I heard of this shopping complex on ‘the other side of town’ called DEZ, while I was in Innsbruck. Seeing as I haven’t seen much on the other side of town, I decided to check it out.

I’m also a sucker for Ikea (which is in DEZ), so while I was in Innsbruck, I took the opportunity to go visit the outlet there. You can get there by bus and it is not too far away. It is also a nice way of seeing other parts of Innsbruck as it is on the opposite side of the train tracks (if you remember the map of Innsbruck, we had the western and eastern parts of the city divided by the central train station – if you’re confused, just zoom out on the map above).

I’ll show you a bit of Ikea as well as DEZ. The whole complex pretty much has all that you would need from groceries to furniture, clothes and entertainment.

What I like about Ikea is the showrooms, which exhibit concepts from different interior designers or ordinary people. During my visit, there were a few exhibits of efficient space, where the idea was to populate a small area with all the essentials required for living: eat, sleep, bathe, leisure and storage. There were a few amazing ideas shown here on as little as 10 square metres or less.

One of my favourites, the colours and lighting as well as the storage at the back (which you cannot see).

I compared some of these exhibits with those in Melbourne and did not find anything as compact as what Innsbruck showed. I guess that displays vary from city to city depending on the kinds of living conditions you have. A densely populated city like Innsbruck would require more compact ideas than Melbourne, which is more sprawled.

What is intriguing about Ikea is that the store layout is always the same. You have the same order of rooms on the display floor, the same order of equipment on the warehouse floor and the same products. Prices aren’t too different either upon comparing some furniture that I own. Still eyeing the Markus office chair, but it is too expensive for me to afford at the moment. For those who have an Ikea Family card, it is valid worldwide in participating Ikea stores. This includes Innsbruck and I made full use of the privileges during my visit (they had trouble scanning it through the system though and had to enter the number manually, wonder if that was a glitch or something else!).

After my Ikea excursion, I went into the rest of the shopping mall. There’s my favourite bakery, where I buy my breakfast from everyday while in Innsbruck. They have branches everywhere!

DEZ is two floors, the upper floor near the centre court has a bunch of restaurants and cafes where you can rest. There’s currently a back-to-school exhibit (this was back in August/September last year, I went there twice).

The mall itself isn’t as big as you’d think. The complex, however, is quite spacious with various other buildings housing major shopping chains like C&A or electronics. There is also an underpass beneath the highway, which gets you to another few buildings.

Plenty of parking around the area, so if you’re thinking of bringing your car, you’re bound to find something.

The whole area is quite pedestrian-friendly. There’s C&A, the department store, where I bought a few pairs of jeans from – a bargain!

The mountains in the background always reminded that you’re still in Innsbruck!

After going through the underpass beneath the highway, I was greeted with an electronics shop in the background and a department store in the foreground. I was more interested in the former as I was checking out photography equipment at the time.

Settled for lunch at the Nordsee restaurant. It is a chain of restaurants across several countries in Europe (Germany included) and is known for their fish. Had a grilled fillet with sides. Definitely a healthier option than McDonalds!

This was followed by a coffee for a refill on caffeine. Coffeeshop company is another chain. You’ll remember that I usually frequent their branch in Kaufhaus Tyrol in the heart of Innsbruck.

Took the bus back later that afternoon. It was a Saturday well spent.

Oh, and I had a photo shoot for Ikea as well! (my first cover photo!) – managed to fool quite a few people with it. It was actually an Ikea Family member’s special. They had set up a scene and were photographing groups that swung by that area in the shop. You received a free brochure. Turns out that they were doing the same thing in Australia! That’s standardization for you!

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1. Shopping in Innsbruck
2. Café Sacher :: Innsbruck, Austria
3. Window Shopping Melbourne (1) :: Chadstone SC

In 2010, during my stay in Innsbruck, I went for a hike atop the Seegrube and along the northern chain of alps. In 2011, I repeated this on the opposite side, the southern chain of mountains, in particular the Patscherkofel. If you’re in Innsbruck, you’ll recognize the Patscherkofel as it is home to a giant communications tower, which you’ll see from pretty much anywhere in Innsbruck.

You can get up to the Patscherkofel by cable car or chairlift (the latter is much more difficult to get to and slower). The plan for the day: hike along the face of the mountain through lush greenery.

Love the directions: Kassa (‘ticket counter’ or ‘cashier’), both ways… what?

