Summary: Small world, small town Oz, meeting the fuzz, misdirection, buyer beware, amazing beaches, off to the Nullarbor
We had a great breakfast and yet another good conversation before leaving the Best Western Albany. Seems that she and her husband had lived up in Karratha & Broome and knew the folks who run the Fortescue River Roadhouse. I would say “small world”, but outside of Perth it does not surprise me that people know people. Needless to say we hit it off pretty well and we hit the road.
As I have noted, we have been in beautiful forests since we got to the Margaret River region and through this Great Southern region. Just amazing, tall, dense trees like a forest in North America or Europe but with karris and tingles instead of pine or maple. Anyhow, about 15 minutes out of Albany that was over. We were back to the thinner looking gums and eucalyptus that we’ve seen much of. That’s not to say the drive was dull (more on that later). It was not and the scenery was excellent and the landscape was varied, just it was a resumption of the rest of the country. Another resumption of something I had not seen since around Monkey Mia is people waving. When you don’t see a car for a while you think “hey, what is that shape on the road ahead?” Cattle? Some Kangaroos working late? Soon, you identify it as a fellow traveler and as you pass you see them wave or (more common) lift a few fingers from the steering wheel to acknowledge you. (notice I said “a few fingers” - this isn’t Boston)
One fellow traveler acknowledged me with lights. Coming out of a construction area, I got pulled over. I was doing 110 in a 110 zone, but the policeman coming the other way had lost track of what the oncoming limit was. He was just driving past a 110 sign and he thought I was jumping the gun by reaching 110 just a few meters ahead of the sign. In reality, it was the second 110 sign – I had been going 110 for about a kilometer. Either way it was a warning, but I imagine he wondered why the guy right behind me was ...um... right behind me if I was speeding in a construction zone (not a good habit in any country). Net, we had a pleasant conversation and no fine, but I suspect that the policeman (who continued on west) quickly discovered another 110 sign about 1 km before he clocked me. It was an interesting adrenaline burst (especially since I was in the rare position of being fully in the right in a speeding situation with a policeman). Before you ask why I was doing 110 in a 110 zone instead of say 120, let me explain. A little context: in the US it is generally safe to drive 5-7 mph over the speed limit without fear of a ticket. For my wife, let me quickly answer that it is because I have Alex in the car. Even if he wasn't in the car (which he is) and I were in a hurry (which I am not), I would do the speed limit around here. Turns out these guys don't have any slack (that's why the locals do the limit, but I still haven't figured out those going below the limit). There are people getting tickets doing 64 in a 60 zone. In US terms, that's a little over 2 mph over the limit. Ouch.
We pulled into Esperance and had a similar experience to Broome – where is everyone? Esperance has named their northern suburbs the Esperance Waterfront. This led me on a bit of a wild goose chase as I followed signs to City Center, then (as stores started showing up, leading me to believe I was near the city center) I saw signs for Esp Waterfront. Knowing my hotel was on the water, I made the mistake of following that sign. Still, the town is nicely laid out on the water and my hotel is right on the Esplanade. I could throw a baseball and hit the bay from the driveway (or I could listen to endless cricket debates about the merits of the red ball vs. the white ball).
As someone who has spent a few years in the dark arts of sales, marketing, and advertising, I am well aware that people sometimes overpromise and underdeliver. Sadly, the Best Western Esperance has done so based on a few things from their brochure and their amenities as listed in the BW guide. Every room has Internet. Great! Wireless or Ethernet? Actually neither, you can just plug the phone into your computer and dial up to your provider. Yeah, I don’t really have a dial-up provider. So, by “internet” they mean they have phones. No problem, at least they have a playground. Well, sort of. It is not what you would call “on the property”. You sort of have to walk from your room to the street, go to the end of the block and turn left and there it is. Alex takes to stumbling in his crocs lately, so there is a difference between 20 meters and 200m (we’ve pulled up to about 2 other playgrounds today). This is small beer and the motel was ultimately quite a good experience. I would almost certainly stay there if I am in Esperance again (and I would like to be in Esperance again), but it is only fair to mention that the Esperance BW sets up a letdown between expectation and delivery. Call it an in-room phone and nearby playground and we’re cool.
