Perth – the Queen and her Bling by Jacelyn Sng

Australia•Perth•Travel

Perth: 8 Reasons to Visit Perth

Thursday, 15 Oct 2015 by Jacelyn No Comments

1. The sunsets are gorgeous

Cottesloe Beach is one of the best places to watch the sunset. With a picturesque view, blue sky and crystal clear waters, what’s not to love about this awesome place?

2. Navigate your way through Fremantle

You can do whale watching, buy groceries at Fremantle Market, make friends with the quokkas on Rottnest Island or just have a cuppa coffee in one of the cafes at Cappuccino Strip.

3. Endless things to do in Margaret River region

There are tons of things to do in Margaret River region, best if you can self-drive and stay a day or two there. You may board the jetty train at Busselton Jetty and visit the Underwater Observatory, spend the night at a farm, go snorkeling or enjoy an indulging dinner at one of their breweries.

4. Explore Swan Valley

Swan Valley was part of my itinerary but I didn’t have the time to go. Dubbed as the valley of taste, some of the oldest vineyards are located there. The best time to visit Swan Valley is from September to December to coincide with wildflowers, fresh produce and spring weather. Besides fine food and wine, there are many other activities you can indulge in, from horse riding, cycling, hiking and golf to wildlife, art and history.

5. Visit one of the prettiest lakehouses

One of the most iconic places in Perth, the Crawley Edge Boatshed is extremely popular amongst tourists. It is also a favorite destination for pre-wedding shoots.

6. Experience the life of a convict in Fremantle Prison

Join their tours to find out more about the history and fascinating stories of the criminals. You will definitely love this once in a lifetime experience.

7. Fill your tummy with the best steak sandwich

An award winning steak sandwich is definitely not to be missed! Imagine biting into a piece of tender and juicy black angus beef steak. Yums!

8. Enjoy a picnic at Kings Park

Located at a terrific location with a beautiful view, Kings Park is an excellent place for picnics, walks or just chilling around with your family and friends.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my posts on Perth. I will be flying off to Korea tomorrow. Till my next travel post! smile

Check out my other posts on Perth:
heart Perth: Margaret River Day Tour
heart Perth: Harvest Espresso
heart Perth: Kings Park, Crawley Edge Boatshed, Cottesloe Beach
heart Perth: Exploring Fremantle
heart Perth: Transperth Tips and Perth City
heart Perth: 8 Reasons to Visit Perth

Reading time: 2 min

Australia•Perth•Travel

Perth: Transperth Tips and Perth City

Thursday, 8 Oct 2015 by Jacelyn No Comments

Similarly to Melbourne, Transperth in Western Australia offers free bus rides called CAT (Central Area Transit) where you can get on and off them as often as you like without paying a fare. This is usually available either in the city or popular areas like Fremantle. Refer to the following website for the various bus routes and colour coding – Transperth CAT Bus Timetables. Here are some tips based on my experience with Transperth.

Plan your journey with Journey Planner

Get a sim card and use Journey Planner to plan your route for the whole trip. You don’t wanna lose your way, do you? It sucks to feel helpless and lost in a foreign country.

Pay with cash or SmartRider card

You may either pay your fare using cash or the SmartRider card. I didn’t get the card cos I find it a hassle to search for the stores. Sometimes, the drivers will let me sit the ride for free when they don’t have any change for me. I’m not asking you to cheat though, but no harm trying! bigsmile

Time limits on bus tickets

When you pay with cash, you will be given a ticket and it will have an expiry time printed on it. Don’t throw it away! This is useful when you are traveling within a certain distance of your starting point until the time limit expires, on any combination of bus, train or ferry services. I only knew about this from my Airbnb host on the 2nd day, it’s never too late to know though! smile

Make full use of the free CAT buses

As mentioned earlier, make full use of the free bus rides if possible cos it will save you quite a sum! Every ride cost me close to AUD2. Imagine you are taking 10 buses, that’s almost AUD20! I can buy a decent meal with that amount of money.

I hope the above tips on Transperth are helpful. smile

Perth City was my last stop for the trip and I did a quick stroll before my flight in the evening. I really love the buildings as they exude a certain charm which you cannot find in Singapore. There are also pretty wall murals done by street artists that added some colors to the nearby plain looking buildings.

I rested and chilled at a nearby cafe before my flight. The cake and coffee were sooo good. Why does everything taste so awesome in Australia? smile

I also mailed a postcard to Singapore for myself, a simple way of keeping track of my trips. I will be sharing more about travel hacks in one of the upcoming posts soon.