It is quite fascinating how the cable car stations in Innsbruck look a bit like medieval houses. The Hungerburg (which gets you up to the Seegrube on the other side is similar).

The Patscherkofelbahn (the name of the cable car service), carrying passengers since 1928. Back then the car looked a lot more adventurous if you can call it that! Some older pictures to welcome you as you board the cable car.

After a quick 5-10 minute ride up the face of the mountain like any cable car in alpine Europe, you arrive at a base station, where you can sit at a restaurant and enjoy scenic views, drink coffee and eat fatty foods or be like me and my colleagues, who were with me that day. We hiked along the face, took in fresh air, enjoyed nature and the views of Innsbruck.

There is a designated footpath for walking, well-marked and not too difficult. This kind of walk is actually not as challenging as the Seegrube from back in 2010.

Some cows getting some shade from the sun… (by some I really mean a LOT). Wonder what it must feel like to be sitting inside the house with 10 or so cows peering in at you…

See what I mean by fairly easy path? The inclines and declines aren’t very steep either, quite an enjoyable walk. Bring water, sunscreen and a cap with you as there isn’t much tree cover along the way (at that altitude, you’ll find less things growing).

Scenic views of the Inn Valley…

…and Innsbruck, not to mention the Nordkette (Northern Chain) just straight ahead.

Just looking across the valley brings back memories from the past year. I also recently heard that the winter period in Innsbruck was met with a lot of snow and that the avalanche protection schemes (those lines you see running down the mountain face) were filled to the brink.

There’s the tower I was talking about. Shows you that we weren’t as high up the mountain as you’d think and that if you want to reach the summit, you would still have to climb a bit further.

Cow, who got bored of staying with his friends in the shade, decided to munch away…

When you don’t have binoculars, the next best thing is a camera with a good zoom. A nice view of the main train station, which I boarded the train for two destinations on the 2011 trip.

What must it feel like to live this high up above the city in a little hut like the one you see here? I imagine it would be pretty interesting.

Wondering how many pictures of the tower I took… I guess it reaffirms that I am atop the Patscherkofel (not that I really need any confirmation, haha).

Hiking around here is pretty popular, you tend to find quite a groups of all ages, with and without pets, who start at either the chairlift or cable car ends.

It’s pretty amazing how the valley just continues into the distance and just disappears in blue mist, even on a clear day as such.

There are several pit stops on the way, so you aren’t completely away from civilization.

As you look back, the long winding path just seems to have disappeared.

The avalanche barrier has seen better days. Wonder if it was a large rock that smashed the bar or just a giant wave of snow…

About an hour and a half of steady walking or depending on how fast you decide to walk and how many breaks you take in between, you arrive at a hut, which greets you with icy cold drinks and traditional food.

Once you reach this pit stop, there is not much of a distance left to cover before reaching the chair lift. The other interesting thing about the hike is that you may have started out from Innsbruck, but have actually travelled a few towns further.

Just some traditional lunch: Speckknödel (a meaty dumpling) with Sauerkraut and a Radler (Shandy: Beer + Lemonade). Mouthwatering?

Our friend here welcomed and farewelled us from our resting place. As you can see, he’s enjoying the weather and fresh air just like we are.

Having finished lunch and our refreshing beer, we set off on our journey home. Our hike took us to the chairlift: the Glungezer Bahn. When we arrived at the station, we had to individually catch a chair as it took us down to an intermediate station.

These did not look like the sturdiest of chairs, hung on a cable train with a giant metal pole extending to the base of the chair. Once I had however sat down and relaxed, I realized that it wasn’t too bad and was in fact nice than the cable car as you got to enjoy the scenery in the fresh air as it took you down.

There’s Innsbruck from a slightly different angle.

The ride is actually quite long as the lift is quite slow, but it was nevertheless enjoyable as you went throughout open fields, dense forests and other landscapes. There is also a footpath along the way for those who want to walk down (we didn’t feel like it, the chairlift was also a fun alternative).

After about 45 minutes of travelling and two chairlift rides (the second one is a shared bench), we finally arrived at the bottom of the mountain, the village of Tulfes, where we had a catch a regional bus that took us through several other villages all the way back to Innsbruck. It was an afternoon well spent and it was a nice comparison to see Innsbruck from the other side of the alps!

If you’re interested in going up the Patscherkofel, you can catch public transport from within the city. The station is near the Olympic sports park up the hill for some 5-10 minutes. There are a number of different kinds of tickets that you can get.

