A few years ago I took the Ghan Train trip from Darwin to Adelaide, Australia, and loved every moment of it so I made it my mission to take the Indian Pacific train from Perth to Sydney.   I would then have travelled from the top to the bottom  and from the West coast to the East coast of Australia. It's pretty satisfying to carry out a plan. This was the plan but in reverse ( Photo Indian Pacific Publicity) In high anticipation I duly booked the trip and flew the seven and a half hours to Perth from Auckland.  Perth is a fresh, modern city and I liked t ..read more

Rottnest Island (Aboriginal name Wadjemup) lies 19 kilometres off the coast of Perth. It is a sandy, low lying island so named by the Dutch explorer, De Vlamingh in 1696, who called it "Paradise on earth" but thought the adorable little quokka that inhabit the island looked like large rats. I was keen to visit the island I had heard so much about, and especially to see the quokka, so on a bright and sunny autumn day I set off with two travelling companions on the ferry from Perth.  We had all bought a package tour which included the ferry trip, admission to the island, lunch and a bus tou ..read more

 Fremantle is a lovely historic, maritime town located at the mouth of the Swan River and is West Australia's main port. It is a compact town, ideal for walking, where the streets are full of buildings little changed since the 19th century. It is just dripping with character and I loved the opportunity to step back in time.  I spent a couple of hours strolling around, taking photos and stopping here and there for a rest or a coffee at one of the many lovely cafes in town and then enjoying a late lunch at the Kalis Fish Market Cafe (highly recommend this) overlooking the fishing boat ..read more

 Ever since Australia won the America's Cup in Freemantle in 1983 I have wanted to go there. The feed back from visitors at the time was that it was a quaint, historic, maritime town and that sounded like my kind of place.  I was also keen to see the Maritime Museum and more particularly the America's Cup display. West Australia Maritime Museum, Freemantle A part of my job as a guide at New Zealand's National Maritime Museum in Auckland is leading America's Cup tours. I love that part of my work and am always keen to add to my knowledge.  Since Freemantle  is just ..read more

 I had a good feeling the moment I set foot in the large, airy, new railway station at Perth airport, it was a great first impression of the capital of West Australia.  And the good impressions continued, from the friendly, chatty locals on the train to the helpful people along the way when I couldn't find my hotel.  I had arrived mid evening on a Saturday night, the streets were thronging with good natured people out for the night and, as it turned out, my hotel was hidden down a side street.  There was a good vibe about the place and I was looking forward to exploring the ..read more

 It was another glorious morning in this lovely part of the country and we were up and ready to go by 7.30. But first, breakfast, which we had at the White Elephant Beach Cafe overlooking the sea at Gnarabup Beach. This is a popular surf beach and we enjoyed the sublime view, ate our breakfast and then drove the length of the beach to watch the surfers tackling the breakers. With the sunshine, surf and gleaming white sand it was a fantastic sight. View from the cafe, Gnarabup Beach The next stop was at the Yahava Koffee Works, a coffee roasting company where we were greeted by th ..read more

 I had heard so many people talk enthusiastically about their trips to Margaret River that I just had to go to see for myself.  I had flown from New Zealand  to Perth to take a trip on the Indian Pacific train which crosses the Nullabor Plain to Sydney (more about this in a later post). Anyway I planned the trip to have a few extra days to explore the Margaret River region so booked a 3 day tour with McLeod's tours, a small family run business.  Always keen for a new adventure I, along with 9 other passengers, was raring to go early on the first morning. Our first stop on t ..read more

 Any excuse to go to Waiheke Island is a good excuse and none more so than spending a glorious summer's day enjoying the bi-annual sculpture trail, Sculptures on the Gulf. This year it is titled Anything Could Happen.  With my friend, Pat, I set off on the enjoyable 35 minute ferry ride from downtown Auckland to the island, looking forward to what the exhibition had to offer.  The trail is 2 and a half kilometres long and winds around the Matiatia headland providing magnificent views along with thought provoking art installations.  This year there are 21 pieces,  fewer ..read more

  To be honest I had never heard of the internationally acclaimed Chinese fashion designer, coutourier and artist, Guo Pei before her exhibition, Guo Pei: Fashion. Art. Fantasy. opened at Auckland Art Gallery.  I went to see it yesterday on the recommendation of a friend.  All I can say is that I was completely blown away by the astonishing beauty and inventiveness of her creations. The garments on show are taken from eight of her couture collections and lead visitors through dream lands, magical gardens, gothic tales, cosmic and ancient Chinese myths and legends.  The lu ..read more

On a family holiday to Greece to celebrate my special birthday I was lucky enough to be treated by the family to dinner at this truly lovely restaurant.  Olea Kouzinaki is located in a quiet garden on a hillside overlooking the town of Argostoli. It is a bit out of the way and not easy to find but well worth the effort. Family meal under the olives As we are a family of nine a special table had been set up for us under the olive trees.  It was perfect since we had three children under 12 and they had plenty of room to get up and move around without disturbing other din ..read more