This is a super long post, so make sure you've been to the loo, that you have a snack and a drink and get ready to sit and read.
Row has an aunt and a cousin who live in Perth and one of my best friends also lives there so we have been wanting to go visit them for a while. Row's parents decided to come visit us and would fly via Perth so we thought that would be a great meeting place. We left for Perth last Wednesday and were really looking forward to this holiday especially as it's Row's first holiday since he started work. We made sure we a had a bag of tricks to keep Justin entertained on the 4.5hr flight as well as lots of snacks to tide him over since we were flying a budget airline where you have to buy food on the plane. We were pleasantly surprised as Justin was quite good, there weren't too many hiccups and he managed to sleep for an hour. Plus the plane was so empty, we could have each had a row to ourselves so that meant that Justin had his own seat.
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| Looking out the window as we leave Sydney |
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| Keeping Justin busy |
First impression of Perth....it was hot, super hot, dry hot and very flat. Before entering Perth, or should I say before entering the baggage claim area, we had to declare or throw away any fresh fruit, vegetables, seeds, flowers, etc. Luckily I threw away Justin's lunch (pasta with pesto and pumpkin) and some of his strawberries because as we walked out there was a lovely little sniffer dog who immediately came sniffing around the nappy bag. Row's cousin, Chris, met us at the airport and helped us carry our one huge suitcase, one pram, one car seat, two backpacks and one nappy bag (and we were traveling light!!!!) Chris and his mom, aunty Gill, live in a lovely area on the hills which is about 40 mins from the airport so we saw a little bit of Perth on the drive home. After unpacking our luggage and having something to eat, the boys wasted no time in getting into their swimsuits and heading for the pool. Justin was introduced to aunty Gill, Chris and his girlfriend, Olivia, and soon made himself quite at home. It was a relaxing afternoon around the pool trying to get Justin onto Perth time (3hrs behind Sydney).
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| Enjoying the pool |
Row, Justin, Chris, Olivia and I caught the train downtown to have a walk about. The train is very efficient and it has air con, unlike the trains in Sydney, and thank goodness for that because it was scorching hot. We walked around the main shopping street and then went to London Court which is a street resembling an English village. Row and I were also adjusting to Perth time and we just had to have a snack as our tummies were waiting for lunch even though it was only 10:30am. We caught a free bus to Kings Park which is their botanical gardens and bought fish and chips and had a picnic lunch with a view of Perth city and Swan River.
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| London Court |
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| A view of Perth city and Swan River from Kings Park |
After our lunch it was time to head home as Row's parents were due to arrive and we knew they would be eager to see Justin. It being Chinese New Year, we celebrated with a feast. It was nice to celebrate CNY again and with family. On Friday we headed out to Freemantle as we wanted to avoid the weekend crowds. We didn't go to the beach but we did walk through the Freemantle Markets and then had lunch at Cicerellos. There was a lovely playground which gave Justin a chance to stretch his legs and get rid of excess energy.
I had plans to see my friend Lee-Anne and her boyfriend Jeff over the weekend and was so looking forward to it because we hadn't seen each other since we left South Africa. They came over to Row's aunt for a barbecue dinner and due to the lovely weather, we decided to eat outside although the wind had picked up by then. Really unusual for Perth weather was the drafty cool wind which had us all scrambling for jumpers. We had plans to meet up at Point Walter for a picnic on Sunday as it is a very child friendly picnic spot with a beach area, playground and barbecue area. After wandering around a bit and Chris and Olivia looking after Justin, the parents barbecuing, we finally sat down on our picnic blankets to enjoy the good weather, good food and good company when Chris got a phone call alerting him to the fire that had started in their suburb. Thinking all would be okay, we continued with the picnic and Chris kept in contact with his friend until we heard that they had started evacuating the area and aunty Gill's road was being evacuated. This all happened within a space of about 15 mins, us sitting down to eat lunch till getting the news and just packing up and