Loving the World 2013: Albany

I have traveled to a couple new towns since the last post. The last time I wrote I was just leaving the wonderful town of Margaret River. From there I took the long bus journey to Albany. The journey was long and tiring because I had to go north to Bunbury then wait an hour or so and then south towards Albany. After arriving into Albany I found my way to the hostel and then proceeded to walk around town to get my bearings.

Coming to Albany I was expecting Kelowna in my mind. A nice town that sees an influx of tourists in the summer time, full of cute cafes and beaches in the town center….. Nope. It was more like Mission, just another town with a good size population of people going about their daily lives. The coast and all the Must See things were about a 70km round trip journey (I tried to rent a bike to see them until I learned of the distance, I’m definitely not Kyle, my bike riding skills are minimal!) Friday night I was a bit disappointed.

On Saturday I set out on foot to discover what the town had to offer. Albany’s big claim to fame is that it was the first European settlement on the west of Australia! Two years after Albany was settled Perth and Fremantle were settled, and of course Perth over time took over the main west coast mailing rout and imports and became the capital. Still Albany seemed to shout to the world at every opportunity “We were first!! Us! Not Perth! We win!” the museum was nicely put together, well presented and had a lovely photo exhibition. However the content was lacking. When you are in a museum you expect to see stories of members of the local community that have done something substantial in the area or world. However in Albany on the wall there were stories of ladies, who were born and raised in the area, got married and then died. That’s it! An area that I found disappointing was how they presented the aboriginals. In Australia a similar government actions were carried out towards the aboriginals as were in Canada. Until the 1930’s any aboriginal child became a ward of the state and were given the amazing opportunity to be educated and guided down the right path of life and full of better opportunities then their parents! A highlighted story was of an aboriginal woman who was educated in this system of proper ways of a young lady. She was then guided to be a teacher for aboriginals in a missionary community, she was not enjoying where she was living, however it was suggested that she marry a fellow missionary man. She then became depressed and then they had kids. She grew old and died. Really! This “was considered to be one of the success stories” as the display stated! I know no country likes to air out the dirty laundry of the past, but don’t try to sugar coat it. The Social economics of the aboriginal population is still an issue across the country. I left the museum disappointed.

Saturday night 5 of us ladies went out on the town! 2 girls from German, 2 from Taiwan and myself! We went to one pub and found that it was a dinner/gambling hall/pub that were next to empty. After one drink we wondered to another bar and found a lively Metal band playing, they were a darling sister and brother due with a stack of burned CDs and lively metal music. We hung around for a couple hours as different metal bands played and the pub grew busy. There was a mix of ages and no dress code. I was in rolled up jeans and flip flops while some ladies where my mom’s age in tight New Year eves dresses and heels! As the crowd got thicker and drunker we made our way back to the hostel.

Sunday was a great day; I had rented a car and was hitting the road by myself to explore the local sites! First stop Whaleworld! Up until 1978 it was an active Whaling station, and as it was the last station closed down in Australia it was turned into a museum. There was a guided tour, pictures, movies and even an old whaling boat to explore! It was mighty expensive but well worth the $30 admission! Did you know Australia, South Africa and California are the only places in the world to protect Sharks; we all love Whales but what about the Sharks! In Vancouver we have heard about the banning of serving Shark Fin soup in some communities. Hmmm something to think about.

The Bridge

After Whaleworld I visited the local Blow Holes, which were not blowing, The Gap, and The Bridge. The coast line was beautiful and the day was hot, it was a great way to spend a Sunday. On my way back to Albany I stopped at the local wind farm, not a new thing, Livermore has tones of windmills! However they had a lovely trail that looped around the windmills and showcased great look out points. I lost track of time, talked to some lovely locals and as a result had to race back to return my car on time! I did something crazy Sunday night…. I went to a Movie! Crazy, another girl at the hostel and I went to the local movie theater to watch les Miserables. I think I’ve seen bigger home theaters! For $16 you expect comfy seats and a great sound system. Instead we got a 50 seat theater and awkward plastic type seats! The movie was good, and hey I didn’t fall asleep because I definitely was not Comfy!