Albany

Two weeks since we left home and it seems as if we are just starting our trip after all the socialising with friends – old and new.

A bit cooler down here which is very pleasant – although Linda had to dig out a long sleeved shirt for the walk into town for dinner.

Staying in a B&B with a couple of garden suites – proprietors are a retired sheep farmer and his artist wife. She asked us to preorder our breakfast before 7.00pm – there are only 2 couples staying – and still managed to cock it up. Made us appreciate how well my cousin Sue copes with up to 24 guests with a much larger menu and no pre-ordering. God knows what will happen tomorrow when the third suite is also occupied.

We are only here for one more night and then we move to a self catering house on the side of Mount Clarence.

Had a great day today visiting the Gap, the Natural Bridge and the Blowholes in the Torrindup National Park. 

Also visited Whale World – the last whaling station in Australia – which closed in 1978. Great exhibition and a chance to look over one of their whale chasers – I'm sure we converted something similar into a standby boat in the dim distant past.

Then found our way down onto Salmon Holes beach for a lunch in the shade of a giant boulder – disappointed to find that there was someone else there - but they were more than 100metres away at the other end of the beach.

An early start

After the exertions of yesterday, we planned a leisurely drive down to Albany but had reckoned without Kirsty's invitation to join her for an early swim on Port Beach while Simon was kayaking.

As it turned out I ended up joining Simon with a spare kayak because someone else dropped out. Only a small swell and a couple of little breakers so launching was not too difficult – I did get dumped by the waves a couple of times but eventually managed to join the other paddlers. 

Took a while to get settled but lots of practice getting back on the kayak. Luckily I was out of range of Linda's camera. 

After an hour or so, I almost mastered the beaching until a wave broke behind me and tumbled me in a heap with the kayak. Minor contusions and a bruised rib and it was still not quite 07.00.

Was quite glad when we finished packing and settled into the five hour drive south.

Rottnest

Everything starts early here – or so it seems. With the ferry sailing at 07.15, we had to leave the house – on bikes – at 06.30. Minor hassles getting on board with bikes – Aussies are very fond of their rules for eveything – but we were still having our morning coffee in the Dome cafe on the island by 8.

Rode to the West end with a brief stop for snorkelling at Parker Point and then clambered down to a very secluded beach at Eagle Bay for a picnic lunch. Not sure that the only other people on the beach were pleased to see us arrive but we did outnumber them by at least 2 to 1!

Lovely shady spot to relax and prepare for the ride back to Geordie Bay for ice cream and then on to the Basin for a last swim before we got on the ferry.

Home in time for dinner and an early night.

A Block of Flats & a pair of Divas

Spent a few hours on board the 'Block of Flats' – Kirsty & Mark's boat on the Swan River. More floating caravan than gin palace but still a very pleasant place to be with a kilo of Mandurah king Prawns and a bottle of Sauvignon blanc. 

Then had to rush home to get spruced up for a trip into Perth for Divalicious – part of the Perth Fringe – in the Spiegeltent at the Cultural Centre. A pair of English sopranos who settled here some years ago – one of them a friend of Kirsty's.

Great show – well worth seeing if they ever play a venue near you.

Finished the day with some excellent Vietnamese food in Saigon restaurant in Northbridge.

Australia Day

We all headed down to the Fremantle yacht club for a few beers, a bit of a picnic and then out onto the jetty to watch the firework display. 

Followed the men's final in the Australian Open on someone's Iphone and I made the mistake of asking for an update on the last of the One Day Internationals. It appeared England had put themselves in a match winning position so it was particularly galling to find that they managed to throw it all away yet again – particularly among a bunch of sports mad Aussies.

Burns Night

With help from the Tourist Office in Perth, we found a butcher in Fremantle who sells haggis so we were all set.

No sign of Neeps in veggie stall so we served home made-tattie scones with haggis as a canape for all Kirstie's friends who showed up for the barbie on the eve of Australia Day. Simon gave us the English version of the Address to the Pudding and Anne managed to get everyone up to dance a reel.

Seemed an appropriate salute the Immortal Memory.

