OK, I'm now in the metropolis that is Perth. Both Fremantle and Perth have free buses called Cats which do loops of the city all day long and you can hop on and off wherever you like. So yesterday (3rd) headed out of the Pirates Backpackers and hopped on the Freo Cat the 7 stops to the railway station. Despite the fact that I was carrying a huge backpack, one man still insisted on diving for the one available seat which was right in front of me - what is with some people. Next was the train journey along the coast to central Perth and from there the Blue Cat (there are 4 different circuits) to the Northbridge area of the city. It was then a 20 min trek to The Witches Hat hostel and when I finally found it I was not impressed that there was no-one to check me in. So I sat on the front porch until eventually the manager returned and told me that there were no beds - not happy as I had called and booked a couple of days previously. I was eventually told that I could have a camp bed in one of the dorms for the 1st night and then there would be more beds available and she agreed to a reduced rate. The dorm had 4 beds, apart from mine, and it was inhabited by early 20s males, making the room fragrant with the aroma of sweaty feet and general nastiness. It really remined me of Lee's room years ago back home!! So bags safely dumped I headed out in search of food, only to discover that I am in the Asian part of town and all the shops and restaurants give off the aroma of all the other countries I've visited. Fed and watered I returned to the hostel and started chatting to a girl called Keren from Cumbria, who lives and works in Bristol. It turns out we've been on an almost identical route so far (bar India) and so far we are both feeling fairly under-awed by Australia. She is also travelling solo and is an old person, like me!! The next day Keren wanted to visit Freo and I decided that it's better to have company and revisit an area than wander round a big city on your own. So on the train back to Freo we went, but this time we visited sights I had not seen before - the Shipwreck Museum, the Prison and the Roundhouse. The Shipwreck museum was really interesting as it takes you through all the ships that have been found at the bottom of the ocean off Western Australia and how they have been identified through various investigative and scientific methods - a bit like CSI work really. From there to the Prison, which I was not particularly bothered about seeing as we get to see the inside of a fair few of these in my line of work and this one was only closed in 1991. However, our guide was absolutely brilliant and made what could have been a fairly dull experience, into a very enjoyable one. A very pleasant day all in all, followed by dinner in town and some great Rolos. Discovered Irish Cream Rolos, which sounded good, but turned out to be even better than expected when I opened them and found that they are actually white chocolate as well!! Do they have them anywhere else? After dinner we went to the cinema to see The Clearing, which stars Helen Mirren, Robert Redford and Willem Defoe and I really enjoyed. I don't think it's a big blockbuster anywhere, but worth seeing if you get the chance. As a small aside, I've just discovered that the emergency number here is 000 - would it not make sense to have a universal number? Good job I've had no need to call it to date!! Also, the hostel has a Christmas tree, which seems really incongruous with the weather and setting and has the feel of having been forgotten since last Christmas. Don't think I'll be able to get my head round this warm weather Christmas business and there's certainly no point dreaming of a white one!! Sherry xx