throwing everything into Lee-Anne's car as the others had left in a hurry to go find out what was happening. Driving nearer to the hills, the sky was just filled with a black cloud of smoke and we saw a helicopter flying overhead throwing water bombs over the flames. They had already closed down the roads denying access to residents. It is scary and stressful just having to sit tight and wait for news, not being allowed to go home to see if everything is okay. Eventually we went to aunty Gill's office to wait and decide what we were going to do. The authorities were very organised; they had an evacuation centre set up, there was a hotline to call if you wanted any information and a direct line for any residents who were affected. Throughout this whole afternoon, Justin was a superstar. He knew things were off kilter and he was tired and a bit clingy but otherwise being a good boy, playing with his new scooter, drawing, playing with ice. Knowing that we would not be able to go home, aunty Gill's friend kindly took us all in and opened her home to us, making us feel very welcome. We had to do a toiletries run at the supermarket and get some milk for Justin but aunty Gill's friend gave us everything else, a bed, a shower, dinner and breakfast; truly remarkable as this was the first time she met us and she and her husband showed us such warmth and hospitality. Throughout the afternoon, Lee and Jeff were super amazing too, driving us all over to keep us all together, sitting and waiting with us without even hinting that they had work the next day. They came through again for us the next day as aunty Gill and my in-laws were headed to the evacuation center to determine what needed to be done and they just wanted Justin to have a "home base" and to feel settled and secure. Thankfully, aunty Gill and Chris finally knew that their house had been unaffected by the fire but they still weren't letting people back into their homes as the fires were still burning. Lee took the day off from work, arranged a mattress and linen (thank you Sharmaine) and came to fetch Row, Justin and I and took us shopping for a change of clothes and then we stayed at her home for the day, eventually heading out for a drive to Hillarys which is what we had planned anyway. Lee and Jeff opened up their home to us for the night and we had a lovely dinner, a hot shower and a bed to sleep on. Tuesday was no better but at least we were able to sleep in clean clothes and do laundry at Lee so we could change into clean clothes. Aunty Gill collected us and took us to the evacuation center where it was another waiting game. Walking into the evacuation center, I realised the generosity of these people; there was bottled water, tea, coffee, biscuits, cakes, food, toiletries, clothes, toys, shoes, beds, pillows, blankets and these were all donations. There was actually a sign on the front door saying "Please don't send any more donations as we have more than enough"!!!!!!!! We stayed at the evacuation center then we went to a mall for some air con and took Justin to the playground and eventually got the go ahead to be escorted to the house to collect our belongings as we were leaving the following day. The authorities would not allow Justin back up to the house so my father-in-law stayed behind with Justin and I. However, half an hour later, Chris called to say that their road had opened up and we could go into the house although there was no power. We did not see much of the devastation that ripped through this suburb as those roads were still closed but we still saw some burnt trees and patches of grass. Luckily aunty Gill has solar panels so there was hot water for showers and baths. We packed all our bags before the sun set and then grabbed a quick dinner. We all decided to sleep at the house that night even though there was no power. At 1:30am, there was banging on the door and we were told to leave the house as the fires had started again. Adrenaline just started pumping and we knew we had to get out of the house calmly but at the same time trying to grab everything that you think you need like Justin, your mobile phone, the car seat, the pram, your passports and wallets. It was even scarier because in the newspapers, some of the residents said they had literally been given 5 mins to get out of their houses because the fire was spreading so rapidly. Aunty Gill, my mother-in-law, Row, Justin and I made it to the evacuation center but Chris and my father-in-law went somewhere else and actually managed to talk to the fire department and police and were told that the fire was under control and that it was okay to go home. Not wanting to take another chance, especially with Justin who was really unsettled, we decided to stay the night at the evacuation center although Row, my father-in-law, aunty Gill and Chris went home to grab our bags.
