and their husbands Paul and Martin. We're so grateful to Wendy and Paul for allowing us to park our car and van at their farm during our Sydney séjour.
The Felons of Fremantle
Fremantle Prison stands as the largest convict-built structure in Western Australia and the most preserved convict site in the whole of Australia. It's notorious for its harsh conditions; the cells were cramped, and the living standards were dreadful. Although deemed unfit for occupancy in 1983, it continued to function until 1991.
Our tour guide, a former prison officer, had served 35 years before retiring last year. Yet, she returned, drawn back to what locals fondly call "the Establishment." She shared tales of crafty escapes and notorious inmates, noting that the women were particularly evil.
The prison has certainly retained an energy. Interestingly, the women's wing now serves as a YHA hostel, offering cheap tourist accommodation for travellers. No thank you, we'll stick to our farm stays!
The net in the photo below served two purposes. 1 - a suicide net. 2 - to catch the toilet buckets that inmates would regularly throw down. Whilst it didn't stop the guards receiving a gross shower, at least they didn't get knocked out.
Perth the Pleasure Dome
While we didn’t stay in Perth, we popped into the city for the Defender's first service. After putting it through its paces on the Holway ‘Round, the girl really a ‘spa day’. In the meantime, we took the opportunity to explore Perth's suburbs with the courtesy Range Rover. It was quite amusing to see that every suburb seems to have its own sex shop nestled among the local bakeries and cafes. We even spotted an "Adult Mega Store" right beside a prominent law firm. We didn't venture in; we opted to get our kicks from putting on our kicks to hoof around Kings Park. At nearly 1,000 acres, it is one of the world’s largest inner-city parks, even bigger than Central Park in NY.
Queen Victoria in Kings Park - clearly not amused by Perth's sex shop boom 😏
We visited Kings Park on the 22nd anniversary of the Bali Bombing. Coincidentally, we've been watching Bali 2002 on Stan, so the names on the memorial were very familiar to us.
Big Things – Big Jetty
Our next stop on our way South was Busselton, home of the longest timber-piled jetty in the Southern Hemisphere, extending nearly 2km out into Geographe Bay.
At the end of the jetty there is an underwater observatory providing a unique opportunity to see a variety of marine life, including fish, sea anemones, and coral.
Poor Little Timothee Vasse
Just outside Busselton, we found ourselves at Wayne and Wendy's Lawn Farm in Vasse. If I ever chose farming, I reckon lawn farming would be the way to go – seems like a pretty cruisy gig!
Vasse got its name from a young sailor, Timothee Vasse. He was the helmsman aboard the French vessel, Le Geographe, back in 1801. Caught in a fierce storm, he was swept overboard and vanished. The captain circled back to search for him but eventually had to accept that Timothee was lost at sea. Decades later, local Indigenous people led British settlers to a grave – that of a young white fella who'd spend his days gazing out to sea, waiting for his ship to return for him.
Margaret River Delights
Margaret River, with its abundance of over 90 wineries and numerous breweries, is a delightfully perilous place to linger! In the spirit of marital equality, Steve played chauffeur for a day of winery tours, and I returned the favour the next day with a brewery expedition. Red Gate Winery stood out as my top pick, offering free tastings of 17 different wines (would have been rude not to try them all). It's no surprise that our portable wine collection has expanded significantly. As for Steve, he was particularly fond of the Margaret River Brewing Company, which not only crafts excellent beer but also serves a superb Sunday Roast complete with Yorkshire Puddings (not quite as good as mine, but not bad).
Critter of the Week – Margaret River Lamb
We love a good farm stay, so we chose to stay at a sheep farm whilst in Margaret River. The lambs frolicking in the fields were adorable, but the lamb chops in the farm shop looked too tasty for sentimentality to kick in. It truly was an authentic paddock-to-plate experience.
Walkers Wonderland
To offset the naughty beverages consumed during our stay in the Margaret River region, we took full advantage of the stunning hikes available. We tackled parts of the renowned Cape to Cape walk.
We also did a long walk around town, which has changed a lot in the 13 years since our last visit.
My ongoing amusement with bathroom signage was sparked again by a curious sign in town. Who on Earth could bathe in such a tiny sink? 😄