Eh, we’re cool anyway. This town’s beaches are amazingly beautiful. They have a 30km drive and some of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen anywhere. At the risk of setting high expectations (and underdelivering) or “giving truth scope” myself, let me say that there is a section of heaven which has beaches like Esperance’s. Beautiful clear water set next to steep hills - lagoon areas followed by shallower sandbars with a little seaweed. OK, the water could be a little warmer, but it was not too cold for me and Alex and it made for a fun place for him to walk around in the water – experiencing waves without being knocked over. It was amazingly beautiful water and great sand. 
We wrapped it up with a dinner at a Café on a jetty (pier). 
They were set up for Valentines, but by showing up at 6pm, we were fine. This restaurant has wireless (as I mentioned in the as I posted the Feb 13 edition), great food, and a fantastic location. No big news for Alex today. His bug bites (and my sunburn) are gone, but he was doing his part to get a few scrapes to fill in for the missing bites.
Tomorrow we are off for the Nullarbor. The first place we’ll get to is Norseman. I know nothing about Norseman except for some mining history, but I don’t expect glaciers, fjords, or Viking-like men wearing animal pelts. I do expect a BP, Shell, and/or CalTex (ChevronTexaco) gas station. I really am looking forward to the Nullarbor, if only because there may be odd turnoffs like the empty parts of northern Australia had. Shortly after I entered WA, I passed a turnoff for the “Argyle Project” with a strange logo - no further explanation. Half expecting a real life version of “Lost” (Dharma Project) with some guy in a bunker pushing a button every hour, I just drove on (hoping the guy kept pushing his button). Maybe it is just me, but Australia has got a lot of space to work with. If someone wanted to run simulations of something (anything) in isolation, well, they have got the isolation. I guess Alex and I will have some too for the next two days.
As I have noted, we have been in beautiful forests since we got to the Margaret River region and through this Great Southern region. Just amazing, tall, dense trees like a forest in North America or Europe but with karris and tingles instead of pine or maple. Anyhow, about 15 minutes out of Albany that was over. We were back to the thinner looking gums and eucalyptus that we’ve seen much of. That’s not to say the drive was dull (more on that later). It was not and the scenery was excellent and the landscape was varied, just it was a resumption of the rest of the country. Another resumption of something I had not seen since around Monkey Mia is people waving. When you don’t see a car for a while you think “hey, what is that shape on the road ahead?” Cattle? Some Kangaroos working late? Soon, you identify it as a fellow traveler and as you pass you see them wave or (more common) lift a few fingers from the steering wheel to acknowledge you. (notice I said “a few fingers” - this isn’t Boston)
One fellow traveler acknowledged me with lights. Coming out of a construction area, I got pulled over. I was doing 110 in a 110 zone, but the policeman coming the other way had lost track of what the oncoming limit was. He was just driving past a 110 sign and he thought I was jumping the gun by reaching 110 just a few meters ahead of the sign. In reality, it was the second 110 sign – I had been going 110 for about a kilometer. Either way it was a warning, but I imagine he wondered why the guy right behind me was ...um... right behind me if I was speeding in a construction zone (not a good habit in any country). Net, we had a pleasant conversation and no fine, but I suspect that the policeman (who continued on west) quickly discovered another 110 sign about 1 km before he clocked me. It was an interesting adrenaline burst (especially since I was in the rare position of being fully in the right in a speeding situation with a policeman). Before you ask why I was doing 110 in a 110 zone instead of say 120, let me explain. A little context: in the US it is generally safe to drive 5-7 mph over the speed limit without fear of a ticket. For my wife, let me quickly answer that it is because I have Alex in the car. Even if he wasn't in the car (which he is) and I were in a hurry (which I am not), I would do the speed limit around here. Turns out these guys don't have any slack (that's why the locals do the limit, but I still haven't figured out those going below the limit). There are people getting tickets doing 64 in a 60 zone. In US terms, that's a little over 2 mph over the limit. Ouch.
