Another couple of lengthy flights, via Abu Dhabi, and we stepped into the stunningly clean and beautiful Changi airport in Singapore. Probably should avoid the comparison with Manchester! From there, a short ride down lush and leafy roads, beautifully manicured, to our hotel in Chinatown. The hotel in the photo was the view from our window. Singapore was the perfect place to holiday. In the same time zone as Perth, it also allowed us to de-jet lag. The Singaporean people are a blend of different Asian cultures, happy, polite and friendly. Tempting as it was to go everywhere and do everything, we did manage to leave some sights for a return visit one day.
We were walking distance from Clarke Quay and took a boat ride with commentary, which helped us get a sense of the geography of the centre and pick out places we'd like to visit. Gardens by the Bay was a relatively short ride on the MRT. It took us a while to work out how to use this transport as we were thwarted by the limited availability of travel cards and cash-only outlets. Worked it out eventually and what a joy it was. Immaculately clean, fast and efficient. There are several attractions at Gardens by the Bay, and we settled on the the SuperTree Grove, Flower Dome and the extensive public gardens. There were great views of the Marina Bay Hotel, aka the Ironing Board and the Singapore Flyer.
The Botanical Gardens are probably the best Botanical Gardens I've ever seen. The planting is just superb on every level, with lots of different sections representing a wide range of habitats. We paid a small entry fee to see the Orchid Garden, which was totally off-the-scale gorgeous.
The final trip was to the newly opened Paradise Bird Park, an incredible assortment of birds - Africa, Asia, Australia and Amazon zones, penguins, flamingoes, hornbills, too many to remember. Each exhibit huge, with sky high nets to contain them, and far too many to see in one visit.
So much about Singapore to love, looking forward to seeing you again SIngapore.
Yet another 5 hour flight and we finally reached Australian soil. Our fabulous accommodation was at Mel's place (former Ara colleague and recently moved to Perth to work on the midwifery programme in Edith Cowan University). We only managed a short stint with Mel because it happened to coincide with an important event on her calendar - a show in the Sydney Opera House. So lovely to catch up with her and I'll be back to Perth occasionally with work. We stayed a few days, getting to know Joondalup and making a little progress in understanding the Australian way of being. We flew up to Port Hedland on Sunday 8th October, just in time for me to start work the next day.
Our apartment, courtesy of my new employers Western Australia Country Health Service (WACHS), is no disappointment. That's our place on the 2nd floor. The sunset view out towards the Indian Ocean was taken when we arrived, and then again the next morning. We live in a suburb of Port Hedland called Pretty Pool, named for the pretty pool and creek. Peter finds little creeks and waterways to fish in, not with a great deal of edible success so far but it's still early days. He did spot a sea snake and luckily stopped himself from scooping it into his net. He later identified it a 'highly venomous' sea snake. He's also been enjoying the abundant bird-life, including ospreys, parrots, budgies, bee-eaters, zebra finches, galahs, ibises and shrikes.
We don't have a car yet (getting one this weekend) so haven't been able to get out and about too far. But what we’ve seen of the region has been intriguing. It’s pretty industrial on a huge scale – Port Hedland is the largest bulk port in the world. Lots of iron ore mining, and other kinds of mining and salt production. Everything is huge – the trains are 2.8kms long (takes about 15 minutes for one to go past you) and there are ‘road trains’ – enormous trucks with up to 4 trailers. Over-taking these is not for the faint-hearted, though the roads are excellent and often very straight. Despite it being a port town, the port area is quite tidy. There is poverty in the town, and I’ve been told you should be careful where you go at night, but I’ve never felt unsafe. It’s a town with a young, family vibe (not many old gits like me around) and with a big aboriginal community. The people we've met are welcoming and pleasant.
The nature is special, and we’re really looking forward to seeing more of that. Flatback and green sea turtles nest on many of the beaches round here, and egg-laying season is just starting. There are reefs all around the beaches, not really like the Barrier Reef but brimming with life nonetheless. We've been on a couple of a guided reef walks with the local scientist (German Doris Teufel) who does several tours each month at low tides, and we’ll definitely go again. Doris' particular expertise is for nudibranchs - soft-bellied molluscs, and we spotted a few of those. Also sea cucumbers, octopi, sea stars, crabs, anemones, soft and hard corals, sponges, fan worms, bristle stars, several fish, eels, stingray and plant life in the form of seaweed and sea grasses. There are ongoing environmental issues with reef damage from the bulk industry, and Doris has been monitoring this for years.
It is hot (around 40 degrees most days) but so far it’s a dry heat and quite manageable, especially with fans and aircon. Peter runs a cold bath every day, and every time he overheats, in he pops and that does the trick. Works for me too. The cyclone season is imminent though, so the humidity is likely to increase. There are biting insects, but honestly the Onamalutu sand-flies are way more annoying. So far no huge spiders, snakes, crocs or sharks, not even any kangaroos except on the supermarket meat counter.
Shopping is limited as it's a relatively small and isolated town. You can pretty much get what you need though, and a lack of shops is no loss to me and there's always internet shopping. Food is mostly more expensive than in New Zealand, and that came as quite a surprise. Eating out is particularly costly, even from the many mobile food trucks that come and go. The fish in the picture is snapper and the meal from the 'Tikkaway' truck was well worth its relatively expensive price (fish and chips $25).
Work-wise there are many challenges, but the job is shaping up to be varied and with potential to positively contribute to the maternity services. I'll be working with midwives in the 2 maternity facilities (Hedland and Karratha) and with nursing staff in the many smaller rural centres where birth isn't planned but occasionally happens. That means I'll get to travel lots, and WACHS encourage me to bring Peter because it's safer to have company when driving those long distances. So far so good - we're starting to feel both settled and excited about what's ahead. Apparently winter time is the bees knees here climate-wise. I'll be saving up my leave so we can get out on the road and experience the awesome Pilbara in its entirety.
And unbelievably, I've managed to hammer out this blog before the end of the month. Ta-da Karyn - even without your blog-nag 😁
