Week 9 Beginning 28th Aug 1998

 Day 58

The day we:

• were interrupted by rain while packing up. Worried that the sandboarding would be cancelled because of the rain so checked at he office and were told that all will be "fast as", shows how much we know about the emerging new sport
• met Davina with her 4WD and headed out along the coastal dunes track north of town. Most of the trip was comfortable but there were a few 'hairy' spots just to keep it interesting. She pointed out lots of interesting things along the way like the native fruits etc. We had a practice run on the board over a gentle beginners slope, then attacked the dune they call Rollercoaster. It was pretty thrilling though short-lived and when the ride came to an end it meant you had a steep climb back to the top. Libby claims to be the family champion attaining the greatest distance, Eric claims the most stylish, Adrian the most spectacular and Luke the most enthusiastic
• Davina dropped us back at the park and we were away by 10.30, arrived in Perth and navigated our way to International C'van Pk in Forrestfield without much difficulty
• discovered the park has the BEST amenities; camp kitchen (better than the kitchen at home), lovely games room with pool table, huge TV in a room with comfy lounges and cushions and the shower/toilet block is state of the art. This in part makes up for the fact that it is raining and that everything that could go wrong went wrong while we were setting-up; power too far away, levels not right, jockey wheel sinking, tree in the way.....Despite all this we two got it set up without a cross word but the kids took the safest route and disappeared to the TV and games rooms
• had rain all afternoon and evening so spent it planning the next few days
• can now claim that Eric and I have now visited all Aust's Capital Cities

Day 59

The day we:

• were beaten out of bed by the boys who disappeared to the TV room, Eric then went for a run around the nearby Hatfield Country Club, local sports precinct and gardens. More showers, rain is forecast until Tuesday, its Saturday today. SHIT
• headed to Fremantle for the day, Sunday markets are on. Could only find one car space left in a tiny carpark which took some manoeuvring to occupy, its only a 1 hr park too. Enjoyed browsing through the market stalls of fruit and veggies as well as knick-knacks, clothes, soccer jerseys (too big)
• moved the car and found 'Old Shanghai', an Asian food hall so dug into delicious rotis, dahl, chicken curry and Keoy Teow
• toured the old buildings, coffee shops, street stalls and soaked up the great character of Fremantle. This place has retained a great deal of its past, locals say it was lucky no-one was ever interested in it, just a docklands until Allan Bond got involved and suddenly it got trendy
• Visited the Roadhouse Building (original jail), East Wharf markets and the WA Maritime Museum where they are building a replica of the Duyfken, Aust's first ship (1606) which is due to be launched Aust Day 1999
• watched 2 very talented buskers; first walked th slack rope and did a strip, second one juggled eggs, crawled through a coat hanger and got Libby to tie him up among other things.
• drove home through Perth for a look at the Swan River, Kings Park and cityscape.

Day 60

The day we:

• woke to another day of 'clearing showers', headed into the heart of Perth after washing a load of beach towels and booking the car in for a service on Wednesday
• parked  in the CBD, marvelled at the ese of driving in this city without the urban sprawl and with good hwys in place
• walked the city malls and arcades beginning at the P.O. This  is the first time we've had Cobram news since Darwin, have missed the Broome collection somehow
• stopped in to see the 'Seinfield Sit-in' we've been following on radio updates lately, there are 3 people left now watching the 244th episode
• had lunch in Hay St Mall, boys enjoyed McDonalds for the first time on the trip, walked through London Court (a replica of Olde London Town) and came across a soccer gear shop but they had nothing in Adrian's size for a birthday present
• dropped 8 films in to be developed then drove on to Kings Park, viewed the city across the Swan R. from the War Memorial, watched an artist in residence at work in a studio of the park then went for a drive arou nd this huge park
• drove over the causeway to Burswood Pk where the temptation to play 9 holes of golf was just too much for Eric. Boys and Libby walked the Heritage trail then went back to town to collect photos and seek out more soccer shirts eventually satisfying Adrian's taste and our budget
• arrived home to find Willeys are camped right beside us so caught up on the last week

Day 61

The day we:

