18.- 21. December

We’re nearing the end of the trip with MaPa as we arrived in Bunbury. We  discovered that they have their carol performance on Sunday so we decided to stay. Bunbury is famous for their local dolphins – they should come frequently into the bay so we decided to have breakfast with them. We arrived early, had our breakfast and no dolphins in sight. We must have picked the wrong day… But rest assured we saw dolphins but at the ocean beach where we swam in the afternoon.

The city’s wetlands are worth a visit. We went to the swamp and walked  around it and of course on the boardwalks to the bird hide-outs. We saw an abundance of waterbirds and black swans which my mum wanted to see desperately. There was a playground as well and as they always say “little kids like to play but big kids even more” we had a try at the swings, the see-saw and the little merry-go-around.

 Suddenly it was Sunday and time to get ready for the Carols at Candlelight. It started with a little concert and a free sausage sizzle. At 7.00pm sharp the first prayer was said and the singing started. The concert lasted 2h and they had several performer/singer on stage. We had a songbook but I hardly manage to sing along. Every song, even silent night, sounded so different I would have never guessed the German version. Unfortunately we didn’t have any candles – of course they were the electric lights in form of a candle – but we enjoyed it anyway. Luckily the rain kept away and the concert went smoothly without any shower. The rain started over night and didn’t stop until we reached Fremantle.

The last evening we spent in a pub and had a over-the-counter-meal and another beer tasting! I think we had a really good time and my parents made lots of new experiences during the 3,500km long drive. They slept out in the bush, at the beach, in different caravan parks, on a farm, under the stars and trees. We had cold, warm and stinking hot days as well as some rain but no downpour or hail. We also showed them a variety of “local” dishes/preparations; Fish and Chips at the beach (the chips of course on a sheet of paper), fried egg on aluminium foil on the fire and BBQ, a big “outback-burger” (which we hardly finished), breakfast and dinner at the beach in camper style (use as less pots as possible) and the over-the-counter-meal. And we’ve treated them to sweets like fried mars bar and mud cake.

When is your turn?

Bye, bye, MaPa, Tom and Anja