Herron Point to New Norcia

Day 66 - Herron Point to New Norcia

Herron Point, Claremont, Perth, New Norcia

Monday, 25 March 2013
Woke up at 6am and packed up, had breakfast, walked Tuka and on the way by 7am. Said goodbye to Wal and Marilyn, campers in a bus that I had spoken to a few times while walking.

In theory the 100km trip to the Claremont Showground where the Perth camping and Caravan Show was being held should be 75 minutes. What with an accident on the southern freeway, a breakdown and peak hour traffic it took 125 minutes to get there.

In the showground was told to park near some trucks so was near the entrance to the Show. The motorhome displays were much smaller than the east coast shows. Only Paradise and Jayco showing motorhomes. Lots of caravans, camping and 4wd equipment, accessories and tourist info though.
After a couple of hours at the Show I drove up to the Claremont Vet where Tuka was booked in for a clip. He met a very frisky young Golden Retriever but he didn't notice the cat on the bench. After Tuka was taken to be clipped I called in at the tyre place next door and arranged to have the rear tyres replaced.

Then caught the train into Perth CBD. Fast electric trains with carriages like those in Singapore. Bench seats against the wall and standing space in the centre. The Perth station is adjacent to the Perth Cultural Centre - "The State’s key arts, cultural and educational institutions reside within the Perth Cultural Centre". I manged to visit the Art Gallery of WA, the WA Museum and the State Library of WA. In the library I manged to buy three fiction books for 50c each - stock from borrowing section of the library that were no longer needed. Walked around the Murray Street Mall. Fountain in the mall would at times have four walls of water so you couldn't get out until one wall stopped. Also went for quick walk to the Swan River.

Back at Claremont picked up the short-haired Tuka and then the van and headed off to New Norcia 145km north-east of Perth. The dreaded peak hour traffic on the northern freeway caused delays but overall 145km trip was pleasant and I arrived about 6pm. Booked in to the camp ground at the Hotel ($7 per night for self contained vehicles).

"The Benedictine Community of New Norcia is the official title of the group of Roman Catholic monks who have owned and operated the small town of New Norcia, which is located 132km north of Perth in Western Australia, since 1847. New Norcia is Australia’s only monastic town, with the Monastery, where the monks live, work and pray, at its heart". I look forward to exploring it tomorrow.

	Art Gallery of WA [Map]		State Library of WA [Map]
	WA Museum [Map]		The Murray Street Mall [Map]
	Fountain in the Mall [Map]		General Post Office - built in 1923 [Map]

---

Sent from my iPad by My Vacation HD app (www.myvacationapp.com)