I sent this WhatsApp to Mo, who’d asked why we were going to WA.
“Many years ago, someone recommended ‘Cloudstreet’ by Western Australian author Tim Winton. I read it and loved it enormously.
In summary: ‘The novel opens in 1943. Two poor families, the Lambs and the Pickles, flee their rural homes to share a large house called Cloudstreet in Perth, Western Australia. The two families contrast each other; the devoutly religious Lambs find meaning in hard work and God’s grace, while the Pickles hope for good luck and do not share the Lambs’ appetite for hard work.’
Since then I have read most of his subsequent books, like Dirt Music and Breathe and had Western Australia on my bucket list for years. And it’s true, it’s roughly the same distance from Singapore to Perth and from Perth to Sydney; Perth is also in the same Time Zone as Singapore.”
“Now I understand. So, what have you been up to?”
“Perth in September is between seasons and we caught a rather cool wind, especially compared with Singapore! So, we didn’t take the 30-minute train ride to visit Fremantle on the coast, nor the ferry to Rottnest Island to sit on the beach or look for the Quokka marsupial, but we did walk up to Kings Park and admire its views across the city.
In the park I took a few photos of a kookaburra up in a tree, but for some strange reason they failed to materialise. Doesn’t happen very often and when it does it’s infuriating. Fortunately, we found another one in Cape Lodge’s grounds that was equally photogenic. To round off the outside activities we walked Elizabeth Quay …… which was basically closed!”
“OK! Richard. I’ll catch you when you’re back. Safe travels and enjoy WA.”
Later we went to Perth’s Art Gallery of Western Australia and I was very taken by Mrs Bundamurra’s painting ‘Kira Kiro spirits’. The card said:
“She often painted the Kira Kiro spirits that reside in and around the town of Kalumburu where she lived. There are good spirits and traditional dancers who sing about the yam and fruits that can be gathered when the wet season begins. Mrs Bundamurra had a strong connection to them which is how she was able to illustrate their animated, quirky nature.”
We all dream and sometimes our dreams are very vivid, sometimes they evaporate as soon as we wake, at other times their weirdness or strangeness lingers in our conscious. I wonder how I would paint these colourful thoughts, even the odd ethereal spirit, if indeed I could. Could you? I look at Mrs Bundamurra’s painting and marvel big time.
Normally I get very bored very quickly with museums, maybe 90 minutes max, but we spent about three hours in the WA Museum Boola Bardip, a fascinating collection of local culture and history. And somewhere in one of the galleries, one detailing skeletons of prehistoric animals found in this part of Australia ……
……. we found this little chap, the only living non-human on three floors of the museum. Felt he, or she (?), must have been lonely.
We checked out of our hotel, picked up a hire car, and headed south towards the Margaret River area which lies between Cape Naturaliste in the north and Cape Leeuwin in the south. The latter is the place where the Indian Ocean meets the Southern Ocean – the Indian Ocean current going north and the Southern Ocean current south.
Indulging ourselves, we’d booked three nights in Cape Lodge – “offering intimate accommodation and an award-winning restaurant, Cape Lodge is a hidden gem situated in a private paradise within Yallingup and the renowned Margaret River wine region. Its restaurant was recognised in Australia’s top 1% at the 2025 Good Food Guide Chef Hat Awards.”
Driving around this region, everywhere one looked were vineyards, some smaller than others; Cape Lodge has its own – ‘Sous Ciel’.
The stand-out memories of our stay are: The lovely staff, especially Josefinna, from Argentina, in reception and Lèa, from Normandy in France, who, at just 28, ran the restaurant; the restaurant’s food was beautiful, in a minimalistic way; ‘Vegetarian’ and ‘Australian’ don’t occupy the same page and one meal left Celina quite hungry; no matter how you treat a carrot, boil it, peel it, grill it, roast it, grate it, it’s still a carrot – and one needs more than one; the local kookaburra obliged with his best side…..
…… and the stars over the vineyard were exceptional (you have to look hard at this; the iPhone camera is excellent but this is stretching its abilities!
Geologically the area is mainly limestone on a lower stratum of granite. There are numerous caves; we drove south to the Mammoth Caves …..
….. and ooo’d and ah’d at the magnificent stalactites and stalagmites.
Lunch down on Prevelly Beach gave me the opportunity to paddle in the Indian Ocean for the first time in my life.
We drove up to the lighthouse on Cape Naturaliste, the cape named after the second ship in Frenchman Baudin’s mapping expedition of the coast.
The recognition of the ancient Aboriginal people and their influence is very poignant here in Western Australia. The Magaret River area is the home of the Wadandi people. By the lighthouse is this welcome: “The traditional name for this location is Kwirreejeenungup, the place with the beautiful view. Look out to the horizon, where the sun sets. That’s where the spirits of our ancestors travel to rest, until the spirit totem return back to the boodja (country). We have a close connection to the ocean, land, plants and animals and will continue to care for this land and its waters. Our six-season calendar guides us as we live in harmony with boodja. We are encouraged by nature’s changes such as the flowering of different plants and animal behavioural cycles. If you look after the boodja, the boodja will look after you.”
To be continued ……….
Richard 10th October 2025
Hove
postcards 