Up at the crack of dawn, we went to breakfast at the hotel's café around 8am. Posted on the door was the new norm called social-distancing, showing a picture of two people standing at arm's length of 6 feet apart. The same applied to the tables, where we were seating far away from the few guests that were already there. They had a nice buffet set-up, but we decided against it, only because we did not know how many other hands had been in the food. Actually, that has been a concern of ours for years, especially on the ships. Lidos are fine, but only if they do not have self-service.
Their meals were ample. One of us ordered the French toast with bacon, and the other had a breakfast sandwich. Orange juice and coffee was self-served. It took a minute to figure out their fancy coffee brewer, and one of us ended up with a cappucchino. That could easily become a bad habit. We also ran into Jeff and his wife once again. They will be flying out on the 24th, but really wished they could get out sooner. We all agreed it was nice to have this country hotel to relax at before we headed into the ant's nest of big airports and crowds.
The friendly waitress informed us that the inside seating of their restaurant would be closed for the remainder of the day, and indefinitely. We would be able to get meals through room service and dine in our rooms or at their outdoor patio area. We could see the disappointment on her face, as she will soon be out of a job.
We needed some exercise, so we did what we do best - walk. Crossing the highway, we walked on the side of the street where most of the trees were. We discovered that a tributary of the Swan River had been hidden behind the grove of trees, and there was even a walkway around the shoreline. Of course, we headed down there to discover many birds. Gosh, this was right up our alley, and you know what? Even for the short time we were here, it took our minds off of this terribly unbelievable situation worldwide.
Getting away from the busy highway, we found a series of park benches under the canopy of sycamores, acacias, and their ever-so-famous eucalyptus trees. It turned out to be a very sunny day here, but sitting in the shade of the trees was pleasant. Many locals were here strolling with their dogs or kids. And we did see birds like moorhens, magpie larks, pied crows, doves, an ibis, and one cormorant. Last but not least, we saw an Australian pelican giving us a pose for a great photo.
Making our way to the end of the walkway, we found a small boat marina and multi-storied apartments and condos. We had back-tracked almost all the way back to the hotel. Even though this hotel was not the Ritz, it was a perfect fit for us. Relaxing at the pool with our feet in the water, we realized that we should change our shuttle ride from 8pm to 7pm, just in case the airport was busy.
The "masked" shuttle driver was waiting by 7pm, transporting six of us. It was exactly a 10 minute ride. We had enough time at the airport to locate an adapter to buy, so now we could charge the computer while waiting. And we also had time to find something to eat, since we did not feel like a big meal at the hotel. None of the eat-in restaurants at the airport were open for diners. Only fast food style places were doing business as usual. Only one outlet offered pizza, so naturally we ordered a Margherita to go. Sure tasted good too. We needed to spend the rest of our coins, and they did accept them at the pharmacy for some snacks.
Our flight from Perth to Sydney was scheduled to depart at 11pm. But due to delays, we did not board until close to midnight. At least we had booked business class seats, which is something we rarely do. This flight was 4 hours and 10 minutes, but not so painful in the "cave-like" seats that made into a real bed. We were served beverages and a light snack before the lights were turned off. There was a three hour time change by the time we arrived to Sydney, so right before the plane landed, we were served a breakfast. With a good TV, we tended to watch movies, instead of sleeping. Cat-napping was as good as it got. There is more, but we will save the rest for tomorrow's report.
Bill & Mary Ann
Tuesday, March 24, 2020
Report #137 Day Two in Perth, Australia March 23, 2020 Monday Sunny and 90 degrees