Related posts:

1. Hiking in the alps – The Northern Chain (Nordkette)
2. Hiking in the alps – The Stubai Valley, Austria
3. Welcome back to Innsbruck!

Queen Victoria Market (I will abbreviate as QV for your reading ease)… quite a popular tourist attraction, where you not only can buy groceries, but a heap of other useful and potentially useless items as well. Despite having already seen the market back in 2008, I decided to pay another trip the other day. Getting there is fairly simple: if you’re already in the city centre, you’ll need to take the tram up Elizabeth Street until you reach the tram stop right in front of the market. If you’re coming in from the suburbs, just grab the train line that gets you to either Flagstaff station (on weekdays) or Flinders Street (on weekends) and follow the tram line from there.

Melbourne’s trams network is quite extensive, so for inner-city dwellers, you’re in luck to have plenty of public transport options (I myself live outside the tram zones and am left to the trains and buses (still convenient, but there is a sense of loss)

If you enter that brown building you saw in the first picture, you’ll come across the butchers (vegetarians beware if you’re not accustomed to seeing lots of meat in the one place). The market essentially has a few major areas: butchers, grocers, a market for dried foods (e.g. cheese, sausages, etc.) and the larger area of stalls at the back. To get the best experience, I suggest you wake up early.

If I lived closer to the city, I wouldn’t actually mind shopping here on weekends as you can definitely get some good deals on food…

… there’s also the food court just next to the butchers where you can grab a morning snack, which was what I did.

The choices range from Asian to Western, savoury to sweet. The pastries and sandwiches just look appetizing! Makes for a difficult decision!

Plenty of signage to confuse guide you.

Yes, call me a pig, but I was hungry. You also cannot NOT have a coffee!

Tried the Asian “fast food” back in 2008 when I visited QV market, tasted not bad (nothing beats eating Asian food in Asia), but this wasn’t at all bad. Others might have different opinions. I generally am not picky with food.

Cafe Verona’s coffee was not too bad. Just seeing the name Verona reminded me of my trips to Italy (Venice you will have seen, Florence I’ll write about VERY VERY soon!)

After eating, it was time to hit the market. Located just outside the food court, simply cross the road and you’ll have plenty of shops to look at. You can buy a lot of different things: plants, clothing, shoes, souvenirs, random gifts and memorabilia, snacks (at the local stands) and a lot more.

This guy’s plant stand caught my eye, he had plenty of mini-cacti for sale.

Bonsai-cacti anyone? hehe…

I believe this was the first time I saw real Venus Flytraps (botanists, correct me if I’m wrong). They were also quite tiny (at least I believe that they do come in larger sizes).

There’s plenty of souvenir shops here, so if you cannot find the ones in the city, you are guaranteed to find them here. Just have fun browsing through hundreds of stalls.

The hall is pretty much decorated with products from floor to ceiling and you can walk around each store, each of which has about a 2x2m area occupied with plenty of stock.

Never tried Ugg boots, anyone can recommend them? They look quite difficult to wear, was thinking of settling for house slippers made from the material.

Memorabilia galore, the picture frames aren’t really my thing, but the canvas works at the back would probably be something I’d look at.

This abstract multi-canvas piece caught my eye, looks pretty cool, but certainly isn’t cheap. I wonder if it’s an actual painting or simply a print.

Plenty of fun t-shirts for the tourist. I remember myself buying t-shirts as I worked my way around the world last year.

QV Market, since 1878 and still going strong, promoting an environmentally sustainable market. There’s also a map for you to look at in case you’re lost (but it is honestly quite difficult to get lost).

Italian goods, 50% off, reminded me of the shops I saw in Italy.

Here’s a little cafe near the stalls, nicely designed shack for a quick coffee stop.

As an engineer in water systems, it would be quite un-geeky of me to not take a picture of this information board about their water harvesting and reuse system. With the amount of roof that QV market has, it is not surprising that it would make harvesting of rainwater for toilet flushing feasible!

As you work your way through the market, you are still reminded that you are in the CBD. Plenty of tall buildings around!

If you’re planning of taking your time to look at every individual stall, then I suppose you may need at least 2 hours at the market, but if you’re interested in checking out what QV Market is generally about, then an hour is sufficient. Just be sure to visit the actual grocery areas and not simply the stores.

