28/4/02

Back to M&T's, unpacked everything, did the laundry and were fed. I like Australia, they feed you all the time!

26/4/02

Took a trip to Rottnest Island. We should have ridden bikes around it was only about 10 miles, we didn't know about that until after we had booked a bus tour. The driver/guide was very funny and made it more enjoyable, shame both our cameras ran out. Went out for a meal in the evening which was most pleasant.

24/4/02

Went to Perth mint, it's quite interesting, we managed to get our grubby hands on a gold bar, although they wouldn't let us out the door with it. We missed the first 5 minutes of the tour because we were late, not our fault though as we didn't even know there was a tour. We watched a gold pouring demo, the guy spilt some for the first time ever, it must be our influence.

22/4/02

Went to Freemantle, it's very colonial. All the old buildings, or just the fronts of them in some cases, have been restored. It's quite colourful in parts. I think we would stay here if Roy and Fran didn't live in Perth, there are lots of hotels and backpackers hostels. The restaurants, pubs and cafes all look good as well, we had a sarny in a street. We did a tour of the city on the tram, which is just a done up bus, still very good and we got to see lots.

20/4/02

Drove to Bunbury to see the dolphins, no one told them though and they didn't show up. Drove all the way back through Bussleton to Yallingup to the Ngilgi caves. They were smaller than the ones in Laos but still OK. It's more organised with proper lights and walkways. Drove back to Perth after, got lost in Perth for 2hrs, doh! There's no road signs & we didn't have a map so we used the force. Got home in the end.

18/4/02

Started the day at Whale World, a former whaling station. It's quite gruesome but very interesting. We drove for 2 hours along the coast through Denmark to Walpole & the valley of the giants. It's a lot of big eucalyptus trees, we did the tree top walk which is really good. The golf course was very good though, a bit like Tilgate with sun and the trees were easy to get out of. a 600m long elevated platform that starts at ground level and goes up to 40m through the tree tops. Had another 2 1/2 hr drive up to Bussleton to find somewhere to stay. Broke all the speed limits so we didn't get there too late. We are in the Amaroo motel. It's OK, $55/night. Had fish & chips for tea.

14/4/02

Played golf, hurrah, at last! I didn't play that well, shot 101, I was knackered by the 12th & didn't have any bananas so I wasn't concentrating for the last bit, I did hit a few good shots and at least three long putts. The golf course was very good though, a bit like Tilgate with sun and the trees were easy to get out of. We went to Hillary's harbour for some lunch and to see Underwater World (now called Aqua), it was excellent, there's a 98m long underwater tunnel that you go through on a conveyor belt and you can see sharks and sting rays. We saw the seals as well.

12/4/02

Spent the day in Changi airport as it's supposed to be nice, it was. Didn't buy anything but wondered round quite a lot. Got the plane OK, bit of a bumpy flight. Met Roy and Fran OK at the airport.

10/4/02

We went to Jurong bird park. It's a bit like the zoo, I'm sure the birds would be happier if they didn't have their wings clipped! Not all of them have though, the birds of prey were good, some of the eagles are enormous. There is a huge covered aviary with an artificial waterfall in which all the birds are flying around. Next stop was Raffles landing site. It has all been done up & there is a walk, only short, to see the old buildings. We saw :- the landing site & quay, parliament house, Victoria concert hall, some war memorials. The cricket club, the high court and finished up in the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel for a Singapore sling, they're not bad, a bit pink. Went and got my digital camera, not the one I went in for as they didn't have a warranty.

8/4/02

Moved to Singapore, it's very clean. Found our hotel, the Alana, it's quite a way out of the city, it's ok though. The room we had booked was too small so we have moved up to a medium. We went shopping in the afternoon, armed with my list. We got the Gameboys very easily for about £45 each, the games seem to be the same price as the UK, we'll have to try and find a night market! We went to Sim Lim Square which is the place to go for IT stuff. It's rubbish, they don't have what I want, most people looked at me like I was mad, the ones that did know didn't have it, one lady had heard of it but said it wasn't available in Singapore. Nearly brought a digital camera but they didn't have an international warranty, going back Wednesday to pick it up. We went into the basement and had dinner in the food hall, we both had Korean food it was very nice and very cheap.

6/4/02

Left the hotel at about 10ish and tried to find breakfast, failed! Set off on our sightseeing walk in the end after a cup of coffee by the river. Saw the old Dutch buildings then climbed St Paul's hill to see the ruined Portuguese church on the top, then down the other side to the replica sultans palace, the remains of a fort and independence hall. After a quick snack we went round a museum housed in a full size replica of a Portuguese galleon. Had a walk round the shopping mall to finish things off but it was rubbish, not as good as KL.

