Day 5 (Margaret River)

Day 5 in Margaret River

0600-0800: After an exceedingly early night of watching dvds and drinking wine, we began the day rather early as well. In fact, we had one of our most restful nights in days here. The bed was very clean and very comfortable. Its an excellent motel.

Location: 71 Bussell Highway, Margaret River, Western Australia

Website: http://www.adamsonsriverside.net.au/

Room Rate: AUD 125 per night for a Double Bedroom with Ensuite (low season)

Adamsons Riverside Motel

Courtyard

Garden

Breakfast (AUD 15)

The motel: A home away from home is what Sharon intended the place to be and it certainly shows. The room contains pretty much all the amenities needed for travelers and then some, is exceedingly comfortable, very clean and is way above average in all respects. It is a homely and rather small hotel so guests generally mingle around and make friends with each other as well which further enhances the experience. Being from Singapore, this is as close to country life as i've ever been and i loved it. I heartily recommend the place to anyone visiting this lovely region.
Breakfast: Breakfast is a simple affair with wheat bix, 2 slices of bread, milk and orange juice along with peanut butter. Honestly, it wasn't much but it was healthy and was a refreshing change from Singapore for sure.

0800 - 1000: We decided the night before we'll self drive to Cape Leeuwin since its supposed to be a historical monument and local attraction. It was a straight drive down to Augusta and beyond to get to the cape and throughout the way, it was deserted with nary a soul. I loved it. I love the open spaces and quiet streets with minimal people. No shunning from pedestrians nor knocking into inconsiderate fools. This was a place where you actually feel that the world is a big place. Anyway, we managed to get there with around 40 minutes of driving. And what follows is how it looks like.

Cape Leuwinn From Afar

Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse

The only restaurant for miles on end

View to the Left

The road we came by

Pictures of whales in the location

The splitting of oceans

Warning for foolish travelers

A lone hut on the hills

The view to the left

The lighthouse

A structure thats 112 years old

The view from the lighthouse

The lighthouse from a lookout point

The lighthouse: With tours conducted daily which allows you to travel to the top of the lighthouse to view the open oceans, the lighthouse is secluded, huge and immensely beautiful. Its also in the middle of nowhere and is the seperation point of the Indian ocean and the southern Ocean. In short, its a lovely place. Entrance is charged at AUD 10 per person for the unguided tour which does not include the climb to the top while guided tours cost a little bit more. For miles on end, the view is unimpeded and awesome. If you get lucky, whales can be sighted at this point too. Unfortunately for us, it wasn't our lucky day.
Anyhow, my impression is that the place is good for a quick look but doesn't hold enough to stay for more than 30 minutes. So before long, we set off for another attraction which i've read about which was nearby, the caves of Western Australia.

Ticket to the Jewel Cave Tour (AUD 19 per person)

Souvenir Gold Coins From the Attractions

Cave passes

The Entrance

Stalactites

Thats where we're going

Excellent creepy atmosphere

More Stalactites

Huge Formation

Coral like formation

Like a waterfall

More coral Formations

Rocks all around

The guide explaining the properties of the Stones

1100 - 1200: I've always wanted to get into a cave to see how it really feels. And so, we chose the nearest available one which was about half hours drive away, the Jewel Cave. The Jewel cave is named so because of the way the stalactites reflect over the water which makes the entire cave seemingly a sparkling gem. Our visit there did not allow us to enjoy such a view and thus the experience was somewhat milder. The tour was good though, with an enjoyable chap highlighting all the nuances that make up the cave and all the little interesting facts of how the place was found by a brave adventurer. The rocks are also surprisingly dense with the small pebble-like ones weighing up to 10 times more then other rocks of the same size. Stalactites are formed by the depositing of minerals by water seeping down from the surface and quite honestly, its amazing. This is one tour to recommend as well but do get the season pass since it gives you access to all 3 caves instead of one at the price of 2 or less. (Around AUD 30 per person)
That concludes our morning itinary and basically brings us to lunch. As we dawdled and hankered over deciding if we should go to Bunbury or Busselton for lunch, it dawned on us that both areas are at least 1.5 hours away and we promptly chucked the idea aside to instead, explore our town, Margaret River. As a matter of fact, we ended up having a meal at "The Sail" which is just a little ways up from our motel.