There’s plenty of parking available. A giant carpark next to the stalls has quite a few spots and if you’re lucky, you’ll get a spot even closer.

To help the market atmosphere, you will find buskers, sometimes in larger groups.

Headed back through the grocery section to the exit. Stopped to admire the produce…

Plenty of fruits to choose from and they are very fresh.

Mangoes were in season recently, but have increased in price recently. These cherries look very interesting, but AUD30.00 a box isn’t something I’d readily buy. I’m not a big cherry fan anyway.

You can get honey and other jarred/canned/dried produce in the market hall next to the butchers. Cheese and sausages are also available.

They also sell a lot of other nice things to satisfy your hunger needs!

If you care for a little alcohol, you can also stop by to pick up a few bottles of wine.

Overall, QV market is a good mix between grocery shopping, souvenirs for tourists and a good dose of weekend relaxation and “Ambiance”.

Related posts:

1. Mount Baw Baw, Victoria, Australia
2. Window Shopping Melbourne (1) :: Chadstone SC
3. Window Shopping Melbourne (2) :: Doncaster SC

Another nice attraction that I recommedn everyone to go visit whilst in Western Australia is The Pinnacles. The drive north from Perth is about three hours along a nice road and undulating landscape. Located in Nambung National Park, “The Pinnacles” (in simple terms, but by no means derrogative) are a bunch of spires “sticking out of the ground in the middle of a desert landscape that’s near the coast”.

The easy drive there and back makes this a good day trip destination, which was what I ended up doing (since I couldn’t be bothered to find accommodation nearby and didn’t really have the time or money since I had Europe and South America waiting for me only weeks later last year). Upon arrival, you can begin at the Discovery centre, where you’ll get a bit of a historical insight into the area and how these Pinnacles came to be. Some wildlife, flora and other information is also provided.

Once you’ve educated yourself, you’ll exist and walk along a path that takes you the start of a desert trail that you can walk (1.2km return) or even drive. I recommend doing the walk first as it’ll familiarise you with these funny structures and their composition and size. The car can be a perfect finish to cover some decent ground and see just how big the desert area is.

This is what the view looks like…

The landscape is quite barren with some native bushes here and there, but more importantly, these rock formations. Walking the trail is pretty easy as the ground is quite solid unlike sandy beaches where you use twice the amount of energy (four time if you’re wearing sandals).

Oh, and please do not climb the Pinnacles as you are in a National Park! It’s as bad as plucking rare plants to take home with you!

With the clouds in the background, these irregular formations retain quite an eery look.

The trails you see on the ground are car tracks. As you walk along the trail, you’ll cross the “road” every now and then.

These formations are of limestone, but originated from seashells that came from near the coast! Geology is amazing.

As you walk along the trail, you’ll have these little arrows guiding you in the right direction. Just hope that your feet don’t look like that…

There are a massive amount of these formations in the National Park, all of different sizes, shapes and groups.

You’ll come across the occassional grassier areas. The farthest edge of the trail in fact runs along a greener area near a carpark. The desert reaches beyond there.

There are mounds that you can climb up to get a better view. They won’t give you that much an improved view. This is when you’re better of searching for higher ground with a car.

Going through the National Park by car allows you to see the wider area. Just make sure you stay on the track (marked by the rocks, see if you can spot it in the above picture!)

I believe this is one of the highest point in the desert and it gives you not only a view of the desert, but also the coastline beyond.

It was my luck that as I was returning back to the entrance, a slight drizzle and mix of sunshine gave me this awesome rainbow. As most of the desert was fairly flat, it must’ve been the first time in my life that I saw a full rainbow (half-circle). Unfortunately, I need to get a wider angle lense or a pair of good running shoes if I am to capture such a fascinating shot, haha …

The Pinnacles, definitely worth visiting.

Update for readers: I will be moving back and forth between posts from my round-the-world trip back in 2011 and newer posts on current activities. Look forward to them.

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I wish everyone a very Happy New Year and all the best, much happiness and success in 2012!

Started celebrations with a bonfire at the beach in Thailand. This continued into the night with lanterns and fireworks.

The good thing about being surrounded by hotels on the beach is that you don’t have to worry about your own fireworks (unless you want to outperform, haha).

As for me, I haven’t been as active with blogging this year. Real life has been throwing me tasks one after another. I won’t make any promises for 2012 either, but I certainly have a lot of content lined up that I would love to show you.

