In early February this year we had to send our only daughter Nina off to Australia to pursue her studies at Curtin University in Perth. She had finished her diploma at UITM in Shah Alam and would continue her bachelor degree in Curtin. Perth happens to be the nearest place for us to send our daughter. The fees looked affordable.
On 8 February 2007, we took a Malaysian Airlines (MAS) flight to Singapore for a connecting flight on Qantas to Perth. That was the most economical arrangement for our trip at that time. Taking MAS direct flight would cost a bomb. Upon arrival in Singapore at Terminal 2 we had to catch a sky train to Terminal 1. We had about 2 hours before our flight.
The Qantas flight was almost full with Aussies returning home from holidays. It was a pleasant 5 hour flight. We were served Muslim foods. We arrived at Perth Airport almost 2AM. After going through the immigration and custom, we reached Good Earth Hotel at almost 4AM. Since it was late, we went straight to sleep.
The next morning after breakfast, I went to check around to rent a car. It’s cheaper to drive in Perth as taxi will cost about AUD20 per short round trip as compared to AUD30 car rental per day. I met another Malaysian, also looking for a rented car. Later I found out that he was a deputy minister from Sabah.
Since we had a few days before Nina had to register for her classes, we decided to go on tour around Perth. Rottnest Island was on top of the list as it was ranked number one attraction by Yahoo. So we drove to Fremantle to catch a ferry to Rottnest. The island used to be where the early settlers produced salts for consumption. Now, it is more of a rustic place for the local people to come and unwind. We hired bicycles to go around the places on the island. After about one hour of riding we decided to call it quit and waited for our ferry back to Fremantle.
By now I was getting good at driving around Perth. After all, Perth is not a big city. If I thought I was lost I just headed towards the tall buildings in the city centre where I would get my bearing back. Australian drivers were much more tolerant as compared to Asians. They would stop in the middle of the road just to yield to you to change lane. How’s that KL drivers?
We went to Harbour Point where the factory outlets were. There was nothing much to shop. We bought some stuffs for Nina’s use later. We also went to Fremantle Market. This place is good for shopping for local produce. I liked Australian mangoes so much that I bought them all the time. The flesh was succulently smooth and non fibrous. It was very sweet and I swear that it was the best mango I have ever tasted. It was also cheaper at around AUD5 per big fruit as compared to RM20 in Malaysia.
We also visited AQWA, Aquarium of Western Australia. It is located 20 minutes north of the city at Hilarys Boat Harbour. It is Australia’s largest aquarium and underwater tunnel. It is just like the Underwater World in Singapore and Sea World in Langkawi. It was worth the trip. Hilarys Boat Harbour is also a very scenic place.
One late evening we drove to Swan Valley where the wineries and vineyards of Western Australia were mostly found. It was a bit late in the evening, they were closed. We also took a drive up north to Jondaloop looking for Australia’s number one golf course. Again it was a bit late, we couldn’t find the place. I wanted to buy some golf souvenirs.
By now, Nina had already registered for her classes. She had moved to her house in Bentley, within walking distance to campus. Nina managed to get a room with attached bathroom. From that day, we had to commute from hotel to her place driving our rented car. By then I had known several routes to go to her place from the hotel.
Foods were not a problem in Perth as there were several halal restaurant, some run by Malaysians. We tried almost all of them during our 10 day stay.
Finally, the day came when we had to say good bye to our daughter and left her in Perth on her own. On 17 February, we took the 12 noon flight back to Singapore and reached our house that night. We brought back some nougats and of course, Australian mangoes.
On 8 February 2007, we took a Malaysian Airlines (MAS) flight to Singapore for a connecting flight on Qantas to Perth. That was the most economical arrangement for our trip at that time. Taking MAS direct flight would cost a bomb. Upon arrival in Singapore at Terminal 2 we had to catch a sky train to Terminal 1. We had about 2 hours before our flight.
The Qantas flight was almost full with Aussies returning home from holidays. It was a pleasant 5 hour flight. We were served Muslim foods. We arrived at Perth Airport almost 2AM. After going through the immigration and custom, we reached Good Earth Hotel at almost 4AM. Since it was late, we went straight to sleep.
The next morning after breakfast, I went to check around to rent a car. It’s cheaper to drive in Perth as taxi will cost about AUD20 per short round trip as compared to AUD30 car rental per day. I met another Malaysian, also looking for a rented car. Later I found out that he was a deputy minister from Sabah.
Since we had a few days before Nina had to register for her classes, we decided to go on tour around Perth. Rottnest Island was on top of the list as it was ranked number one attraction by Yahoo. So we drove to Fremantle to catch a ferry to Rottnest. The island used to be where the early settlers produced salts for consumption. Now, it is more of a rustic place for the local people to come and unwind. We hired bicycles to go around the places on the island. After about one hour of riding we decided to call it quit and waited for our ferry back to Fremantle.
By now I was getting good at driving around Perth. After all, Perth is not a big city. If I thought I was lost I just headed towards the tall buildings in the city centre where I would get my bearing back. Australian drivers were much more tolerant as compared to Asians. They would stop in the middle of the road just to yield to you to change lane. How’s that KL drivers?
We went to Harbour Point where the factory outlets were. There was nothing much to shop. We bought some stuffs for Nina’s use later. We also went to Fremantle Market. This place is good for shopping for local produce. I liked Australian mangoes so much that I bought them all the time. The flesh was succulently smooth and non fibrous. It was very sweet and I swear that it was the best mango I have ever tasted. It was also cheaper at around AUD5 per big fruit as compared to RM20 in Malaysia.
We also visited AQWA, Aquarium of Western Australia. It is located 20 minutes north of the city at Hilarys Boat Harbour. It is Australia’s largest aquarium and underwater tunnel. It is just like the Underwater World in Singapore and Sea World in Langkawi. It was worth the trip. Hilarys Boat Harbour is also a very scenic place.
One late evening we drove to Swan Valley where the wineries and vineyards of Western Australia were mostly found. It was a bit late in the evening, they were closed. We also took a drive up north to Jondaloop looking for Australia’s number one golf course. Again it was a bit late, we couldn’t find the place. I wanted to buy some golf souvenirs.
By now, Nina had already registered for her classes. She had moved to her house in Bentley, within walking distance to campus. Nina managed to get a room with attached bathroom. From that day, we had to commute from hotel to her place driving our rented car. By then I had known several routes to go to her place from the hotel.
Foods were not a problem in Perth as there were several halal restaurant, some run by Malaysians. We tried almost all of them during our 10 day stay.
Finally, the day came when we had to say good bye to our daughter and left her in Perth on her own. On 17 February, we took the 12 noon flight back to Singapore and reached our house that night. We brought back some nougats and of course, Australian mangoes.
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