Coffee (Can't remember which kind)

Chicken Sandwich

Beef Steak Burger

1200-1400: Our drive back took quite a while as the distance, it turned out, was really much bigger then what was shown on the map. We thus arrived in town around 1 pm and were pretty much starving, having planned to try out the "Spagghetti Bowl" restaurant recommended by Sharon, we proceeded there only to find out the restaurant is only open at night. Undeterred, we plonked our weary selves down at the cafe next door and had our orders for lunch.
The coffee was excellent albeit fattening, one thing about Australia is that the food ain't cheap, but the beauty of it all is how tastefully done they are. I enjoyed the drink very much.
My gf had the chicken sandwich which came in hearty portions and really fresh meat. The same goes for my beef steak burger which was also positively huge. The condiments and salads topped in the burgers and sandwiches are simply fresh and enjoyable while the meat themselves were done well with marinates and once again, fresh local produce. The beef and chicken were both springy in texture, juicy and delightful. And the fries were extremely plentiful in both occasions as well. We decided cake was a bad idea for dessert and thus left the place to walk off the calories throughout the rest of town.

1400-1700: Along our little walk, we came across an ice cream parlour not far from our lunch endevour. To give you some perspective, the whole of Margaret River came be completed in less then an hour of walking. Its a small town my friends.
Well, it was selling ice cream in cold 20 degree weather which probably means its something special. Thus it was that we strolled in and purchased our first ice cream in Australia.

Remember the name, you'll be back for it i'm sure

Mango Macadamia Ice Cream (AUD 5 for single scoop)

Looking at the price, you probably are thinking that thats terribly expensive. Now, let me blow that thought away from you. Its fabulous!
We chose the award winning, only found in Margaret River flavor for our ice cream, Mango Macadamia, and i'm happy to report that it was excellent. The flavor is superbly strong but not overly sweet, with subtle splatterings of macadamia flavor interspruced within the mango and it totally does not have the acidic mango taste that the flavor usually means. Its difficult to describe just how balanced and good the taste is in writing so i'm telling you, just try it out if you are there. I guarantee its not how you expect it to taste. (This applies to everyone else but Australians who are already under the constant bliss of having such wonderful ice cream.)
Another time about ice cream in cold weather? It melts real slow, so you can walk and savor the taste for many a good minute before being compelled to finish it up.

Wine, wine, wine and more wine!! (Less than AUD 20)

Basically, our walk in town lasted long because we were searching for things to bring back to Singapore yet again. We then proceeded to the local supermarket and bought wine, orange juice and more mineral water.
All that wine you see in the picture didn't even cost more then AUD 20 bucks. It was awesome but sadly, we bought so much, we couldn't finish it in the end. Greed has its downfalls i suppose.
Margaret River: Its a nice sleepy town with quite a few souvenir shops for tourists and excellent restaurants. Walking along it is a pleasure but it doesn't take more then half a day to fully explore. I'd advise staying in this town still since the location is well centralised and gets you to pretty much everywhere else easily.

1700 - 1900: So it was that we bought our stuff and retired back to the hotel for another rest before dinner. Watching videos, planning the next day and taking lots of photos to remember the hotel by. Did i tell you i loved the motel? Oh wait, i did! But yeah, i'm telling you again, i love the motel and the town. Its awesome.

The Spaghetti Bowl

Very cosy and packed

1900-2100: We left the hotel in our vehicle after realising how dark the place is at night. The town has minimal street lamps and equally minimal pedestrians. Its highly possible to be mugged on the streets with no one to notice and thus, we drove to our restaurant for the night. Once we stepped into the restaurant, however, the entire atmosphere changed, it was bustling with life and full of happy, hungry people. The place is comfortably warm and bright as well, talk about a stark contrast with the streets! Its a great feeling to be in there and the whole rustic country feel permeates every nook and cranny. I liked the place before i've even tasted the food honestly.

Some liquor which i forgot (AUD 5-10)

They were having some offer for this but i've forgotten what its called. Either way, its terribly strong and not something i'm used to having. Good thing is, its not expensive but i wouldn't order it again.

