2015 CNY in Australia

Perth (Part 1)

The 1 week CNY break in Perth was planned way back early last year. My only previous trip to Perth was more than 30 years ago, on my way home from NZ. It would be near end of summer over there, so perfect weather for some travelling in and around Perth. The idea of renting a house and car made good sense. 

The itinerary was well planned and everything was set to go. What was unforeseen was the daughter's qualification for Melbourne U and her decision to accept the offer, all within a short month.  

What complicated matters  was the date she had to report for registration at Melbourne U fell within the week we were supposed to be holidaying in Perth. The otherwise leisurely and relaxing holiday was thus cut short to a hectic 5 days. The return trip from Perth was aborted as we had to detour with a direct domestic flight from Perth to Melbourne on the very morning she was due to report at the University.

Perth remained a quiet  small city with little night life or other distractions. By 6 pm almost all the shops were closed except for maybe the odd Pubs around the corner. There was no traffic jam in the city. In a smaller town like Albany we had difficulty with even finding  a place that was open for lunch on a Sunday. Going around you could actually feel the laid back life style of the Aussies.  Being so quiet and peaceful, perhaps Perth is an ideal city to pursue ones academic ambition.

 

 
 My deepest impression of Perth was how disciplined the drivers were. Traffic rules were extremely stringent and everyone abide by them. The reason could  either be coercion due to no nonsense enforcement or long term mindset cultivation. Stipulated speed limits zone were observed to the tee. I did not witness a single incidence of speeding or reckless driving. No one flashed a headlight, or sounded the horn  in exasperation or impatience. No one jumped queues or cut lanes. Drivers signaled every time they changed lanes even when there was no other car 100 m behind them. Everyone was so polite giving ways. 

 Being a typical Malaysian driver it get some using to trying to drive the safe and defensive way. Imagine driving strictly below 110 km for 6 hours on the freeway. It was painstakingly boring. Only  one car overtook me in the 6 hours stretch and I strongly suspected that it was another Malaysian or Singaporean driver. 


 
 

simon 8 march 2015




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