Perth travelogue: Day 4 (4th Dec)

~Had breakfast at hotel again -- it's the same range of items as before ~ Dominic came to pick us up to tour about King's Park, which kinda reminded me of our local Henderson Waves cos of the bridges and plants ~ took more pictures there ~ enjoyed the bird's eye view of the waters, buildings and plants ~ weather was getting hot (more than 30 degrees Celsius) but it was okay cos the breeze was cool still ~ went past the Parliament House later on; was told by Dominic that due to tradition, no air conditioning has been installed at all, and whoever lived there were willing to endure even the hottest temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius there!

~Next was a visit to the Perth Mint, where we witnessed for ourselves a live demonstration of how ultra-hot liquid gold was poured, cooled and solidified into a dense gold bar -- an eye-opener indeed! ~ walked about and examined gold exhibits ~ tried to pick up a gold bar but my goodness, it was so heavy that it could hardly be lifted at all with a single bend of the wrist ~ slipped $2 into a machine and bought my copper coin, stamped on the spot; the guy in charge of that machine was so comical as he joked about with us; Hubby left happily with his 金鼻屎 and postcards ~ next it was off to Lake Monger, home to the famous black swans and other birds like pelicans and mandarin ducks ~ the birds didn't seem afraid of humans at all, and we were able to get close up shots of and with the black swans too -- how beautiful! ~ after that, Dominic stopped at a beach for us to take in the sea breeze, and look at how the Australians spent their day having picnics, suntanning and swimming out there -- from the crowds we saw there, it must be a habit for Australians to spend their day at the beach in the hot summer sun ~ the cool sea breeze made it all the more comfortable to be there.

~Stopped at the famous Fremantle to take it the harbour scene and explore the fresh seafood markets there before lunch ~ the place was like a small European town with the narrow stretches of roads and the architecture of the buildings -- very nice! ~ lunch was at the Esplanade Hotel Fremantle, which boasts a great variety of items at its buffet meals; especially loved the creamy vegetable soup ~ next we were taken to the Old Round House, which used to be a place of punishment for prisoners ~ it was sweltering hot out there but pretty cool within the stone walls of the cells.

~Went about Fremantle marketplace but think it's kinda overrated as the prices of what used to be cheap goods have soared in recent years due to increase in rent, but it was still nice walking about and looking ~ bought much cheaper souvenirs at a place nearby that Dominic recommended, owned by Singaporeans -- must support! :) ~ also stopped at a large hypermart for some macadamia nuts shopping as well as a small Asian-owned convenience store for some nougats ~ dinner was at Jade Chinese Seafood Restaurant; dishes were tasty, especially the stir-fried vegetables and the preserved vegetable soup ~ returned to hotel after that and we all spent part of the evening in Mummy and Papa's room eating the fresh plums, peaches and nectarines that we'd bought at the orchard previously.

:)