Fremantle is our port of call for the next two days. It is Western Australia's major port, and is located 22 km south of Perth. It is also known locally as "Funky Fremantle" with all of the artsy students that fill this harbor town. There are craft breweries, live music venues, hipster bars, and dozens of coffee joints. And it is also the place where all of us passengers disembarked the Amsterdam in 2020 when Covid hit the cruise industry. Oh yes, we remember it well. It would be the last time we ever saw that ship again, since it was sold soon afterwards, along with three HAL other ships. On the positive side, here we are once again, enjoying the last two days of Australia in a fun city as well as having access to Perth.
By the time we remembered to check out the tours for the day, they had been removed, with the exception of the Dinner Cruise this evening for $200. Tablemates Susie and Woody chose this tour for their complimentary excursion. By the time we got home last fall to book this tour, it had been filled with no wait list. We may use our free tour when we get to northern Europe later in the trip.
To begin, the day was promising to be a very warm one. Also humid. There was early morning fog, but eventually it burned off….similar to downtown San Francisco. The ship was docked portside by 8am. This was nice because we had full view of the gangways and the cruise terminal. There was a local band there playing for an hour or more. We stayed onboard until 10am. By then all of the tour groups were off and running. In the terminal, we picked up some good maps of Fremantle and outlying areas as well.
Once we left the building, we walked to the main street, Peter Hughes Drive, and followed it to the walking bridge that went over it. Well, the bridge was roped off with a sign saying it was closed due to safety reasons. We did notice that there was a free bus outside the terminal, but did not pay much attention to it. There had been no announcement that there would be a ride to downtown, unless we happened to miss something in Ian's talk. It certainly was not printed in the Daily Program. All that was there was the train to Perth, a 20 minute walk from the dock, or a 10 minute walk to the city center. To be honest, it is longer than that for most folks.
We had heard that the supermarket Coles and Woolworths was not there anymore. Gosh, in three years a lot can change. This would have been a convenient stop for the crew members who stock up on snacks. Don't know where they can be found now? Continuing past the train station, we turned and crossed the tracks and took a short side street to downtown. It wasn't long before we were in the area of 250 buildings that were built in the 1800's. These days they house small bars, restaurants, a gin distillery, and coffee shops. Hundreds of small businesses line the streets as well. Universities are also in these buildings with the young folk patronizing the businesses, especially the cafes and coffee shops.
We made our way to the Esplanade Reserve, a spacious park where the Tourist Wheel is located. Built the same a ferris wheel, it goes very slowly so as to get the best overall views of the town and Indian Ocean. It was so warm, it would have been nice to find an empty bench to relax in the shade, but there were none. There is a kiddie park here where young parents were out and about with their families…all filling the benches. When one of the moms left, we grabbed the bench quickly.
Crossing the railroad tracks again, we headed for the Fishing Boat Harbor and a row of restaurants that face the marina. One of the nicest one there was the Little Creatures Village, home to the Little Creatures Brewery, a place we had dined several years ago. The restaurant is in a warehouse with the brewery inside the building. We walked to the back patio that overlooked the harbor, and happened run into the ships' sommelier, Jacques, whom we have known for many years. A wine expert, he must be in the best place for wines and beers. We found a menu and a hightop table on the patio, and ordered Freo draft beers and a pepperoni pizza with artichokes and olives. It was not crowded yet, so we sat on the patio for a long time taking in the views. This place has a real wood-fired oven, so the pizza crust was cooked perfectly. It may be a long time before we find another pizza this good as the cruise continues. But we will try….
Getting back to High Street, one of the main drives, we walked to Fremantle Townhall and the surrounding area. It would have been nice to tour the Fremantle Markets, but they are only opened Fridays and weekends. We did locate the central information building with scores of maps and brochures of Western Australian. Great reading material even if we were not going there this time. There was a brochure on the gold mining fields inland from here. We watch a TV show at home about gold mining in the deserts, and this is where it was filmed. Interesting show with some of the toughest Aussies on the planet.
Located in the library next door, were very nice restrooms….always nice to know their location. Sharing the square was the bus stop for the ride back to the ship. After doing a little shopping in a chemist shop (pharmacy), we joined the bus, and were back to the ship by 2:30pm. Tomorrow we may retrace our steps, but take in what we missed today. Hopefully it will be a bit cooler.
Back in our room, we relaxed on the veranda, where it actually became cool enough for a light jacket. A breeze had popped up in the late afternoon, cooling everything off. Later on, the high fog began to roll in. Yep, just like SF. It was a good time to do computer work and dive into the informative magazines and brochures we picked up.
Today happened to be Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. Last night we noticed our waiters folding gold, green, and orange napkins for the dining room. It struck a memory of when the waiters also dressed for the occasion with checkerboard vests and jester hats. Sadly, that frivolity is long gone, as are the decorations we once enjoyed. Upon entering the upper dining room, there were six colored lights on the floor lighting up the wall. That's as good as it got. And there were Mardi Gras beads handed out in the bars, but no where else. It's too bad that this holiday fell on a port day, as the dining room was only half full at the most. Lots of folks went to town or were on that dinner tour.
Anyway, we had only three of us there, but the best service and great food. Salad and soups were good, and our mains were even better. Barb had the spicy shrimp, one of us ordered the catfish, and one of us had the biggest veal chop ever. And the best veal chop ever. It was written as a veal loin, but turned out to look like a tomahawk steak with the large bone. Too much for one, it was shared. It was under the Club Orange offering, so it wasn't available to everyone. Desserts were special, so we each had one. A fried begniere? was like fried donuts , while the King cake was a green-tinted cinnamon roll. The best part of the evening was having a dinner for three (including Barb) without a lot of noise around us as the tables were about empty.
Mardi Gras activities continued from 8pm to 10:30pm…all in the Rolling Stones Lounge. They involved a scavenger hunt for gold coins, a bead toss game, a party, a costume contest, pass the beads, and after party. Maybe our tablemates Greg and Heo will return from Perth early enough to participate in these activities. Or not……
We are looking forward to another day in Fremantle, because after this port, we will face seven days at sea on the way to Mauritius.
Bill & Mary Ann
