Rotto, as it is affectionately known, is located about 18km west of Fremantle, and was named by Dutch captain Willem de Vlamingh, when he landed on the island in 1696 and saw numerous quokkas (native marsupial) and thought they were large rats, so naming the island "Rat's nest" (Rattennest in Dutch).
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| At the Royal Perth Yacht Club with the city of Perth in the background |
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| On the Swan River leaving Perth behind |
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| Mosman Park, one of Perth's most expensive suburbs - the 3 storey house to the left sold for $57.5 million in 2009 |
It took us about 1 hour on the river to reach Fremantle, where we went past the modern Maritime Museum building and then the green and red lighthouses on either side of harbour entrance.
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| Maritime Museum |
Once on the open sea we picked up speed until we docked in Thomson Bay on the east side of the island. |
| Approaching Rottnest Island |
After putting down anchor we gathered around the table on the deck for a wonderful breakfast of croissants with cheese and ham, fruit, coffee and tea.
I had made Brazilian cheese bread (delicious cheese puffs) that I added to the breakfast table.
Afterwards the younger crowd swam ashore, while the older ones were helped to the rubber duck boat to go ashore.
The island was teeming with people who were enjoying the best Spring day we've had so far - 31C. We went to Dome coffee shop for a beverage and a chat and returned by rubber duck to the yacht.
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Getting the Rubber Duck ready to go ashore The various rubber ducks and water bikes by the eating zone 
Island accommodation
And for those who've never seen a Quokka, here is one eating out of my hand. They are so used to people on the island and unfortunately they also get fed a lot of rubbish...and believe it or not they also steel from people camping on the island, so all food must be securely stored away otherwise overnight they will eat it all! But they are cute!!
After coffee we got back on the rubber duck towards the yacht, and when all was secured back in place we returned to Perth, having enjoyed a wonderful day outdoors with great company.
The Rottnest Express - ferry between Fremantle and the island
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Map of the island with Thomson Bay top right (from the internet)
Este mar azul, tão azul, dá vontade mesmo de mergulhar nele!
ReplyDeleteDescobri a Austrália com "Uma Cidade chamada Alice" e fiquei a gostar ainda mais depois de ver "Offspring" ("Descobrindo Nina"). Embora faça parte da minha "bucket list" deve ser daqueles lugares que ficará sempre na terra dos sonhos. Estas fotos mostram-me ainda um bocadinho mais!
Obrigada pela visita Paula, ainda bem qie gostou do pedacinho da Australia que aqui mostrei. Nao sabia que tinham mostrado "offspring"' na tv em Portugal. Aqui terminou recentemente a terceira serie que gostei imenso.
DeleteBom dia
DeletePor cá vimos o fim da 3ª, a 4ª e a 5ª. Gostávamos imenso de saber como começa a história da Nina e família, mas até agora não se vislumbra possibilidade de repetição. Pelo que vimos na net só Portugal e Brasil, para além da Austrália, claro passaram Offspring. Gostámos tanto que temos procurado em DVD, mas não encontrámos.
Vou visitar outros "posts" do seu blog, para assim ver mais um pedacinho de "Down Under".
Nao foi a terceira serie, mas sim a sexta serie Paula!! Se encontrar aqui o DVD da 1 e 2 serie envio-lhe.
DeleteAwwww. The water. The cute Quokka, the food... sounds like you really had an awesome Sunday :-)
ReplyDelete31C.... ahhh. Freezing our b... off here.
Hmmm. I don´t really recall a visit at the Maritime Museum - worth it?
The clear blue water is amazing Iris. I visited the Maritime Museum a few years ago and enjoyed it.
DeleteThe seas were much calmer than when we visited Rotto. Was you boat not allowed to moor at the jetty or perhaps you stopped at a different place?
ReplyDeleteIt was calm on the way there Andrew, but a bit choppy on the way back to Perth. Even if you take the ferry the earlier you return the better, otherwise you can have a rough trip back. The jetty is just for the ferries, all the other boats stay just next to it at their own mooring place if you have a pre-paid one. We were probably 20 or 30mt from shore.
DeleteA nice series of photos of your vist, that Maritime Museum looks stunning.
ReplyDeleteThe Maritime Museum is very modern and has very interesting exhibits inside too.
DeleteQue belo passeio de barco, Sami! A água cristalina, os faróis, o museu, as pausas, tudo! Adoro passear de barco. É muito relaxante!
ReplyDeleteNunca tinha ouvido falar nesta ilha.
Foi um dia fabuloso num yacht fabuloso tambem, fomos uns sortudos! A Australia esta rodeada de mais de 800 ilhas, umas insignificantes outras maiores e ocupadas.
DeleteLovely day that must have been! You even had brazilian pão de queijo, which I love, but I never managed to do because I can't find "polvilho" here.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of a Quokka before. It looked cute eating out your hand.
Thanks Sara. Try looking for Arrowroot or Tapioca flour. I find it at the supermarkets here, but you could try a health shop because it's a gluten free flour.
DeleteI'd never heard of the quokkas either until I visited the island a few years ago.
Great tips! I didn't know I could replace polvilho. I lived in Minas Gerais, land of the original pao de queijo, therefore full of purists ;) I will give it a try.
DeleteYour trip out and about on the beautiful water really made me smile this morning. Your city is gorgeous, at least the skyline is from the water.
ReplyDeleteThose houses in that suburb are lovely, but the prices are insane. I can see why people would want to live there.
That Maritime Museum looks like it would be interesting. It boasts lovely architecture. The green and red lighthouses were fun to see, because I've never seen a real lighthouse.
Thanks for taking me along on this wonderful afternoon journey. Sounds like you all had a great time.
Thanks Elizabeth, I think cities by the river or sea are always interesting and pretty. Well not all houses in those fancy suburbs cost that much, but certainly they are more expensive than in the "normal" suburbs. The green and red lighthouses are unusual, usually lighthouses tend to be white, as far as I've seen before. Glad you enjoyed your trip to the island too.
DeleteWhat an adventure! The blues in your photos are so clear, bright, and heavenly! So refreshing and cooling. My favorite part is that little quokka! I could just cuddle him to pieces!
ReplyDeleteThanks J.The quokka is certainly huggable, they are really cute.
DeleteWhat a super way to spend a beautiful spring day Sami.. the last time we went over to Rotto the trip was incredibly rough, it sort of put me off going again 😊 Best way is the way you did it, on a private boat.
ReplyDeleteI agree Grace, with a private boat it was smooth as well as we had the flexibility of going and coming when we wanted instead of sticking to a timetable.
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