Perth!

Perth skyline

When the company I was working for in Seattle merged with a company based in Australia in 2010, I immediately dreamed about the opportunity to travel to Australia for work. I had always wanted to visit, but the thought of going for a longer trip (and having my company pay for it) was a very appealing proposition. Just over 5 years ago work offered to send me to Australia for a month and I finally got my chance to travel to the number one destination all visitors to Australia long to go… Perth (considered by some to be the most isolated capital city in the world)! Seriously though, my time in Perth was filled with so many great memories and being my first introduction to Australia, it was a place I longed to visit again and experience with Candice so she could understand why I decided to move us out here in the first place.

my first trip to Perth in 2011!

After three years in Melbourne and travelling to a few other places like Adelaide and Sydney, we finally decided to use the time I have off over the holidays to visit Perth. I planned a lot of our trip beforehand to ensure we would see all the places I loved visiting during my first trip, but since we had a whole week there it allowed us time to explore some new places as well. One of the places I missed during my first trip (though I have no idea how) was Kings Park, which is a massive area of parkland, native bushland and botanic gardens. Situated on Mount Eliza with stunning views of the Swan River and CBD, we spent most of the day exploring and taking in the views from the war memorial and the awesome glass elevated walkway. Kings Park is by far the best botanic garden we have visited in Australia, and a must-see for any visitors to Perth.

glass bridge (official name: Lotterywest Federation Walkway) in Kings Park

Another new area we visited was South Perth and the Perth Zoo, to take advantage of our free entry for being Melbourne Zoo members. It also allowed us to take in the sights of the city from the river, as we had to take a ferry to get to the zoo. The zoo itself is really nice, and has a cool layout which makes it feel more natural and less like a zoo. The animals were very active while we were there, which always helps too. The last new area we visited was East Perth, specifically Claisebrook Cove, which is a little area of fancy houses/apartments and hip/trendy restaurants and bars.

The area I spent most of my time during my last trip to Perth was the town of Fremantle, located about a 30-minute train ride south of the city. It has a really cool artsy/hipster vibe with a lot of old historic buildings and the Fremantle Markets, which are a tiny version of the Queen Victoria Markets we have in Melbourne. It’s also right on the water, so has great views of the ocean and surrounding islands. It wasn’t quite as lively as I remember, or perhaps my memory is tainted after living in Melbourne, but we still had a great time visiting the markets, getting lunch with my co-worker at Little Creatures Brewery and walking by the water.

on the train to Fremantle!

iconic Dingo Flour sign

Elizabeth Quay, located on the Swan River and south edge of the CBD, has changed a lot in 5 years. There is an entirely new man-made cove with restaurants and a cool footbridge, and it made the area a lot more appealing to visit. The Bell Tower is now partially obscured by new high rise apartments being built in the area, which is a real shame, as it’s such an iconic symbol of the Perth skyline I remember.

the bell tower in 2011...

...and the bell tower in 2017!

I also took Candice and Arden to Cottesloe Beach, which has a nice boardwalk along the ocean and lots of beautiful sandy beaches. One thing about Melbourne, the beaches near the city aren’t great. Sure they’re better than the Washington State beaches, but that isn’t saying much. Western Australia is known for its beaches and while Cottesloe is touristy and not as nice as the beaches farther out from the city, it is still an excellent beach with white sand and warm water. We didn’t swim since we aren’t huge fans of sharks, but it was great to walk around and soak up some sunshine.

The highlight of the trip, and my return to Perth, was a trip out to Rottnest Island. Rotto (as the locals call it) is a 30-minute boat ride from Freemantle across one of the roughest seas in the world, and we got to experience the joys of that during our crossing. Thankfully I managed not to throw up. Similar to Mackinac Island in Michigan, Rottnest is an island where cars are mostly prohibited and everyone rides bikes around. For being relatively small, the island has a lot of variation in scenery, from tropical white sand beaches to rugged cliffs to dry salt plains. My last trip to Rottnest was all about riding to the far end of the island to see as much as I could see, but this time our schedule was a lot different since we had a baby to think about. That said, we still managed to put in a few kms on our bikes and I was able to show Candice a lot of the scenery the island has to offer. It was a bit freaky riding a bike with Arden on my back in her ergocarrier, and not at all comfortable, but it was worth it to experience the beauty of the island.

Rottnest is also one of the only places in Australia to see quokkas in the wild. Quokkas are adorable marsupials about the size of a house cat, and they are found all over Rottnest. Since Rottnest is such a tourist destination, and tourists love feeding wildlife, the quokkas are very friendly and will hop right up to you if you sit still. Sadly with the passing of the years and the popularity of the selfie stick, the quokka selfie has become a thing, which is just gross, but we managed to refrain from getting one. Arden loved seeing the quokkas, especially when they were hopping around, and I was really surprised when Candice didn’t sneak one home in our luggage.

not quite the quintessential quokka selfie... ;)

Looking back to my first trip to Perth five years ago, I recall how much of my previous trip was defined by long work days, going out after work with co-workers, and a lot of exploring on my own. I had some really gracious co-workers who invited me out with them on weekends so I was able to see so much and feel like I was part of a community for my short visit. When left on my own, I was constantly discovering new things and enjoying the excitement in that, but it was also pretty lonely at times. It was during this trip and those lonely times that Candice and I started discussing a possible move to Australia and spending our lives together, so we both feel a special connection with Perth as my time there brought us to where we are now.

I’m so thankful I was able to show Candice and Arden my first experience of Australia and all the things that make Perth a great place. From the beautiful beaches and constant sunshine to the friendly locals, Perth left a great impression on me and this was only strengthened through my time visiting again. Hopefully we’ll be able to visit again in another five years.

-BK
Perth - January 2017 from Candice Kortlever on Vimeo.