Around Oz the First Time - Chapter 72 - Perth Day 2

A day in Perth, well Fremantle really as we have friends here, Sarah and Mark are from our present hometown and we wanted to catch up with them while we are here. First though there are a couple of things we need to sort out. The phone is not charging via the wall charger or the charging port. It thinks the port is wet, so we need to get to a Samsung shop to either fix the problem or come up with an alternative ie a different type of charger until we can get to a place where we can be without it for the time it will take to fix.

Robyn is woken by Silver Leader knocking on the door suggesting he is putting on the barbeque for bacon and eggs if we are interested, which sounds like a plan and she gets up and takes the ingredients to the cooking area. Whilst there it is confirmed we are all doing our own thing today. Forbsy has two separate friends he wants to catch up with and we have Sarah and Matt, so Silver Leader and Rosalie will investigate Kings Garden.

Research shows there are several Samsung shops in the Perth area, one being reasonably close, so looking to co-ordinate some time with Sarah and Matt we call them, as luck would have it they are in Bunbury at a fun run (one of their pet things to do) and will be home about 1.00pm, I arrange to meet them for a late lunch, allowing them to “lead us astray” for the afternoon, and also get the phone looked at and pick up some other items, like replace the shorts I have torn beyond repair etc.

Joondalup Shopping Centre is first on the list as it has the Samsung Shop. They play with the phone, in fact the shop assistant is very thorough, and when he can’t fix the issue, then comes up with a number of potential short-term fixes. First we could back up the phone and give it to them for 48 hours to return it to base and have the port replaced, or for the moment we could purchase a wireless charger and use SD cards to continually back it ups in case this is a precursor to a bigger problem, then have it fixed when I am not in photograph mania mode.

The second option sounds like the best for now, the phone is covered under warranty for two years in any event and I have owned it less than six. There isn’t a day when we are not taking photos or making videos for at least the next three weeks. In that event he suggests a wireless charger and that we should go to JB Hifi because they will sell SD cards for less than what the Samsung shop.

Robyn also wants a quick haircut. We find a Just Cuts but there is a 15-minute wait, that’s no problem, we can just wander for that time, perhaps a cup of tea, or something. This we do along the ground floor and then on the first level. When we come back down the escalator, we are right as the hairdressers and this is Robyn’s time. While she is dealt with, I sit and check Facebook.

Robyn is very pleased with the result. We head back to the car but not before we find a shop in which there are cute baby suits, and given we are to stop at a newborn on the way home to Smiths Lake.

Next on the list is to be led astray by Sarah and Matt. The timing is going perfectly and as we pull up outside their unit at the appointed time, they see us and jump in the car after the obligatory hugs. Sarah used to be our neighbour at Smiths Lake and I have watched her grow up. Matt also grew up in Smiths Lake, but until he met Sarah, I had not ever met him.

Their idea is the brewery in Fremantle for lunch and then the Fremantle markets and see where it goes from there. There is much to catch up on as we drive. When we arrive, I am surprised to find parking very close to our destination, although it is in a paid carpark, there are many spaces available.

It’s a short walk across the street for us to enter into the Little Creatures Brewery. I buy a round and we search for a table. Its not ridiculously busy but tables are a little difficult to find. Eventually we find one upstairs and settle in. Sarah takes control of the ordering after we discuss our preferences. It’s a but a number of share items and stick them in the middle of the table. Mussels, pizza (vegetarian), nachos, falafel and chips make it to us for consumption. Washed down with the drinks, this goes down easy.

Sarah advises against desert as the markets have a myriad of potential sweet things to tempt us after lunch. The markets are not far but we have to move the car as we have almost overstayed our welcome. In the meantime we have walked around a little and looked at some of the attractions around the port.

Parking again, we head into the Fremantle Markets. Initially it is fresh vegetables, wall to wall. In another section the temptation begins, there are sweet shops, ice cream shops and everything in between, as well as souvenir shops. Sarah has suggested we don’t buy the first thing that tempts us or we may regret it, as we find something else even more tempting later. She says this from experience she tells us.

Matt knows what he wants, a hard waffle cone with a lining of soft fluffy waffle filled with chocolate and ice cream. It looks particularly sickeningly sweet, and in the time it takes to make it, Matt confesses he made have made a mistake, having said that he devours it without apparent issues. The fun run they went on this morning in Bunbury and the calories in ran off are now replaced. Not that he needs to worry, he is in great shape as is Sarah.

Robyn and I settle for chocolate cupcakes topped with chocolate cream and in my case a large Freckle. Mine was a mistake as well, I don’t really have the space, even after the walk. I am sure Robyn is having the same issue but is not showing it. While we consume these, we get to watch a street performer. Towards the end of his presentation he suggests to the audience this is his sole source of income and implores them to contribute to his hat. I reach into my pocket to do just that, but he goes on with the show and forgets to remember the Call to Action (CTA). Big failure in my view. Most people walk away without donating anything because of his error. He asked, but at the wrong time, and given he did it before his finale he should have backed up his CTA again. Sorry, his loss.

Once we have dealt with the cupcakes and the street performer it’s on for more of Fremantle. We travel to the end of the Fremantle pier and see surfers cutting the break. Silver Leader will be very interested in what we see. We suggest to our passengers to come and look at the van and they are hugely interested. We can also have a cup of tea and perhaps find the toilets while we are at it.

Back at the van, Robyn puts on the jug and I head over to Forbsy and pinch a couple of cans of Coke. A tea drinker I am not, and I don’t think Matt is either, so the Coke will be part of the Bourbon we can consume. Because I am driving mine will need to be “gentle” while Matt is driving nowhere.

On the way home to their unit, Sarah suggests to Matt he and I should go fishing, seeing the moon is full. If a plan can be formulated, I suspect the other males in the group may well be in, and when I return back to the van, I am vindicated. In the interim Matt will check out with his mates, what are the best “from the bank” spots in the area.

Back in the van park, we talk to the others about tomorrow. Silver Leader wonders if we are willing to do Fremantle again, which is no worries as we only really saw two places, so Freemantle it is. But we are not doing anything early. 11.00am is the suggested time to leave for lunch, there is the start of Bathurst to watch, and a sleep in to be had.