Beaches & Brews

We finally gave in and traveled a way other than a relocation. After hanging around Perth for a few days, we took the train to Fremantle and Cottesloe, beach suburbs of Perth, where we did as the locals do...we were beach bums and microbrew connoisseurs.


After enough lounging (yes, there is such a thing), we wanted to explore the southwest of Australia, in particular the Margaret River region, which is best seen by car. We rented a tiny economy-size car and made our way down to some awesome beaches and beautiful wine country. The beaches of Yallingup and Margaret River were packed with surfers, the waves head high and clean. The water was cold, full wetsuits needed, but that was no obstacle. The weather felt like September to us...warm enough to lie on the beach midday, but once the sun goes down, make sure you have some warmer clothes to put on...and no more humidity! While in Margaret River, aside from lounging on the beach, we went on a wine tour, tried some local microbrews, and explored Mammoth Cave.

After those little side trips, our time on the West Coast was nearing an end. We drove back to Perth and caught a flight back to Melbourne. We had been in Australia about 3 months at this point, and we hadn't even seen any of the East Coast!! Back in Melbourne, we met up with our friends Tanya and Mario when we went to see "the footy" - Aussie rules football. We made another visit to the famous Queen Victoria Market, and did some sightseeing we missed the first time around. Then it was on to Sydney!