Tomato Soup with bread (AUD 8)

My gf needed some soup and thats what we ordered. Forgive me if i got the name or price wrong but i can tell you the taste pretty well. It tasted fantastic. Bits of tomato accentuates the overall taste. It was served warm which is excellent for the cold weather and its just the right degree of spicy and sweet to be loveable. Have it with bread and its already a meal on its own. Great stuff.

Maron, prawns, squid, fish and scallops in tomato based soup (AUD 20-25)

The aftermath

Before coming, i visited some websites to see what would be a must-try local produce. The maron was singled out as it was supposedly not available anywhere else. Thus, i tried it with much enthusiasm after a nice starter.
The portion was just right with the maron placed suitable in the middle since it was the centre of attraction. To describe the maron, its basically a smaller sized lobster/prawn hybrid and tastes just like the lobster albeit smaller. Back to the dish, it was excellent as well. The serving of scallops, prawns, squid and fish was very generous to say the least and the freshness is undisputable. Crunchy prawns, springy squid, sweet fish, fresh scallops and of course, the tasty maron make this something to remember. I'd gladly pay for this again.

Seafood Pasta with scallops and prawns (AUD 15-20)

My gf had the seafood spagghetti which came in a huge bowl. But its not just the bowl that was huge, the portion size was huge as well. These guys are extremely generous in their serving size and honestly, their generous with the ingredients as well. We counted upwards of 10 scallops and crunchy prawns. The white sauce was also tastefully done by being mild and not overwhelming. The spagghetti al dente. It was another wonderfully made dish of seafood goodness. I liked this as well.

Wonderful Discount Coupon

After all is said and done, the price of the meal total around AUD 50 after discount which was extremely good value for money. Good atmosphere, great food and warm service. It doesn't get any better then this in my opinion. In fact, the moment we stepped out, we decided to be back for the following night. It was great.

Reflection on Day 5: No doubt we could have done more and gone to more places, but the travelling would have taken some of the fun away from an otherwise excellent day. I enjoyed the laid back way we explored and the simple pleasures we enjoyed. Even then, there were many things we discovered and found wonderful in the day and honestly, i wouldn't have it any other way. Day 6 was equally excellent and actually, it was also one of our best days on this trip of best days. Stay tuned as we're almost done. Just 2 days to go.

Day 4 in Perth going to Margaret River

Day 4 In Perth

0800-1100: You would no doubt have realised by now that the days are beginning to start later then when we first arrived. This day, we spent most of the morning packing up our stuff for the trip later in the afternoon and planning the route to get to Margaret River. Turns out that the journey is going to take around 4 to 5 hours just to get there. Its going to be a long drive. For the morning to afternoon though, we were going to take a cruise along the swan river and enjoy a buffet lunch. Being typical Singaporeans, we thought that it would be prudent to skip breakfast so that we can load up during lunch. With that, the journey to Swan Bell's Tower began.

Right Across Sullivans Hotel

Black Swan

Walking is one of the preferred modes of transport in Australia. Mostly because the weather is excellent, the sun is great and everything is just worth looking at. For example, right across our hotel, you can find a pond filled with all manner of birds and fish. Couple that with excellent rays from the sun and basically, its postcard perfect.

You know you are on the wrong side of the highway when.....

Chanced upon this sign quite a few times and it was cause for more then a few laughs. This was placed on the highway (of all places) and basically, if you were driving towards it, there should be quite a small commotion heading your way.
Impressions: This and quite a few signs point to the efforts made by the WA government to make finding your way around Australia easier for bungling tourists like myself. I can't mention how many times i almost got lost if not for helpful signs posted along the way. Kudos for that.

A Memorial Along the way to Swan Bell

Swan Bell Tower

This is how the sun looks in Australia

Pathway To The Quay

Our Boat for the day

Fremantle Lunch Cruise (AUD 88 per head)

Swan bell tower is as the postcards have shown. It was picturesque and stylish but to climb to the top required $ which we lightly refused. Still, it was a nice view and something that should be seen at least once.

1100 - 1400: The cruise i've been waiting and hyping myself up for. Cruising up Swan Lake towards Fremantle for lunch. A buffet lunch no less. The price is pretty steep however, at Aud 88 per head but we figured since its for close to 3 hours, it should be worth it.

