Rottnest Island /Cottelsloe Revisited

Its been about 27 years since my first visit to Rottnest. The name translates to 'rat nest'so named because when the first person landed here he thought the animals he saw looked like rats. They are actually marsupials, about the size of a rat but look like a mini kangaroo and known as quokkas. Time has taken its toll on Rottnest. On my first visit ín 1982 it was fantastic as a day-trip from Perth where there were no cars, no accommodations or resorts and the only mode of transport was a bicycle. That's how I remember it - but sadly it's not that way anymore. Still no cars except a few maintenance vehicles, but now a few shuttle/tour busses. There are now a number of resorts- many expensive for the wealthy(no home developments thankfully) and now the once secluded bays are loaded with boats. Bicycles are still the main transport - the island is only about 28k's long. So a wee bit of a disappointment for me.

It was raining when we left on the 30 min fast ferry over to Rottnest and continued when we got there for a bit. We only had about 3 hours so after our usual morning cappacino, we rode the shuttle bus most of the way around the island(you can get on and off anywhere on the route)and walked the last 1.3 km back to ferry. Weather smartened up and it got quite warm. Back on the mainland, Lorraine treated me to lunch at "The Blue Duck" Restaurant on Cottelsloe Beach. Very very nice and I believe it is Perth's most popular beach; goes for miles with beautiful sand and restaurants dotting the beach. Quite calm today which was a bit unusual for the Indian Ocean.

Tomorrow Lorraine babysits her grandchildren and I'm going to find my way to Freemantle (known as Freo to the locals - Aussies are famous for shortening words!) Freemantle is the main port and where Perth got its beginnings. Lots of history there and apparently a great market. I'll take public transit and get a ride back with Lorraine's daughter who teaches school over there. Then Saturday, I'm off to Melbourne