We pulled into Esperance and had a similar experience to Broome – where is everyone? Esperance has named their northern suburbs the Esperance Waterfront. This led me on a bit of a wild goose chase as I followed signs to City Center, then (as stores started showing up, leading me to believe I was near the city center) I saw signs for Esp Waterfront. Knowing my hotel was on the water, I made the mistake of following that sign. Still, the town is nicely laid out on the water and my hotel is right on the Esplanade. I could throw a baseball and hit the bay from the driveway (or I could listen to endless cricket debates about the merits of the red ball vs. the white ball).
As someone who has spent a few years in the dark arts of sales, marketing, and advertising, I am well aware that people sometimes overpromise and underdeliver. Sadly, the Best Western Esperance has done so based on a few things from their brochure and their amenities as listed in the BW guide. Every room has Internet. Great! Wireless or Ethernet? Actually neither, you can just plug the phone into your computer and dial up to your provider. Yeah, I don’t really have a dial-up provider. So, by “internet” they mean they have phones. No problem, at least they have a playground. Well, sort of. It is not what you would call “on the property”. You sort of have to walk from your room to the street, go to the end of the block and turn left and there it is. Alex takes to stumbling in his crocs lately, so there is a difference between 20 meters and 200m (we’ve pulled up to about 2 other playgrounds today). This is small beer and the motel was ultimately quite a good experience. I would almost certainly stay there if I am in Esperance again (and I would like to be in Esperance again), but it is only fair to mention that the Esperance BW sets up a letdown between expectation and delivery. Call it an in-room phone and nearby playground and we’re cool.
Eh, we’re cool anyway. This town’s beaches are amazingly beautiful. They have a 30km drive and some of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen anywhere. At the risk of setting high expectations (and underdelivering) or “giving truth scope” myself, let me say that there is a section of heaven which has beaches like Esperance’s. Beautiful clear water set next to steep hills - lagoon areas followed by shallower sandbars with a little seaweed. OK, the water could be a little warmer, but it was not too cold for me and Alex and it made for a fun place for him to walk around in the water – experiencing waves without being knocked over. It was amazingly beautiful water and great sand. 
We wrapped it up with a dinner at a Café on a jetty (pier). 
They were set up for Valentines, but by showing up at 6pm, we were fine. This restaurant has wireless (as I mentioned in the as I posted the Feb 13 edition), great food, and a fantastic location. No big news for Alex today. His bug bites (and my sunburn) are gone, but he was doing his part to get a few scrapes to fill in for the missing bites.Tomorrow we are off for the Nullarbor. The first place we’ll get to is Norseman. I know nothing about Norseman except for some mining history, but I don’t expect glaciers, fjords, or Viking-like men wearing animal pelts. I do expect a BP, Shell, and/or CalTex (ChevronTexaco) gas station. I really am looking forward to the Nullarbor, if only because there may be odd turnoffs like the empty parts of northern Australia had. Shortly after I entered WA, I passed a turnoff for the “Argyle Project” with a strange logo - no further explanation. Half expecting a real life version of “Lost” (Dharma Project) with some guy in a bunker pushing a button every hour, I just drove on (hoping the guy kept pushing his button). Maybe it is just me, but Australia has got a lot of space to work with. If someone wanted to run simulations of something (anything) in isolation, well, they have got the isolation. I guess Alex and I will have some too for the next two days.
3 comments:
Met the Police, ah --- they are not kidding.
When I lived in Australia for a few months in 2002, the campaign against drunk driving had the slogan
"If you drink and drive, you are a bloody IDIOT!"
What an amazing scenery!
Absolutely worth the trip...
looks great with the pictures too!
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