Fremantle

Back to the airport on Thursday morning to pick up a car - very helpful lady at Herz gave us an up grade to a full size Toyota Camry which looked very smart - but was Black - not very practical in these temperatures. She was very understanding when we asked for something in a lighter colour and swapped us back to our original choice.

Short drive to Kirstie's in Fremantle -although we missed the direct route and had a tour of the centre of town on the way. Her brother Simon and his wife Anne are also staying so it makes for a lively household.

By the time we had lunch and a chat, the temperature had started to drop and we headed to the river for a swim. I followed Tessa and Eric up onto the rocks - just to watch them jumping-  but ended up to close to the edge with a crowd below - encouraged by Kirstie -shouting for me to jump! The water was great - once I got there.

Perth

It seemed just as hot on our second day in the city, but we managed to take care of a variety of minor tasks and still have time to visit the Art Gallery. On the way there crossed the square in front of the Post Office where the local kids had found an ideal way to keep cool.

In the evening we met up with Linda's second cousin Colin and his wife Karen who had moved to Perth a couple of years ago. Caught up on all their news over a couple of beers and a meal in a pub called 'TheLucky Shag' as we watched Andy Murray - unfortunately - get knocked out of the Australian Open by Roger Federer.

Moving On

Tuesday morning and we are heading for the airport – Debbie had booked one of her friendly taxis for us and Gabriel did an excellent job getting us to the airport through the morning rush.

The Tigerair flight to Perth was prompt and comfortable – they have copied the good parts of Ryanair and managed to ignore some of O'Leary's more annoying practices – despite some of his recent changes.

Perth is another city which seems to be in a continual state of redevelopment – new airport terminals, new access roads, and lots of new highrise buildings downtown – although they appear to crowding out some of the better parts of the waterfront.

Our hotel is in the City Centre and we were grateful for the air-conditioned refuge from the 38ºC on the shady side of the street – no standing around in the sun here! Luckily we had chosen the Deluxe room which meant that there was no danger of the cat cracking his skull on the way round, but only just.

We managed a quick walk around the city to identify the major landmarks followed by a cooling ale, some fish and chips and an early night – need to catch up on some sleep after 5 nights in Singapore.

Old Friends

Singapore

It is 39 years since I first arrived in Singapore and 12 years since we were last here and there have, of course, been lots of changes – not least that the Island is physically larger by about 1/3^rd due to land reclamation and that the population has grown at least 3-fold.

The roads and transport systems all work well but everywhere was extremely busy – we managed to use the buses, the MRT and a few taxis during our stay and never seemed to be delayed at all – even in peak times.

Thankfully some things are still recognisable and we spent a few hours on Monday wandering through the Botanic Gardens which was as pleasant and peaceful as I remember. Wonderful orchid gardens although a little surprised to see some of the people they have honoured in the VIP collection - Bertie Aherne??

As a complete contrast, we then dropped into Chinatown. It was only 10 days before the Lunar New Year so there was a hint of chaos about the place. Luckily the Heritage Centre was an oasis of calm – and well worth a visit.

We finished the day with Chilli Crab, Black pepper Crayfish and Stingray Sambal in the Hawker centre at Bukit Merah - just as good as ever – probably another of Bernie's favourites.  

Jade

A weekend is enough

Peaceful Monday morning after a busy weekend. The social round in Singapore seems just as lively as ever.

Friday was a quiet night on Boat Quay - frozen Margaritas, a few beers, Mexican food, some live music and great people watching - even made it home at a reasonable hour.
Spent Saturday looking at tech shops but didn't find any real deals - will have to look again on the way home.

Dinner at Forlino with Jeanette, Debbie, Susan and Rupert. A tremendous meal with some excellent wines and very good service from our waiter Frankie. We had lots of fun catching up, hard to believe it is nearly 7 years since we last saw Rupert yet it felt like it was last week.

We finished up as usual in a trendy bar - Kinki  - over-looking Marina Bay - interesting place and even more interesting people - I shared the lift with three young ladies who appeared to have taken a drink or two and were totally oblivious to my presence as they discussed - in detail - the physical attributes of one of their male friends. Slightly later to bed but still standing up.

