Perth, Western Australia
This past week I ventured down to Perth, Australia. This trip absolutely made me fall in love with solo travel. I was able to do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted.
I stayed at the Pensione Hotel in CBD. It was the PERFECT location for my first time to Perth. It was located in the middle of the city and just one block away from Murray Street (a bustling block with flea markets and shops). I decided to stay in a hotel rather than hostel because I needed a good nights sleep. Sad to say I don't get any in my fire ant infested bed in Indonesia. I scored an awesome deal on the hotel by booking through Agoda.com. If you're looking for hotel deals, check them out!
 |
| The Bell Tower on Swan River |
It was pretty chilly my first day in Perth. I arrived in the beginning of October-so the season was still changing from winter to spring. It was dreary and rainy, but that didn't stop me from exploring! I love a nice gloomy day - so relaxing! I walked down to the Bell Tower. This tower is made up of 12 royal bells that were created before the 14th century in London. They are rung when celebrating historical events.
 |
| The best part of Australia? The coffee!!! Flat Whites are a national treasure (at least to me!) |
 |
Walking path along Swan River. The Bell Tower is directly behind me.
Another great thing about Perth is their transportation system. As my hotel was located in CBD, it was a quick 5 minute walk to the train and bus station. Since I wanted to hold a koala and see kangaroos (I know, such a tourist), I wanted to find my way to Cohunu Koala Park. The park is located in Byford, which is a ways out of the city. To get there, I had to take the Armadale Train Line four zones out of the city. I stopped at the last stop and then had to take a bus for about 20 minutes. I got off at Soldiers road and from there it was about a 15 minute walk to the park. I'm so glad I made this venture, as seeing these animals was definitely a highlight of my trip!
|
 |
| Red Kanga at Cohunu Wildlife Park |
 |
| Armadale Train Station on my way back to Perth |
 |
| Jeffery the 7 year old koala. So fluffy and cuddly! |
 |
| People are allowed to pet and feed the kangaroos. I've heard enough horror stories about kangaroos that I didn't dare get too close! |
 |
| When the sun decided to come out, I walked down to the Swan River and enjoyed the view. You can see the entire city from here, it's breathtaking! |
 |
| Swan River path |
The great thing about staying in CBD is the proximity to everything. I spent two days just wandering around the city, looking into all of the different shops, eating all of the delicious food and, of course, people watching. They have a spectacular alleyway called "Little London". It feels like you've apparated to England!
 |
| Little London in CBD |
 |
| Always thinking of my students - I found great picture books in CBD at an awesome discount bookshop! SCORE |
Something to remember when visiting Australia? THEY HAVE A HOLE IN THEIR OZONE LAYER. I walked to King's Park (only about 25 minutes from CBD) and spent the day exploring and reading in the park. Although I was only in the sun for about 20 minutes, I got burnt! Be sure to always wear sunscreen if you're visiting the land down under.
The botanical garden was one of my favourite parts about the park. It overlooks the entire city. Since it was springtime, all of the flowers were blooming and it smelled so fresh and amazing. This is definitely a must see for anybody visiting Perth in the autumn, spring and summer months!
 |
| Finally got to crack into the new Harry Potter book! JK Rowling did not let me down on this one. |
 |
| King's Park overlooking the city |
 |
A water garden I found in the middle of Kings Park. It was stunning with all of the spring colours popping through!
On my last day in WA, I decided to go skydiving! I have never done it before and I had always been waiting to do it somewhere exotic and beautiful. So this seemed like my perfect chance! I booked with Skydive Jurien Bay and my experience was PHENOMENAL. They have a free shuttle that goes up from the city center to Jurien Bay on Thursdays. Since I did not want to rent a car and make the drive up myself, I took advantage of this.
|
 |
| Before the ride up! |
 |
| Soulja Boy would be proud #Superman |
 |
| The view was INSANE! |
 |
| The best part was spinning in the parachute :) |
 |
| Where else can you land on the beach? It was the experience of a lifetime! |
I still haven't figured out how to add videos to this website, but if you would like to check out my video from Skydive Jurien Bay - you can see it on YouTube here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M48JH4Ikgag
After my jump I had about three hours to explore Jurien Bay before the shuttle left for Perth again. So, I got myself a hardy breakfast at the local family cafe and then wandered down to the ocean. They don't call it the "Turquoise Coast" for nothin!
 |
| Jurien Bay Jetty |
 |
| Such a beautiful small town. The beach was not crowded and the water was amazing. |
On the drive back to Perth, we stopped at a few nature reserves. I HAD to get a picture here because the outback has truffula trees!! Maybe this is where Dr Seuss got his inspiration from? :)
 |
| Wanagarren Nature Preserve |
Well, that was my adventure to Perth! I definitely recommend it to anybody who is thinking of traveling to Oz - especially solo travelers. The city is extremely safe and everybody I came across was overly friendly and helpful. I hope to see you again WA!
xoxo,
Kat
