Bye bye farm...bye bye animals ! We'll be back again for sure !
On our way to Sea Gardens for nice yummy breakkie !
Don't know why we did not see this little sign in a corner during our last visit..kinda cute! Old Dad sure loves this and made his own phrase too, which he recites to the waitress! "I'll pretend I have paid and you pretend that I have paid"! LOL !
LOL!! The waitress asked where we were from..and wrote SG with caramel on our plate. Lovely gesture!
After a fulfilling morning meal, we set off on our journey back to Perth city, but not before making a stop at Taffy's at Bunbury. They sell the most droolicious peanut brittle!
Once out of Margaret River (where parking is free everywhere), we have start to look out for parking signs, deciphering it and looking for ticket machines. Well, it is not that difficult to understand the whole system.
Ticket Machine..Slot in coins, purhcase the number of hours and a parking ticket will be dispensed. Pick that up and display on your car's dashboard. NOTE : Most ticket machines do not give change. You have to get ready exact change or be prepared to waste couple of cents.
The Ticket that is dispensed. Note the expiry time. Be sure to get back to your car by that time. Parking in Bunbury is cheaper than Perth. In Perth an hour of parking can costs up to AUD3.70 per hour or more. But average that we have paid in Perth City was around AUD2.70 or AUD3.10 per hour.
Taffys ! LOVE LOVE LOVE ! Step in, and the aroma is gonna infuse your senses thoroughly !
Look..these peanut brittles were made just barely half an hour ago ! See those gaps with missing packets? Well, its all at my home now ! :)))
Everyday, they make all their sweets here...too bad our timing was not right see the action..
LOL ! Cool sign pasted on the wall..
Stepped out of Taffys, and directly opposite was ..>DOME! Coffee fixes is an order of the day !
Ahh see this parking sign? How you should intepret is :
2P, 8.30am to 5pm = 2 hours is the maximum hours you can park, between the hours 8.30am to 5pm. After 5pm, you can park for more than 2 hours, but ticket is still needed So, even if you have tons of money, you can only park here for 2 hours during stipulated hours. Don't try to cheat and shift your car to another nearby lot, coz there are car park inspectors who moved around and they will make a chalk mark on your tyres. It is an offence to rub off those marks.
Mon - Sat = Tickets required if you are parking there any day from Mon to Sat.
The 2 arrows means that the parking rules apply to the car park lots on the left and right. Sometimes, if the arrow points only to one direction, it likely means that the other side is not meant for you to park..or out of bounds to cars or may be a loading bay etc.. Anyway, if you are not sure, just ask, although some of the locals we approached, they are just as baffled.
After a one good hour at Taffy's and Dome, off we go again..late lunch at Cicerellos @ Mandurah and then onwards to Perth.
We had back the same orders when we visited on Day 2. Can't resist! Refer to my Day 2 for the food pics.
When we finished our late lunch at Cicerellos, stepped out, kids rushed into the next eatery, San Churros! Kids nowadays do have enormous tummy space I must say!
Final 100km ..to Mounts Bayswaters Apartment, where we will be staying for the next few days.
Here we are !
I would like to share a little bit more on Mounts Bay Water Apartment. We stayed at the Accacia block This is actually a "resort" rental, where an organisation rents this units out for owners and hence, there is even a nice reception at the front of this "resort". To me, it is basically a condominium, but most owners buy for purpose of leasing out to tourists like us.
I did not rent from this group of resorts. I read mixed reviews from Trip Advisors, where some described the apartment they stayed in was run down and dirty, some said was ok etc.
I googled a fair bit and got to know this owner whose apartment is not under the resort. This couple upkeep their own apartment and it is obvious that they are proud home owners. The reviews that I see..all gave thumbs up. In fact the per nite rate was also so much better than if you were to rent from the "resort" group, which you will find on Agoda, Booking.com etc.
It is a 2 bedroom apartment, wifi charged at AUD5/- for 24 hours. Very resaonable. If I did not remember wrongly, our per day apartment rate was AUD 268 ( plus minus). Transaction was a breeze. Owner is readily on whatsapp. When we first check in, I was having problem logging on to the wifi and the owner actually spent like an hour on whatsapp guiding me through. All utensils were provided for, including chinese soup spoons! There is a dish washer, washing machine, dryer...microwave, oven, free coffee and tea! TV in the living hall as well as the master bedroom. Many other things that you should find in a household, you should be able to find it in the apartment.
The only thing I can't really get use to is having to park our car at the garage outside of the condo - it is not located at the basement. Space is really tight and when we go back to the apartment in the night, it's kind of hard to find that little lane's entrance. We rented a station wagon and the parking space was just nice. I am one of those driver who can't manage parking in a tight space, so each time when we need to park the car, old dad will take over the wheels. Now it becomes a family joke that I can only do dummy's parking. :((
Accacia Apartments - that's the block we stayed at..
Living hall..since there are 5 of us, the sofa was converted to a queen size bed...super comfy!
Washing machine..a welcome piece of machine :)) as there was none at the farmstay.
Free coffee, tea, sugar..
Cupboard filled with toys and DVDs..
After a nice and warm bath, we set off to look for....food! of course..it's dinner time ! We went to Northbridge, which is about 8 mins drive from the apartment. Went to this Vietnamese restaurant (Viet Hoa) that seems to have garnered quite good reviews for their food, but not service :) But I find both food and service equally good. There is always a constant crowd at this restaurant !
Trying to park our car and understanding the sign. Car park is just opposite of the above glass panels. The above photo was taken by my kids when I was parking the car.
This car park sigs means from 8am to 7pm, max only 2 hours parking (2P). And you can only park at carpark lots at your left hand side. Look at the bottom half of the green font sign...it means after 7pm, you are not restricted to max of 2 hours parking, but you must till buy ticket..from 7pm to 12am. From 12am till next day 8am...I am not sure, but probably free I think.
Car park on your right, only meant for handicap parking. So don't try your luck unless you don't mind paying a hefty fine.
Not too expensive, average maybe AUD11 or AUD12 per bowl. Quire big portion. If you are a small eater, probably can share food.
If on a budget, you can order a bowl of beef soup or some other soup, 2 bowls of rice and definitely can share between 2 person easily.
Heeheee..after dinner..a short stroll, but all shops were closed. This is the car park ticketing machine...
The following are some Northbridge Street scenes that I took when we went back a couple of times for our meals...and for old folks to buy loads loads and heaps of scallops and abalones ! Stay tuned for those updates! With this, I leave you with street scenes of Northbridge !
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