4/4/02

Up early for sightseeing tour. Headed straight for the Petronas towers, I had read that we needed to be there by 8:30am to get tickets so we were. Went on the LRT train which was very efficient, the underground should be this good. There was hardly anyone there and we were near the front of the queue, we had to wait for 45mins for the doors to open. Although the signs said the first tour was at 10am it was really 9:30 so we went straight up to the skybridge. Good view although it was still a bit hazy, the park is very nice. I didn't think the towers looked that tall when I was stood at the bottom, maybe it's because they taper in. We walked round the KLCC shopping mall after, it's in the base and was five floors of "posh" shops, quite a few English (M&S, Topshop/Topman, Bodyshop) and designer shops, lots of jewellers, we saw some really nice Faberge rings for £1500, I would have brought one if I was still working. Next stop was Merdeka Square to see the old buildings. It's very clean and has obviously been restored. The shopping complex under the cricket pitch was a bit naff but we got some sarnies for lunch. Walked down to KL station next, it wasn't as good as I thought, it could do with a clean. Worked our way over to KL tower for the final part of the day. The observation deck is at 276m and because the tower is on a 90m hill you're actually quite a lot higher than the sky bridge in the Petronas towers. Very good audio tour, it was still hazy but you could see all of KL. Went to the night market after dinner and brought 5 DVD's for £7 and 3 CD's for £4, the CD's are all good, hope the DVD's are as well.

2/4/02

Up late again. Went to book train tickets to Kuala Lumpur but they are only running overnight at the moment due to engineering works. We have booked a bus instead, hope it's OK, they say it's super VIP. Continued our city walk, the Syed Alatas mansion was the most interesting with good displays on how the houses/shops have developed in the town. Went to the Penang road after to see the shopping malls. It's huge! Went to McDonalds for a drink, it was either that or Starbucks. Came home via Campbell Street which is another shopping area, it's very colourful. I lost another pair of sunglasses today, 3rd pair. They had been slipping off all day due to sweaty head, outside one of the Hindu temples I sneezed and they came flying off, they took one bounce then fell down a drain grill, doh! I wasn't going after them.

29/4/02

Popped to the local shops then did a quick tour of Melbourne city, stopped at the tourist office to pick up loads of brochures.

27/4/02

Roy and Fran took us to the airport to get our flight to Melbourne. Margaret, Tony and Katherine met us. Straight off the plane and got ready to go out as I was invited to Liz's hen night. Went for a meal at a pub where there was a band and a disco later, had a good time.

25/4/02

Roy's birthday today so we went for a picnic BBQ. Met some more of their family, the weather turned out good, it was a nice day.

23/4/02

Had things planned but after a slow start things didn't really happen. In the end we just visited Sandlefords winery which was very enjoyable, especially the wine tasting!

21/4/02

Met Roy's son Sean and his girlfriend. Fran did a nice lunch. Went to the driving range with them, sat in the car and read my book.

19/4/02

Drove to Augusta to visit the lighthouse, it was closed. We did touch the oceans though, the Indian and Southern. Aub had to visit the golf course so he could have his photo taken. We were next heading for Ngilgi cave but decided to stop at Margaret River to have a look at the surfing competition. By the time we had done that we were too late for the cave. Went back to Bussleton and walked along the jetty, it's 2km. Stayed in Bussleton another night.

17/4/02

Picked up the car and headed down south to Albany. Found a cabin in a holiday park. Went for a walk around Albany and had a look at the old colonial buildings. Popped to the shops then cooked dinner, steak and mash. It was wonderful.

15/4/02

Caught the bus into Perth. Did a walk through the main centre seeing most of the major sights.

13/4/02

Arrived in the early hours and were met at the airport by Roy and Fran. Had a lazy day, strolled to the shops, went to the driving range with Aub and Roy. Fran cooked a lovely roast dinner and we met her son Glenn.

11/4/02

After going back to the Sim Lim centre, hopefully for the last time, we went to Mount Faber where Aub's grandparents lived before WW2. From there we caught the cable car to Sentosa Island. We visited Siloso Fort.

9/4/02

Went to Singapore zoo. Haven't been to the zoo for years. Although the animals were not in cages, they still didn't have much room to roam around.

7/4/02

Lazy day, had a croissant and coffee at the cafe over the road and strolled around town.

5/4/02

Got the bus to Melaka, arrived about 11:30. Walked around the corner to one of the hotels we had listed. We had planned to look at all three hotels we had chosen before we decided on one to stay in, but we stopped at the first. Walked around for ages trying to find somewhere to get our laundry done, found one just along the road from where we are staying in the end.

3/4/02

Got the bus to Kuala Lumpur, a luxury bus just like they said! Didn't walk too far before we found somewhere to stay, not too bad. Went for a walk and a bite to eat, got home just before it rained, thunder and lightening too.

1/4/02

Visited Fort Cornwallis. Went into the nearby tourist office and they gave us a map of a walk we could do of the town. We visited Penang museum which was very interesting. Later we decided to go up Penang hill, it took slightly longer than we thought and we missed sunset. The views were still impressive.