Day One

It's after 8:00 p.m. on our first full day in Perth, and Gary and I are surprisingly awake! Beth kept us moving today, which was good. We arrived early afternoon Sunday and were welcomed at the gate by Beth and Dan. Nice to come off the plane and see familiar faces--we've gotten used to meeting people at the baggage claim, and had almost forgotten wht it was like to have someone waiting at the gate. Nice!

Beth and Dan live in Subiaco, a "neighborhood" of Perth. It's a quiet town, with lots of quaint houses, a nice downtown area, and good places to walk. Today we took the train into downtown Perth, where we toured the Western Australia Museum, got a tour of St. Georges Cathedral, walked along the river, then took the bus back home. Beth and Dan got each of us a transportation pass, which we can use whenever we take the bus or train; they also got us a cell phone to use in case we get lost--which may happen!

 This is a Dragon Tree -- saw quite a few of these. This is the growing season in Perth, as the summer is much too hot for anything to do any growing. So there are many flowers and beautiful gardens right now.

 Bell Tower in downtown Perth. Includes the bells of St. Martin-in-the-fields. They ring at the top of the hour, with various tunes--we heard "Waltzing Matilda" today.

Swan River, which divides Perth and South Perth. Many people commute across it daily on the ferry.

Haven't seen any live kangaroos yet, but these sculptures in the park were pretty cool.

One of the streets in downtown Perth.

Time to call it a day; will try to post more tomorrow. I think we're visiting an old prison.