Perth
Our arrival in Perth on 22nd Dec was approached with great anticipation. We'd been building up to it on many counts, Christmas being the big one but also seeing our friends, having other kids to play with, sleeping in a house again after two straight months on the road and a chance to scrub everything clean. It felt like a big milestone; and we weren't disappointed. We had a very special time in Perth.
We were greeted by a full Randazzo house. Sam, Lexi, Jess and her 3 kids were all home when we arrived and Renee arrived later that afternoon. Short of being with our own family for Christmas, we couldn’t have asked for a warmer embrace. We all felt immediately at home. The kids were in heaven with a house full of new toys and two playmates, (Theo and Ella each a year older than Hugh and Claire respectively). After settling in we all cooled off in the pool then Sam cooked us self-caught fish and chips, putting all our previous fish and chip dinners to shame. A perfect start to our Christmas holiday!
We had five full days in Perth, one of those was of course Christmas. We used most mornings to do a bit of site seeing while the afternoons were enjoyed being in an air-conditioned home, as temps we're in high 30s/low 40s every day.
Our visit to Fremantle the next day included a coffee stop at Gino’s, a quinisential Aussie-Italio cultural experience and hands down the best coffee I can remember ever having in my life!
That evening WA announced a local covid case and subsequent social restrictions including, shock horror, masks in public spaces! There is a definite sense of foreboding.
On Christmas Eve Matthias escaped with the kids to Point Walter on the river and Leighton Beach while I discovered the Spudshed with Sam and Lexie and helped prep for Christmas.
We’d been building on the Christmas hype with Hugh, counting down the sleeps each evening at bed time and making long wish lists for Santa. Lexie helped to create the magic by whipping up a stocking each for the kids, so the last thing we did before bed was hang the stockings and leave a note and nuts for Santa. And a pre-chewed carrot for the reindeer - Claire can’t resist a tasty carrot.
Christmas day was superb with a house full of cousins aunts and uncles, food and gifts galore, toys and pool time. The kids were angels from start to finish. I was sure there would be mid afternoon melt downs but they proved me wrong. Even their manners were impeccable.
We had an early call in with Adelaide where Hugh showed signs of homesickness. He'd turned suddenly shy when Lexie had shown him a picture of Nanny earlier in the week and he did the same when he saw Emma and Ben Delaney at Church Tce for Christmas breakfast. I think the sudden reminder of the people he normally loves being with got him feeling momentarily sad. But the moment passed quickly and an excellent day with new friends and happy memories was had by all.
Boxing Day was another scorcher. We spent the morning at Cottesloe Beach and had a brief visit to Kings Park. The rest of the day was spent in the pool and I got some much needed itinerary planning in.
The fun continued with a morning out fishing in Sam’s boat - one of Hugh’s Christmas wishes come true. We only went a short stretch out from the Cockburn marina. Claire didn’t want a bar of it and despite his palpable excitement at being on a boat, Hugh’s face was a rictus of terror when Sam put the motor in full throttle. But he held it together the little trooper, and within minutes of dropping anchor he had pulled in his first fish. We landed mainly blow fish and trumpeters but did take home three Herring (Tommy Rough) to round out the day with a fish starter. Big thanks to Sam for going to all the effort for us. It has left a lasting impression on our very happy fisher boy.
On the 28th we packed up and bid short-term farewell to the Randazzos. We had organised a six day house sit in Donnybrook, 2.5h south of Perth and we needed to be there the day before to do a handover. Handover complete we drove on to Dallyelup, south of Bunbury, to overnight with our friends Tony, Holly and Gus. A sunset swim at the beach was the perfect end to a big transit day.
