The City of Perth – A Newcomers Perspective

This is a gorgeous city!

It is full of parks of all sizes, lakes, 2 rivers (the Swan and the Canning) and the Indian Ocean. Water is clear blue with gorgeous sandy beaches. There are boats everywhere (well, primarily in the water.) There is so much nature and outdoor life to enjoy.

We have been here two weekends and on Sundays we have enjoyed breakfast on the Indian Ocean and Matilda Bay. There is outdoor dining “al fresco” everywhere. Views are spectacular.

Housing along the water is phenomenal. There are so many beautiful mansions with breathtaking views. There is no one style of architecture. The homes range from Mediterranean to Miami Vice modern to just gorgeous.

It is like living in a vacation paradise. We think we have won the lottery!!!!

REALITY CHECK

Okay, there are some downsides to life in Perth.

There is an economic boom going on right now – mining and oil and gas. This translates to “accommodation is impossible to find!” And we need a home. REALITY CHECK: The beautiful housing is not within our reach.

Our first 10 days here we stayed in a very very basic apartment hotel and are now in a very basic furnished 2 bedroom home for the next 3 weeks. REALITY CHECK: As of March 11th we will be homeless. And we have no prospects on the horizon. ANOTHER REALITY CHECK: This is not an enviable situation to be in.

Normally The Worry Queen would be frantic over our homeless situation. However, for some bizarre reason, I’m not. WOW! It is just such a novel concept to go through life without worrying! I should have tried this sooner! (Maybe I’m taking the Aussie expression “No Worries” to heart.)

However, if I am writing about our homeless situation from a beachside tent it will not be such a novelty looking out at the beautiful blue ocean. And if I am still writing about our lack of accommodation in June I will probably be writing from an institution of some sort. REALITY CHECK: I guess that would mean I am no longer homeless and Dawson would be visiting ME in the lock-up.

From our perspective, prices are extremely expensive. For instance, on my first grocery shopping trip I found: pink lady apples @ $10/kg ($5/lb), bananas @ $5/kg ($2.50/lb), box of cereal @ $10, cherries @ $30/kg ($15/lb), Caesar salad in the restaurant $25, 6 pack of beer $20 (the staple of all life), cell phone $0.35 connect fee plus $0.27 per ½ minute, gas at $1.79/litre ($6/gal)…. And the list goes on.

When we are shocked by prices, or unfamiliar things, or feel like complaining, we have a new expression – “Dorothy, you’re not in Houston anymore!” There was a period of time where it was being muttered “occasionally”, which necessitated shortening it to “DOROTHY!”

In addition to being homeless we are also carless. We are looking to buy a Honda CRV, which will cost MORE than the TOTAL that we sold BOTH of our cars for. Once again “Dorothy, you’re not in Houston anymore!” To add to the challenge, car dealerships are only open until 6pm, except for Wednesday until 9:00pm, Saturday until 1:00pm and closed all day Sunday. “DOROTHY!”

At this point we would have to say that people in Perth take their leisure time and leisure activities very seriously. As they should – sand and surf and outdoor living abound. However, that means car dealerships have limited operating hours, stores are not open evenings or Sundays…. Dorothy!!! Well, downtown (CBD – Central Business District) stores are open Friday night and suburban shops are open Thursday night. We have heard rumour that there are some stores open on Sundays. So far the majority of them have remained elusive to us. Although, Sundays we have found quite a few liquor stores are open. Dorothy….

Despite the whining, we have noticed that Dorothy has been much quieter lately, so this is a good thing.

Once we have a home and wheels y’all are invited down for a visit to check it out for yourself!

We do still believe we have won the lottery.




BTW - Dawson gets out of Quarantine Sunday March 2nd. I have finally abandoned thoughts of cutting a hole in the fence and making a run for it with him.