20100918 Warnbro WA
(Picture Link – O) (Picture Link – D)
We had breakfast at the motel, then checked out. We took one last drive through King's Park, then drove south on routes 5 & 12, through Fremantle and along the coast. We discovered quite a few large complexes that require shipping, such as refineries and grain terminals. There was also the Garden Island – Navy Base West facility.
When we approached Kwinana, beaches appeared along with nice homes across the road from them. We kept on to Rockingham and Paul's house.
Paul had son Daniel and daughter Pamela with him for the weekend, so we met them. We recovered for a bit, then went out to the Marapana Wildlife World so Dolores could see a wombat. We saw (and fed) a lot of other beasts and birds as well as we strolled around the place. Paul says it’s a standard trip for visitors, and we now know why.
There were koalas, peacocks, emu, ostrich, roos, roos, more roos, wombats, a few deer, parrots, and other things (see pictures).
We returned to the house and watched the start of the “preliminary final” of the Australian Football League, with St Kilda vs. the Western Bulldogs. Paul explained many of the rules as it went along, so now we have a far greater understanding of the game.
Then we went to dinner at the Last Drop tavern down the road. Good food, good dark ale (they brew their own), lots of people in the place (Friday night) including a friend of Paul's.
Back at the house, we found that St Kilda had won the game, eighty-something to sixty-something. So it will be St Kilda vs. Collingwood in the finals next Saturday – maybe we can catch it at home.
During the game, Dolores showed Pamela her iPad. Pamela took to it instantly and, through playing games and experimenting, showed Dolores things she didn't know about her own machine.
Paul was suffering from a cold and cough all day, and we tired early, so we all went to bed to rest.
20100919 Warnbro WA
(Picture Link – D)
We rose quietly and gradually got going. I found a church for Dolores not far away and took her to it. She stumbled into another first communion episode. According to her, the place was jammed to the walls and not all that organized. She said that, despite a lot of familiarity with US masses, it felt a little odd.
Back at Paul's place, we sat for a while, then drove south to Mandurah, where a markets event was supposed to be happening along the waterfront. The day was absolutley beautiful – 75*, sunny, and breezy. The markets weren't happening there, but we stayed anyway and wandered around the waterfront. Many picnics in progress, etc. One group was feeding a white pelican that stood a few feet from their blanket.
We did find a market in a building that had souvenirs Dolores wanted (and some of which she bought).
Paul got a phone call from a friend, so a lunch meeting was arranged at Catch 22 at the marina. Two ladies came along, we all chatted and ate and chatted. After a while, it broke up. We strolled back to the car and returned to Warnbro.
Paul's friend Peter O'Donohue (POD) came along a while later. We'd “met” on the submariner BBS's but not face-to-face. We had a good time telling stories, some of which can't be told here. But I'll remember them for e-mailing to the appropriate people.
POD left after a lot of laughs. Paul cooked up a simple spaghetti dish, which was just right after all the fancy food and recognizing we have to leave early tomorrow morning for the airport.
Then Daniel started on Dolores’s iPad and also found new things she didn’t know about. Both he and Pamela have been most gracious to us while we visited. They’re good young adults. Paul should be proud of them.
Now it's clean up and TV and finish the computer stuff. Then pack for tomorrow and go to bed.