Reading time: 2 min

Australia•Perth•Travel

Perth: Exploring Fremantle

Wednesday, 23 Sep 2015 by Jacelyn 2 Comments

For Day 3, I planned to visit Fremantle, a major port city in Perth. There are endless things to do, be it cafe hopping, visit Rottnest Island, whale watching or shopping at the markets. You will probably spend a day or two there. I don’t remember visiting Fremantle when I went with my family many years ago, so I was pretty excited to explore the city.

I was told that Cicerello’s serves the best fish and chips in Perth, I had to visit right?

I quickly ordered my lunch and sat outside to admire the beautiful port. heart Cicerello’s is located in a fantastic location in the wharf area. It was raining when I got there, so I didn’t get a chance to explore the other areas.

The legendary fish and chips, or so I thought. The batter was a bit soggy and I don’t think this is good enough to be claimed as the best fish and chips. Nope.

Cicerello’s
Fisherman’s Wharf, 44 Mews Road, Fremantle WA 6160, Australia
www.cicerellos.com.au
www.facebook.com/CicerellosFremantle

Fremantle Prison is the only building to be listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site in Western Australia. I have never been to any prison tour, so I thought I had to experience this at least once in my life. I bought 2 kinds of tour – Doing Time Tour and Great Escapes Tour. They have a night tour but I was too timid to try it! tongue

I felt very nervous and uneasy during the tour. I could really imagine myself to be one of the convicts when I walked through those corridors and cells. The guides had vividly described the convicts’ experiences and escapes in the prison. Some of them actually spend their free time doodling on the walls, pick up hobbies or skills. Everyone of them have a different role in the prison, either a cook, actor or artist. Others tried to escape and succeeded, but was caught again. Some were also hanged to death, check out the creepy gallows. It was very fascinating listening to their stories. I spent a few days googling and reading up on the histories. This is one of the best highlights of my trip and I will definitely remember it forever. smile

After the prison tour, I went to search for the restaurant The Karalee on Preston. They had won Western Australia’s best steak sandwich through a competition last year. I knew I had to try it! They used black angus beef and it was sooo tender and juicy, served with caramelised onions, cheese, bacon, greens and chips. I can see why they won! heart Como is located at the suburb of Perth. I was the only Asian when I entered the restaurant and everyone just kept staring at me lol. So embarrassing but nevertheless, a very enjoyable dinner for me! The restaurant overlooks the Swan River, too bad I didn’t get to snap photos. I’ll definitely revisit if I get to go again. smile

The Karalee on Preston
25 Preston St, Como WA 6152, Australia
www.facebook.com/thekaralee

Reading time: 2 min

Australia•Perth•Travel

Perth: Kings Park, Crawley Edge Boatshed, Cottesloe Beach

Sunday, 13 Sep 2015 by Jacelyn No Comments

After the brunch at Harvest Espresso, I took a bus down to Kings Park. The bus stop was just a street across Victoria Park, very convenient.

Oh, and here I am! Kings Park covers approx. 400 ha and is one of the largest inner city parks in the world. You can either take a walk along the tree tops or sit down and have a picnic.

How gorgeous! heart heart heart

Looking across the fantastic view of the CBD area. smile

Another view of the war memorial. smile Perfect place just to relax and admiring the gorgeous view.

Kings Park
Perth WA 6005, Australia
www.bgpa.wa.gov.au/kings-park
www.facebook.com/KingsPark.WA

I continued my journey in search of the place that I have always wanted to visit – the Crawley Edge Boatshed! It was a longggg walk along the Swan River to search for the popular “house”. Just chilling and sitting along the bank is so relaxing. I thought I might have lost my way until I spotted it! Honestly, I was a little disappointed that such a lovely place is located right next to the road haha! But heck, photos can be cropped! tongue

Whee!

I happened to bump into the photographers from Axioo who were taking photos of a couple and asked for their help to take a photo for me. So not shy hehe! bigsmile

Selfie time and one off my bucket list! bigsmile

Come to think of it, I think I am pretty good at reading maps haha! tongue I had a hard time finding out the name and address of this mystery house and it wasn’t easy ok! Achievement unlocked! bigsmile

Crawley Edge Boatshed
73 Boatshed, Mounts Bay Rd, Crawley WA 6009, Australia

A photo of The Old Brewery and the nostalgic bridge along the way…

While waiting for the bus… smile

Cottesloe Beach was my next destination. Thank god I was in time to wait for the sunset. I took a stroll and sat on the rocks and took lots of selfie there lol!