• awoke to more rain, boys went to the TV room, Eric and Libby could think of no good reason to get up so we didn't. Assigned times and places to the photos we got yesterday and caught up the diary, wrote letters and studied maps of the south and Nullabor
• planned a joint roast dinner with the two families then went for a drive in the Kalamunda District, the hills to the south east of Perth. Discovered quickly that Libby has become very complacent about travel sickness, something she always considered previously. Within 10mins of leaving camp and following a map while Eric negotiated the windy terrain she was dreadfully car sick and just wanted to go home and lie down. We did come across some nice lookouts but it was raining too often to attempt the walk to the waterfalls and the Observatory is only open on Sunday. The Zig-Zag Scenic Drive through Gooseberry Hill Nat. Park was well worth the effort
• spent the evening tending the roast lamb in the luxurious camp kitchen then enjoyed dining together with the Willeys and sipping a few good local wines. Steve finished the night by beating Eric at pool, they're now 1 All because Eric won the golf in Broome

Day 62

The day we:

• woke to check for damage. What a night, storms raged, the wind blew and buffeted the van, the flies flapped loudly and the rain poured down. The ground got so soft some of our pegs lifted and then poles fell. Eric and Libby spent most of the night awake, even laughing at one stage at the thought of being motion sick again. No major damage
• decided it was easiest if Eric took the car to be serviced and waited for it to be done. At the park the wind is still howling but at least the rain has eased. Got a load of washing done and cleaned up the van, it gets in a mess if you stay too long in one spot
• had an early lunch then visited SciTech, the interactive science and technology centre where we spent a good deal of time trying everything out. Attended a show about sensory illusions - Luke got to participate in one part of the demonstration attempting to catch a ball with one eye closed
• went to see 'Thrill Ride - the science of Fun' at the Omni Theatre where the domed screen is 2 storeys high and ten times larger than the average screen. With the thunderous surround-sound system you certainly feel placed right in the action. It was amazing to sit in a theatre and feel so sick as the roller coaster whizzed down the hills and through the loops
• went back to SciTech and spent another 90mins finding more things to experience, watched another demonstration this time about electrical energy and Adrian was a volunteer for a hair-raising experience

Day 63

The day we:

• woke early in anticipation of a day on Rottenest Is. forecast was for clearing showers. Weatherman was wrong again; its very, very grey and threatening. By 9am we had to concede it was too wet and windy to pay the ferry charge and not be able to enjoy the day. On to Plan B
• travelled into town and visited the Museum of W.A. which was very interesting especially the marine display which boasts a Blue Whale skeleton washed ashore at Busselton in 1898. Also good displays of dinosaurs, birds, mammals and butterflies. In the convict display there is a collection of tokens sent by convicts to their wives and girlfriends upon being sent to Australia. Life for stealing a handkerchief, these were brutal times
• walked down James St to study street life of this cosmopolitan area of Perth. Adrian found the X-rated shops, time for lunch
•  moved on to the Art Gallery, boys did not find this interesting so it was a quick visit. Not a large gallery by any means but has the whole spectrum from classic art to modern
• looked in at Hyde Park on the way to Subiaco Market which proved to be a bit of a let down after Freemantle. It is next to Subiaco Oval so now we've found both this and the WACA
• spent the last evening with the Willey Family, they are holing out here for finer weather to do Rottenest so we don't expect to see them again. We'll miss their company, its been good for all of us.

 Day 64

The day we:

• packed to set off for Busselton and guess what, it's a lovely morning, the first we've had in Perth. Typical
• Drove to Rockingham and dropped Eric at the golf course (reciprocal rights with CBGC) while the rest of us shopped in the big plaza (Kmart has a Sweet Spot), walked the track beside Lake Richmond and looked over Point Perron. Had lunch on the foreshore. When it was time to meet Eric we packed away the picnic things taking care not to put Eric's sandwiches in the van . Apparently we didn't put them (or the chopping board) in the car either because we've never seen them since. Suspect they balanced on top of the spare fuel can until the first sharp bend in the esplanade!
• arrived at Busselton at 4.30pm, Gavin of Big 4 gave Eric an excellent account of all the local attractions in the park office while the rest of us waited patiently (done a bit of that today - did I mention the truck doing 70kph on single lane Hwy 1?) 
• found ourselves in a great park, our site near the playground, toilets and kitchen again. Simple tea as we're all tired. Blow me down, no gas. Set up the portable and we're cooking again, first bottle has lasted a long time
• played a few rounds of UNO, only mention this because yours truly has reclaimed the crown.