Whales, with a Side of Beer

Day 3 – Fremantle

Leo and I came 13,000 miles to do a variety of things. But today, the most fun we had was something we do at home: drink. We began our day very early, catching a boat for a whale watching tour. The experience was like so many tourist activities: Hurry up and wait. So although we left the Perth dock at 8:45, our tour didn’t really leave/begin until 11 a.m.

Leo and I got the good seats I think. We saw the first two perfectly, and the last two pretty well. But there wasn’t much in between. (Where is the “on demand” whale button?)

On the way back, we disembarked at Fremantle (aka “Freo”), an artistic community of 26,000 people south of Perth. It’s a quiet place, but packed with cool buildings, a prison built by some of Australia’s convicts and best of all, a local brewery. We wandered the former, grabbing some pho for lunch. We skipped the prison tour, but scoped out the entrance area, which offered explanations on the prison. It was open until 1991. The tiny cells were only 7 by 4 feet and the displays explained the horrors of prison life, from leg irons to cat ‘o nine tails whippings to hangings.

The best we saved for last. The book “1001 Beers to Drink Before You Die” features several Australian brews. Leo jotted them down before we left. Two of the Little Creatures Brewery potions are on the list. Our friends would love this place. The spacious brewery has a great laid-back feeling, with cool tables both inside and out, a wood burning pizza oven, dockside seating in the back and of course, the tasty beer. We spent a few hours warming ourselves in the sun and sipping their concoctions.

We ended our evening with some quick but yummy seafood before hopping the train back to Perth. (Insert rant here about the benefits of trains and why Raleigh should get on board.)

Now, we’re chilling at our hostel, the Swan Barracks. It’s an old building with a lot of exterior character, but the rooms inside are drab. The clientele is not. Most seem to be Australian students on holiday from other parts of the country, spending most of their time partying and coming down the hall very late (or early).

A few more tidbits:

• Australian money looks cool. Very colorful and different sizes, plus some coins for $1 and $2.
• We’ve seen a lot of colorful birds here, just hanging out on the streets as we would see bluejays and sparrows. They look like parrots in a way, but with different beaks. Some are yellow. Today as we walked down the street, we could hear them chattering. Leo said, “I think the yellow angry bird lives here.”
• I am pleased to report that neither Leo nor I got seasick on our whale watching tour. I can’t say the same for one of the kids, who managed to lose his lunch right by the main staircase we all had to traverse.
• As I mentioned, it’s early spring here, which seems to be 50s at night and high 60s during the day here in Perth. It’s chilly, but we expect even cooler temps as we head south later. • Finally, check out Leo’s pick of the day on his Flickr photostream.