Then - just to finish up - a champagne brunch with free flow Veuve Cliquot followed by an afternoon by the pool at the W hotel on Sentosa before we headed home to watch the Sunday Premier League games.

The high life

Our arrival at Singapore was just as stress-free as our departure from Shannon - 25 minutes from landing to getting into a taxi on the way to meet Jinty and Debs.

Transiting Heathrow and departing from terminal 5 - for the first time - was a slightly different experience. More like a giant shopping mall than an airport terminal - luckily the BA lounge and a glass of champagne provided sufficient distraction.

No problems on the flight - except that the stewardess on Linda's side - a Scot, naturally - poured larger measures that the Singaporean on my side. Slightly odd facing backwards for take-off and landing - but still managed to sleep for most of the flight.

Our plan for a quiet night in - to recover from the journey - ended up in Holland Village for a few beers and a great meal in IndoChine followed by a nightcap or two. No problem getting to sleep.

Leisurely start to day one - made it to the Crossroads bar at Scotts Road - where we met for our first date - by midday and then strolled along Orchard Road to the Chatterbox at the Mandarin for Chicken Rice. Food was as good as I remember but the building has been completely redeveloped - not quite the same!

After a quick look around the shops we decided to head home for a siesta and a swim to prepare for Friday night on Boat Quay.

There's nothing like a deadline!

There are a number of pre-holiday tasks that can only be done in the days or hours before you leave – my particular favourite was always to start packing as the taxi arrived for the trip to the airport – a definite adrenalin rush!

However, there are a couple of tasks which we discussed last year while we were in South Africa which had still not made it to the top of the list. Suddenly, at about 9.00pm yesterday – less than 18 hours before we leave – and 10 months since we got home from the last trip – we realised that the our plan to make some changes our wills was still outstanding.

Still, we managed to get it all sorted before we left and even found some friendly neighbours to witness the changes. Hope to catch up on my sleep on the 13 hour flight to Singapore tonight.

Linda was berating me for leaving everything to the last minute but we were still ready and waiting 10 minutes before the taxi arrived.

The journey to Shannon with June – our local taxi driver – is always amusing and informative – she manages to drive and talk non-stop for 45 minutes.. Over the last few years, we have learned more about her life and family than is really necessary and today was no exception. From her opinion of the local Garda – who appear to concentrate on harassing taxi drivers rather than tackling the aggressive youths outside the local pub – to her opinion of Italian food on her holy week trip to Rome – she ate biscuits for 4 days because she doesnt like pasta and will not eat cheese!

It is always a joy to travel from Shannon – 10 minutes from dropping off outside to sitting in the Bar with a pint of Guinness (and that includes the time to pour the pint!). We were invited to use the fast track through security but it seemed pointless since we were the only people there.

It's that time again

If its January, then its time to pack the laying hens and ducks off to their temporary homes, dust off the Samsonite and dig out the swimmers*.
Each year we try to reduce the amount of stuff that we take on our trip - reckon that we could get away with hand baggage only this year if it wasn't for the security restrictions on liquids etc. It seems that Linda's lotions and unguents only come in industrial size packages which exceed the 100ml max allowance.
We depart from Shannon on Wednesday with a connection in London for Singapore (where it all began!) and a few nights with Jinty and Debs. Hope to catch up with Susan and Rupert while we are there and there are a few old favourites on the list:- Champagne brunch, Chilli Crabs, Hainanese Chicken Rice, the Botanic Gardens and perhaps a bottle or two of Anchor beer.
From there we head on to Fremantle and a joint Burn's Night / Australia Day celebration with Kirsty followed by a little gentle sightseeing, a winery or two on Margaret River and some great white shark dodging on the WA beaches.
Then we head north for a couple of weeks island-hopping on the Andaman Sea coast of Thailand - snorkelling, kayaking and laying in the shade with a cool Singha beer.
So - watch this space - while we hope that the journey will be peaceful and uneventful, there are bound to be some stories to tell!!

* swimmers - as usual ( it happens every year) I dug out my speedos and tried to hide them in the bag - but Linda's eagle eye spotted them and substituted the surf shorts instead - probably for the best - would be embarrassing to be arrested for indecent exposure.