Chasing sunsets! heart Can’t bear to leave this place but there’s always an ending for everything. smile

Day 2 was more of a rest and relax day. Look out for the next post on Perth where I’ll be spending my 3rd day in Frementle! smile

Reading time: 2 min

Australia•Perth•Travel

Perth: Harvest Espresso

Monday, 10 Aug 2015 by Jacelyn No Comments

I love the cafe culture in Australia as it has a unique charm. I slowly took a stroll along the pretty streets in search for Harvest Espresso to have my breakfast, a local neighbourhood cafe in Victoria Park that was highly raved on Urbanspoon. smile

It took me about 15 minutes to reach the cafe from the Airbnb apartment. It was already quite packed when I arrived and I managed to get a table, in which the server promptly introduced their spring menu to me. The cafe was really cosy and decorated with lots of wood, floral and industrial lamps, just the kind of scandustrial style that I love hehe! heart

Gourmet Mixed Mushrooms was part of the spring menu, it comes with beautiful edible flowers, all kinds of mushrooms like shimeji, oyster, shiitake, etc., rye bread, perfect wobbly eggs, lots of green and buttery sauce. Eating breakfast has never been so satisfying as the entire dish was so well-seasoned. Everything just goes so well together! smile

I picked their Chai Chocolate Latte from their extensive coffee list. It was done in the right sweetness with a scoop of ice cream and cocoa. Totally perfect for spring. Do visit Harvest Espresso if you are in Perth as it has this unique neighbourhood charm and offers special seasonal menu all year round.

Harvest Espresso
629 Albany Hwy, Victoria Park WA 6100, Australia
Tel: (61) 8 9355 5884
www.harvestespresso.com.au
www.facebook.com/Harvest.Espresso

Reading time: 1 min

Australia•Perth•Travel

Perth: Margaret River Day Tour

Wednesday, 8 Jul 2015 by Jacelyn No Comments

Finally got down to write about my solo trip to Perth hehe! tongue The flight to Perth was in the afternoon and the plane landed after 5 hours. The sky was already dark when I reached the airport. To be honest, I was quite shocked at the condition of the airport, compared to Melbourne’s. I tried to walk around to explore but the entire airport seemed to be quite run down and everywhere is under construction. I managed to grab a sandwich and hot chocolate at a nearby cafe. I also bought a data sim card at Vodafone that cost me about AUD30 for a 4GB plan.

I then took a cab down to Kensington where my host was staying. The driver was really nice and friendly. As the area where I stayed was quite secluded, he made sure that I entered the house before driving off. Phew! smile

My host is a Malaysian Chinese and she wasn’t home most of the time, so I had the whole house to myself at night. The location of her house was pretty secluded and quiet. In the day, I would walk to the nearest bus stop to catch a bus and at night, I would usually cab back. Come to think of it, the area is quite scary at night as the street lights were insufficient and is almost pitch dark. surprised

The entire house was clean and well maintained. Most of the time, I would crash on the bed when I got back. She also had 2 dogs and I would play with them whenever I am free. But usually, I would stay in the room and use wifi to chat with the hubby or surf the internet. To play safe, I would try to get back before the sky turns dark.

The next day, I made my way to Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre at 8am for the day tour to Margaret River. I booked for the day tour prior to my trip with Gray Line. They have an extensive list of day tours to choose from with a hassle-free booking system. I won’t hesitate to book with them again.

Waiting for the day tour bus at the convention centre. The bus arrived promptly and off I go with the rest of the travellers! smile

The first stop was at Busselton Jetty! The entire jetty is about 1.8km and there’s an underwater observatory right at the end but there wasn’t any time to visit it. sad

Words can’t describe this beautiful scenery. Managed to take some photos for memories’ sake. heart

Busselton Jetty
Busselton Beachfront, Busselton WA 6280, Australia
Tel: (61) 8 9754 0900
www.busseltonjetty.com.au
www.facebook.com/jetty.busselton

We moved on and had a quick lunch at Bootleg Brewery with some samplers, beer and ciders.

I ventured out and was welcomed by this beautiful scenery of the vineyard. I felt peaceful and relaxed just by admiring the greenery. Of course, this calls for a mandatory selfie haha! tongue

Bootleg Brewery
Puzey Road, Wilyabrup WA 6285, Australia
Tel: (61) 8 9755 6300
www.bootlegbrewery.com.au
www.facebook.com/BootlegBrewery

It was mind blowing just by looking at the amazing limestones and crystal formations in Mammoth Cave. We were guided and climbed all the way up to have a good view of the formations. Nothing beats having a real life experience admiring the beauty of nature, which I can’t get in Singapore. smile

Mammoth Cave
Caves Road, Boranup WA 6286, Australia
Tel: (61) 8 9780 5911

Next stop was Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse, pity there wasn’t any time for us to climb to the top. It was super windy and started to drizzle after a while and I left after taking a selfie hehe! tongue

Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse
Leeuwin Road, Augusta WA 6290, Australia
Tel: (61) 8 9780 5911
www.capeleeuwinlighthouse.com

We grabbed some quick bites at a nearby town and also did some shopping before ending the day tour. It was another few hours ride back and I only got back at 11pm.