The Travelling Buncebury's

Covering 8 September to 10 September 2019 mouth of the Murchison River The next day, after a quick tr ip to the touri st office (everywhere seems to have one), we decide on a coastal walk.  Wildflowers are a big draw here in Western A ustralia and every tourist office has information about where to find them locally, although it appears to me that there is a certain amount of hype about it.   There’s even an app for smartphones and tablets that lets you know what’s in bloom and where.   The path we took wound along the top of impressively high cliffs through what at a quick glance looked like lovely Dorset heathland but after only a slighter slower glance was obviously full of unfamiliar vegetation.  It was hot but thankfully there was a cooling breeze off the sea which made it very comfortable.  I suppose we had what was an unusual pairing to look out for, unusual plants and humpback whales migrating southwards for the summer.   We were lucky and

Covering 3 September to 7 September 2019 the pedestrian bridge at Elizabeth Quay Many years ago I was told that when filling in the immigration forms on a visit to Australia it isn’t advisable to the question “have you got a criminal record” to answer “I didn’t know it was still compulsory”.   Unsurprisingly such a question is not asked. central Perth and the Swan River from Kings Park  We’ve arrived in Perth, Western Australia after our overnight flight from Bangkok and from the customs man to the two or three bus drivers we’ve spoken to on the way into the city, everyone has been incredibly friendly and helpful.   The centre of Perth is very modern with big tower blocks interspersed with a good number of (fortunately surviving) early twentieth century ones, which are dwarfed.    The centre has a lively, prosperous feel to it and everyone seemed very young, I wonder why ?   Our hotel was a short free bus journey from the centre or a twenty minute walk

Covering 28 August 2019 to 2 September 2019 heading towards the mountains It was time to move on from Chiang Mai and we’d booked a car rented from the airport.   The problem we’d not anticipated was that most if not all other people book a car from an airport when they’re arriving by air.   So when we turned up, we had to get through security to get into the Arrivals area to do the necessary paperwork.   There was a method to this booking, when we got back to Chiang Mai we were flying to Bangkok en route for Perth, Western Australia, so we could just drive back to the airport and drop the car. Having thoroughly photographed the car inside and out as it will also be on it’s return to counter any incorrect claims of damage, we got going, heading further north.    The main rule of the road in Thailand is drive on the left and priority goes to the biggest vehicle.   I have to say that to begin with it felt quite odd driving and I think it was more difficult on the l

Covering 23 August 2019 to 26 August 2019 the only pair with umbrellas We had a second full day in Bangkok before our eleven hour train journey northwards to Chiang Mai.   So after picking up our train tickets we headed templewards agin.    Near the Hualamphong station lies the temple of the Golden Buddha (although many of them do seem to be golden), an impressively large Buddha in the more usually seen pose of sitting.   Just behind him was a tub of holy water for sale, all in plastic bottles.   It was just spitting with rain as we came out, planning to head back to the river to look at a temple complex on the other side of the river.   We scooted past a big gate at the edge of Chinatown and the rain stopped, thankfully having not developed into even a mini monsoon torrent.   Yes, it’s supposed to say ‘agin’, it’s just an affectation. Wat Arun Wat Arun was an impressive riverside temple with all the buildings covered in intricate carvings and with a