Perth: Day Eight

The incessant noise from the television dragged me out of Dreamland and left me with puffy eyes as I rolled myself down the bed in the morning. A quick check with the iPad would show that it was 9 am and 90 minutes later, after a quick breakfast and a shower, we were out the door, taking the Red CAT to Wellington Street and alighted from the bus at Forrest Chase before catching the train to Cannington from the Perth Train Station. If there's one thing I noticed, it's that there is no one manning the ticket booth but the ones for the reloading and application for a SmartRider card. Costs on labor management are tremendously lowered but it may pose significant difficulties for tourists in purchasing the tickets. Mine, I jumped on the wagon and went for the Standard type since that was the simplest.

Don't worry, readers, if you're not familiar. I'll be penning something that resembles a traveler's guide for first-timers in Perth, pulling all experiences from our explorations (yes, that'll include the shopping centre that we've visited) when I'm able to squeeze some time out after the Orientation Day as I've not planned the activity or the personalized design to draw on the T-shirts to be given on that day itself. Creativity and I have never been on the same page and especially since after the disastrous results at the I Am Seminar.

Anyway, we didn't need to wait long for the train to arrive at the station. Even if we did miss it, it will take us roughly about 10 minutes before we're able to catch the next one. The cabin was surprisingly cleaner than I expected as the floor was clear of any litter and the seats were in a perfect condition. Not a single wear and tear could be found. Growing up in an area where trash can be found in public transports, I am surprised at the willingness and civic consciousness practiced by the citizens in Perth to maintain the cleanliness. Gosh. If the Malaysian Transport Minister ever finds himself visiting Western Australia or its neighbor and utilizing the public transport, he or she should open his or her eyes wide enough to observe the spotlessness and efficiency of both the bus and train and implement some better changes back home. As almost everyone in Kuala Lumpur knows, our public transport is in dire need for severe improvement especially the ones I mentioned.



Cannington Train Station is in the midst of a quiet suburb with not many souls or traffic on the road. Feeling lost, we sought help from a kind, friendly Aussie who was more than willing to show us the directions to Westfield Carousel (after a quick check with Google Maps), which was a ten minute walking distance away. There was a fright; we were almost ambushed by the three young Aussie chaps on skateboards who shouted something at us as we treaded to the mall. Please, I know what it means (since I've friends in Sydney and Melbourne who've experienced something far worse than this) and rolled my eyes behind those fellows when we were far away from them.

Just as we thought we were losing our legs to the exhaustion, we passed by IGA Supermarket and sneaked through the car park of Carousel's before arriving at the entrance. We loitered around the mall and eventually found what we were looking for: the elusive New Zealand Natural. Truth be told, the main reason behind our trip down to Centro Galleria was because of this and we landed there only to find that the branch has closed down, pfft!) Whether it was because of the lack of sleep again on my part or the language barrier on the sales assistant's part, the flavor order that Mama Carrie desired differed from the one paid for and that earned me a rebuke.

Gee, if I knew, I'd have paid more for the baggage weight and included her name in it as well.

Since New Zealand Natural was in the food court and a double scoop wasn't enough to satiate the hungry stomach especially after the mishap, Mama Carrie veered off to the Korean restaurant and after much hesitation and thoughts, chose the beef bulgogi.


AUD$ 9.90 (around RM 29.70) for a plate of beef bulgogi, which comes with two types of vegetables: cucumber and juicy bean sprouts. The kim chi on the side would set you back by AUD$ 2.00 (RM 6.00).

Here's the address, if you need it: Arirang bibimbap + T/A, Carousel Food Court, 1382 Albany Highway, Cannington, WA 6107

Loads of onions and leeks were used in the stir-fried beef, probably in an effort to mask the strong smell of the meat but it slightly reeked and a little chewy. Whether this is the natural texture of the beef or it is overcooked, I won't be able to tell because I rarely have it and in those lucky days, it's in the form of meatballs either at Ikea or in Subway's Meatball Marinara.

I'll have to warn you that unless you're starved for fuel, you might want to share this dish with a companion.

Oh, did I mention about the biscuits for the carbohydrate lover?

On the return trip, we toyed with the idea of taking the Red CAT from the pick-up station that was just next to the train station back to Victoria Avenue but chose to walk through Forrest Chase since Mama Carrie realized that she needed to head down to Woolworths to catch a packet of coffee powder. While she was inside Levi's, perusing the apparel that the store was selling, I almost tripped on the makeshift hump after taking a picture of the Christmas tree.

After I set aside the heavy bags from our shopping, my legs finally gave way and were glued to the carpeted floor of the hotel room for 10 minutes before I was able to pull myself up and head off for a hot, refreshing shower.