Perth Graduation Trip -- Ninth Installment

Perth Graduation Trip -- Ninth Installment


Day 16: Albany -- Esperance


Woke up early in the morning, had a quick shower and we checked out of Albany Discovery Inn. With all due respect for OTS's previous experience with a particular Fish & Chips store, we set off with empty stomachs and drove around looking for the store. After a few detours and some questions asked, we finally arrived at -- The Squid Shack.

It was, to die for.

Never in my life, had I tasted calamari so soft and juicy. You know those sotong sold in Singapore where you had to give it more than two bites to really sever the sotong pieces into two parts? This one doesn't need that. Bite it, and it comes off. It was that soft. The fish & chips also boasts the thinnest batter I have seen in my life, giving the whole package the fish taste, not the batter taste. It isn't overhyped, nothing of those 'overpromised, underdelivered' stuffs.



Located near a mini jetty, where fresh fishes are being caught daily and the store uses them directly, which explains the freshness




View out of the alfresco dining area




OTS saw this little wildflower garden and we stopped by to take a photo


After that, we started our five hours' drive. Barely ten minutes into driving, I received an sms from Yuet Wei, who informed me that I had passed all my final exams!! That was definitely a great relief for me and that made me exceptionally light-hearted the whole day!

Thank you, Yuet Wei. You had made my day, although I did not tell you so. =)




Goodbye, Albany.



Leaving the tracks behind



Armed with isotonic drinks



a Global Positioning System, also known widely as GPS,




Incubus's instrumental CD, which almost drove me crazy listening to it on repeat mode for five hours because that was the only CD we ever played in the car



Still a long long way to go



Thank you for following my trip updates up till this very moment. We have come to the highlight of the Perth trip, also the place I wanna go the most during my short stint in Australia -- Esperance.

I remember a few days before the start of the trip, OTS developed a fever and we were really comtemplating whether to cancel the road trip. Then remember the poster of The Natural Bridge we saw at KFC? That totally woke us up and we realised 'Hey, why not?' Since OTS was getting better so we jumped at the chance, shortening our seven-day road trip into a five-day one.

Driving 480km from Albany without a break at all. My record. That's further than driving to KL all the way from Singapore. Couple of times some little fucker tried to get us killed by driving on our lane in the opposite direction just to overtake some road trains. Don't they have the sense to realise that if it's a one-way lane each for each direction, you do not overtake on an uphill track because you can't see the traffic condition in front of you? If not my my slow-down, those cars would have

1) crashed into me
2) gotten stuck in between me and the road train, and still crashed into me
3) swerved off the road and died in some deserts and might still crash into me.

Those little fuckers. I wish they had some responsibility for their lives and as well as other road-users. If anyone reading this is currently pursuing a driving license or has just gotten one, please reflect on why you needed the license and what a car does for you in the first place.

It really is just a Point A to Point B thing. Why so eager to get yourself killed?



Anyway, Esperance. WE ARE SO REALLY GLAD THAT WE GOT THERE!!


Those driving weren't for nothing, darling



Yet another different Australian beach, the diversity never fails to amaze me




Welcome to Esperance, the town with most beautiful beaches in the whole of Australia



Scenic shot

Drove to another viewpoint right in front of Twilight Beach.. very nice name!


Detoured around the quaint little town of Esperance, trying to look for our accomodation for the night -- Bathers Paradise Caravan Park. Checked into an ensuite cabin for only AUD$60! Wanted to get those without personal toilets, but OTS said that I'm a girl and we should just get an ensuite room. Hehe, he does know that I'm quite anal about bathrooms. They have to be really really clean. Old, never mind, but clean.



Our stay for the night, not very impressive.. Have had better ones.


We cooked fried rice for dinner (I now know how to cook rice without using a RICE COOKER!!! Things you take for granted!) and OTS tried to wash the pots in the very very very small basin with a very very very small tap with very very very small amount of running water. He conceded defeat, turned around and told me "Okay baby, I'm going to shower with the pots and pans now", before carrying all the dirty pots into the bathroom with him and proceeded to shower. Very automatic right? Haha.

Wanted to turn in for the night, when OTS suggested that we go for a little drive out to the scenic beach drive. Turns out that there were minimal streetlamps being lit at night and the roads were really dark so we had to turn on the high beams all the time. Especially when we were driving down the scenic drive, on one side it was the sea, on the other it was the bushes. Kinda scary.

The highlight has GOT TO BE when OTS jammed on the brakes and I screamed and clutched his hand on the gear! I thought he saw a ghost and my back went cold immediately.

But I was wrong. He jammed the brakes because he saw a.. KANGAROO!!!!!! -__-

The car halted to a stop, we honked at it, the kangaroo looked at us, before hopping away happily. I looked at him, he looked back. Phew. OTS explained that kangaroos are attracted to spotlights and when they see a car coming, they will jump out at the car! Honking would have been no use, we tried.

A little scared, we drove further down, this time slower and stopped by a viewpoint to lie down on the floor and we gazed at the stars. Needed to calm our nerves badly. Haha. But it was also eerie at the same time.. totally dark with nobody else around!



Very beautiful in the day



Very eerie at night


After lying there for about 15 minutes, we decided to head back and so we drove down the same road back. We were wondering if we would see the same kangaroo again when it jumped out at us! AGAIN! Luckily we were very prepared this time round. OTS says that a kangaroo weighs about 200kg and crashing into it could kill the passengers, if not, spoil the car. Imagine if we had no car.. how to go back?! 800km away from Perth LEH!!!

Kangaroos are not cute at all.