I had plans to see my friend Lee-Anne and her boyfriend Jeff over the weekend and was so looking forward to it because we hadn't seen each other since we left South Africa. They came over to Row's aunt for a barbecue dinner and due to the lovely weather, we decided to eat outside although the wind had picked up by then. Really unusual for Perth weather was the drafty cool wind which had us all scrambling for jumpers. We had plans to meet up at Point Walter for a picnic on Sunday as it is a very child friendly picnic spot with a beach area, playground and barbecue area. After wandering around a bit and Chris and Olivia looking after Justin, the parents barbecuing, we finally sat down on our picnic blankets to enjoy the good weather, good food and good company when Chris got a phone call alerting him to the fire that had started in their suburb. Thinking all would be okay, we continued with the picnic and Chris kept in contact with his friend until we heard that they had started evacuating the area and aunty Gill's road was being evacuated. This all happened within a space of about 15 mins, us sitting down to eat lunch till getting the news and just packing up and throwing everything into Lee-Anne's car as the others had left in a hurry to go find out what was happening. Driving nearer to the hills, the sky was just filled with a black cloud of smoke and we saw a helicopter flying overhead throwing water bombs over the flames. They had already closed down the roads denying access to residents. It is scary and stressful just having to sit tight and wait for news, not being allowed to go home to see if everything is okay. Eventually we went to aunty Gill's office to wait and decide what we were going to do. The authorities were very organised; they had an evacuation centre set up, there was a hotline to call if you wanted any information and a direct line for any residents who were affected. Throughout this whole afternoon, Justin was a superstar. He knew things were off kilter and he was tired and a bit clingy but otherwise being a good boy, playing with his new scooter, drawing, playing with ice. Knowing that we would not be able to go home, aunty Gill's friend kindly took us all in and opened her home to us, making us feel very welcome. We had to do a toiletries run at the supermarket and get some milk for Justin but aunty Gill's friend gave us everything else, a bed, a shower, dinner and breakfast; truly remarkable as this was the first time she met us and she and her husband showed us such warmth and hospitality. Throughout the afternoon, Lee and Jeff were super amazing too, driving us all over to keep us all together, sitting and waiting with us without even hinting that they had work the next day. They came through again for us the next day as aunty Gill and my in-laws were headed to the evacuation center to determine what needed to be done and they just wanted Justin to have a "home base" and to feel settled and secure. Thankfully, aunty Gill and Chris finally knew that their house had been unaffected by the fire but they still weren't letting people back into their homes as the fires were still burning. Lee took the day off from work, arranged a mattress and linen (thank you Sharmaine) and came to fetch Row, Justin and I and took us shopping for a change of clothes and then we stayed at her home for the day, eventually heading out for a drive to Hillarys which is what we had planned anyway. Lee and Jeff opened up their home to us for the night and we had a lovely dinner, a hot shower and a bed to sleep on. Tuesday was no better but at least we were able to sleep in clean clothes and do laundry at Lee so we could change into clean clothes. Aunty Gill collected us and took us to the evacuation center where it was another waiting game. Walking into the evacuation center, I realised the generosity of these people; there was bottled water, tea, coffee, biscuits, cakes, food, toiletries, clothes, toys, shoes, beds, pillows, blankets and these were all donations. There was actually a sign on the front door saying "Please don't send any more donations as we have more than enough"!!!!!!!! We stayed at the evacuation center then we went to a mall for some air con and took Justin to the playground and eventually got the go ahead to be escorted to the house to collect our belongings as we were leaving the following day. The authorities would not allow Justin back up to the house so my father-in-law stayed behind with Justin and I. However, half an hour later, Chris called to say that their road had opened up and we could go into the house although there was no power. We did not see much of the devastation that ripped through this suburb as those roads were still closed but we still saw some burnt trees and patches of grass. Luckily aunty Gill has solar panels so there was hot water for showers and baths. We packed all our bags before the sun set and then grabbed a quick dinner. We all decided to sleep at the house that night even though there was no power. At 1:30am, there was banging on the door and we were told to leave the house as the fires had started again. Adrenaline just started pumping and we knew we had to get out of the house calmly but at the same time trying to grab everything that you think you need like Justin, your mobile phone, the car seat, the pram, your passports and wallets. It was even scarier because in the newspapers, some of the residents said they had literally been given 5 mins to get out of their houses because the fire was spreading so rapidly. Aunty Gill, my mother-in-law, Row, Justin and I made it to the evacuation center but Chris and my father-in-law went somewhere else and actually managed to talk to the fire department and police and were told that the fire was under control and that it was okay to go home. Not wanting to take another chance, especially with Justin who was really unsettled, we decided to stay the night at the evacuation center although Row, my father-in-law, aunty Gill and Chris went home to grab our bags.
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| Our night in the evacuation center |
The good news: aunty Gill's and Chris's house was unaffected by the fire. We made our flight and arrived back in Sydney safe and sound with all our belongings. My in-laws also made their flight and are now enjoying a more relaxing holiday.
This is certainly a holiday that we will never forget!
