Our Day at Rottnest Island...

Rottnest island is a terrible name for a very nice getaway island about 12 miles off of Fremantle, in the Indian Ocean. We booked a ferry from Perth so we boarded downtown and rode down the Swan River to Fremantle, a 45 minute scenic ride. Another 30 minutes and we are there. It was the last Saturday before school starts after a spring break. The place was loaded with families and everybody seemed to have a bicycle. [There are 1500 rental bikes on the place.] The island is only 11 by 3 k's and there are no private cars allowed so it is a bikers dream.




We were not really looking forward to the day but it turned out to be fantastic. This was in part because we met up with a couple from the Sydney area and it made the crossings and lunch much more enjoyable. Fellette and I think that we are missing conversation with somebody other than ourselves. After 46 years we are sometimes a bit starved for stimulating conversation, plus we enjoy meeting people from foreign countries and comparing notes.







The Island was originally a Penal Island for, guess who, the Aboriginals. There are about 360 dead natives on the island, marked only by the sign posted in an otherwise unmarked open field, unfenced. There is also a 'European' graveyard, complete with headstones and fence around it. No wonder there are problems.


The island was given that terrible handle by an early Dutch explorer who mistook the small miniature kangaroo-like animals for rats. [Rottnest means rats nest in Dutch.] They are marsupials and carry their young in a pouch. They are protected and as you can see, pop in to get a free meal in the restaurants.


The Island was fortified in 1935 in preparation for an Asian invasion, but nothing happened here. There are still some big WWI naval guns here and the barracks is a youth hostel.


It was another full day for us, not returning to the hotel until six at night, tired but happy.

PS The snake was in the museum!