G’day, All!
Well! It’s AMAZING what a change of scenery and hotel can do for your outlook! Woke up this morning and decided that we’d had enough of our dumpy hotel room in Perth – wasn’t sure where we were going to go, but someplace else was definitely in order. So, looked at some places on the web, and finally called the Best Western in Albany, and, voila! They had one “spa” room left, so we took it! Had breakfast at the hotel (WAY overpriced; and you will almost NEVER hear me complain about $$!) and checked out and were on our way south.
R feeling about the same; I’m hoping that the antibiotics kick in today. The doctor said that what was necessary was for the drainage to stop running down his throat, and instead head out the other direction! We can hope!
We had a fair amount of traffic heading out of Perth, and then suddenly, the road cleared, and we had it to ourselves! Really wonderful drive! We drove for about an hour through very thick forested areas, and then popped out into a much more agricultural area – cattle farms and sheep. In all, the drive was about 5 ½ hours; Albany is on southern-most coast on the Southern Ocean. We stopped several times, including at the Wool Shed, a terrific arts and crafts shop, with café. There was a lot of information about sheep, shearing and turning raw wool into wonderful things – and of course they had a great variety of “wonderful things” for sale! Really good prices, but somehow, when it was in the 90’s in Perth yesterday, not really in the mood for wool articles!
We also passed through what appeared to be a good wine making area, but I was thinking that R needed to rest rather than taste … hmmmm….
Found the hotel in Albany, and it’s GREAT! Low, old-fashioned motel units, all on the ground floor, but we’ve got unit 1 – formerly known as units 1 and 2, knocked together to make a “spa” suite. And, unexpectedly, there is a kitchen, couch and dining area as well as a Jacuzzi tub! How fun! MUCH better than staying in Perth, believe me! Looks from the layout in the hotel information that we’ve got one of the only rooms with a kitchen! Let’s cook!!
Rested for a couple of hours, and R beginning to feel a bit better! YEA! (Doctor said plenty of rest and liquids.) Decided to go into town to explore. Really a LOVELY town! The first settlement in Western Australia. Lots of really old buildings, lots of brick; very picturesque! We drove along the shore (which is being developed in a BIG way) and took several pictures that are appended. The ship is a replica of the Brig that landed here with the first settlers. Albany has a Woolies (short for Woolworth’s) (in case you haven’t noticed, Aussies abbreviate most everything!) and a Coles and an IGA, so we decided to make dinner tonight rather than go out. Went to Woolies for supplies – needed virtually everything, as we have only garlic and onion salts with us (as well as laundry detergent) from our time in Coffs Harbour. Decided to bake chicken with baked potatoes and green and yellow beans with salad. Woolies was REALLY crowded, as it was now around 6 p.m. Found everything we needed (with the help of some very nice employees!), checked out and headed back to the motel. Cooking in a strange kitchen is always a challenge (this time, there is silverware for 2 people – do you know how often you need a fork when cooking??); also an interesting stove – gas, that needed to be lit burner by burner, but with a nice oven. Got everything on the table about 7:30. SO glad we didn’t have to go out, as R is definitely doing better with more rest. (In fact he’s falling asleep on the couch now!) Our new place also has Fox Sports 1 and 2 (but not 3!) so we are able to watch the season-ending Master’s Championships (Men’s tennis) from Shanghai live! What a concept!
So…tomorrow the plan is to be at the Tree-Top Walk with the big trees when it opens at 9 a.m. Hopefully R will be doing even better!
Take care, love to all!
m
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