Views of Perth

More on Swan Lake

The faraway coast

Sails

Perth From the Boat

Rich District

Food

More Food

The trip was long indeed. We were hungry because all we had for breakfast were a box of deformed strawberries we bought from Fremantle market the previous day. Upon boarding, your photo is taken and immediately processed to be sold to you during the journey for AUD 10 per photo. Unfortunately, our photo didn't turn out too well and we politely declined. There's an upper and lower deck with the bar on the lower deck. Everyone gets a complimentary cup of coffee or tea which is very much needed if you were sitting on the open air seats on the upper deck.
The seats were rather small and narrow but was still alright. Me and my gf were seated on the upper balcony on the open decks until we were too frozen that we finally conceded that a seat inside would be better. That wasn't the only reason though. The captain's commentary of the landscape could only be heard clearly in the sheltered seats as well.
The sights were fascinating and its amazing how the rich spend their money on lavish apartments. Overall, i'd say the commentaries were amusing.
Anyway, we were hungry, so we sat closer to the serving counter in hopes that we might be the first to the queue. Alas, this was not to be because, the crew has a system where the people seated further from the food, gets to queue for it first. The result was that we waited 20 minutes more before our turn came.
The Food: When it was our turn finally, we were stark raving mad and hungry. Thank goodness the food was pretty good or it would have been a very sour experience indeed. There were prawns, bread rolls, ham, lasagna, chicken curry, rice, potato salad and vegetable salads. And i'm pleased to report that they all tasted fresh and tasty. In particular mentioned, the lasagna, curry and prawns hit the spot pretty well.
Overall thoughts: Captain cook cruise to Fremantle is informative and interesting with nice food to boot. However, i honestly don't think its worth the money to travel down to Fremantle and back since many sights and sounds were repeated. Maybe the dinner cruise would fare better since there's entertainment or the wine cruise since there's wine sampling but on the lunch cruise, i'm gonna say: "Save your money for the other cruises with entertainment."

Adamsons Riverside Resort

Bathroom

1400 - 1900: With the cruise over, it was time to bid goodbye to Sullivans and leave for Margaret River. After asking directions from our favorite lady at the hotel, we were off to a new location that is hundreds of miles away in a country i've never been too. Now that is what fun and adventure is about.
The journey: The journey was definitely long. 4 straight hours on the road with only the countryside, trees and cows as company. It was scary too because all along the way, all we saw were a few cars going in the same or opposite directions and a few small towns. The signboards were a little confusing because one minute they had Margaret River on it and the next, the signboards don't even mention the place for a couple of tens on miles. We were worried about the petrol because it seemed a long way but it was thankfully more then sufficient.
We had to stop 3 times to look for directions and once, we were at Bunbury where we had to ask the petrol kiosk lady how to get to Margaret River. We were still on the right track and according to the lady, it was just another hundred miles to the place. By that time, however it was already 4pm or so.
So we travelled downwards again and for the next 2 hours, we got really worried as all signs stopped showing and the place was nowhere to be found. The sun was setting and there were no street lights. To say i was panicking would be an understatement. It was already dark when we arrived at an information chart to get our bearings and by this time i would really worried. It was around 6 pm and we still have not got to our location. Worse still, the map did not show Margaret River yet again! Man, i was really really worried.
After a few minutes and deciding the place was still further down, we set off again. To our great relief and surprise, the moment we turned the car and crossed a small little bridge not 400 metres in front, we saw our hotel!
Praise of all praises and happiness of all happiness. We have arrived! And not a moment too soon. The sky was already dark. And the reception, who also happened to be the lady boss of the motel was still in. Generally, the reception at Adamson's will leave by 6pm.
The motel: At first glance, the motel doesn't look like much but i'll give you the full view on the next post. The room was cosy, the boss, Ms Sharon Dancey was extremely kind and hospitable to make us feel welcome. Including the room, we also borrowed a few dvds to watch for the night as we were too tired to venture out and honestly, the place was so dark by then, it didn't seem wise to venture out. So we stayed indoors we our wine and had potato chips for dinner.

This ends day 4 on my trip and i was happy to have gotten to the motel. The cruise wasn't much to yell about but the journey to Margaret River was an eventful and trying experience. We planned our activities for the next day and it was going to be even better then this day for sure. Cheers!