Without further ado, let’s make 2012 an even better year than 2011!

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Boarded the ferry at the Barrack Street docks. If you see this pretty fancy-looking structure, then you know you’re in the right place. The bell tower, the largest musical instrument in the world. Haven’t actually visited it, but will let you know more about it when I do.

Palm trees to set the mood! In the background of this picture is the Perth CBD, behind me, the river and my boat.

The Rottnest Express is one of those boats with nice comfortable seats inside, a snack bar to get your morning coffee and snacks as well as an upper deck to sunbathe (well not really sunbathe, but to enjoy some fresh air at least).

The journey from Perth to Fremantle is a slow one (Fremantle is at the mouth of the river, before then local “river rules” apply). Nevertheless, it is quite enjoyable as you get to see the city in a different kind of style.

To give you some background before I go on, Rottnest Island is fairly small and has several beaches. The main landing near Thomson Bay (see the map below) has all the facilities that you would need to prepare yourself for an afternoon or a weekend stay on the island. Information booths and everything are available. The plan for the day was a bicycle ride around the island (because I’m such a healthy person with all the coffee I drink, kekeke)

View Larger Map

If the western tip of the island were somewhat larger, you could pass it for a giant floating fish!

Arrival 1.5 hours or so later at the main jetty of the island. The boat can also accommodate a huge rack of bicycles so if you’re thinking of bringing your own, you can do so. Note that the costs for the ferry/bike hire and everything are settled with the company and you collect your rental or personal bike off the ferry when it arrives. I’m not too sure if there are bike rentals on the island, but the main website will have more details (including accommodation and other activities).

Sunshine weather and blue waters are just what I need once in a while! Coming from the wintery Melbourne climate, Perth and Western Australia in general offer you a very different atmosphere.

Had I brought my swimmers, I would have gone for a dip as well despite it being somewhere in the autumn/winter season!

Very simple bicycles rented for a reasonable price. They are enough to get you around the island and you can book them with the Rottnest Express.

Before setting off, you may want to stop by the local convenience store to stock up on some munchies for the ride because there aren’t too many other places to get food around anywhere else on the island.

Everyone is permitted to enter the store except Quokkas. Don’t know what a quokka is? You’ll see one further below! (Does this mean that kangaroos and all other animals are allowed to enter?)

Had breakfast on the island. A nice serving of everything. For a warm day like this and an island as big as Rottnest, you’d have to stock up on carbs!

Soon after breakfast, it was time to set off on a bike ride around the island.

The island is just close enough to let you see Perth on a clear day! Certainly doesn’t look too far away but it’ll take you a while on speedboat to get there.

Just looking at the waters makes me want to jump in!

The island is quite self-sustaining. A giant wind turbine aids in the power generation.

Can you spot the person in the picture. Wonder if he/she’s fishing for dinner!

As you cover some serious distance, you’ll come across a row of chalets, which you rent out for the night or a few nights. As I’ve said, a holiday near home, but away from the city. Details on rental are available on the website.

Apart from being surrounded by seawater, there are a few inland lakes near the island. The bicycle path follows these. Also note that a lot of the roads are not driven much by vehicles. You’ll see the occassional bus or two, but vehicular transport on the island is actually kept to an absolute minimum allowing cyclists to have clear runs for some fast pedaling!

The landscape is mostly flat on the island, terrain is undulating, but there aren’t many steep climbs and drops.

Our lizard friend is enjoying the warmth of the tarmac and sunbathing his glazing scales. Must’ve lost his tail on his previous escape from whoever was chasing him last.

After about 30 to 45 minutes (if you’re quick enough), you can reach the opposite end of the island! What awaits you there are a series of beaches and lookout points. Behold, the Indian Ocean!

Having cycled across the island, you are compelled to continue your journey. The bicycle path makes a loop around the island’s perimeter so the round trip itself is definitely the way to go.

Stopped by this beautiful cove, which I just had to admire! Lovely colours, it’s one of my desktop wallpapers (the HDR version of it).

The bike path is generally straightforward. There are a number of paths that stray from the main route, taking you around a smaller, obscure area of the island. If you have the time, I suggest you explore. If you’re pressed for time, then I suggest you only pick a few.

These detours are generally not very lengthy. You end up cycling a small loop with a lookout point at the end. Remember the lighthouse at the start of the tour? Can you spot it in the horizon?

With only a few more kilometres to go of the cycling tour, you’ll come across a little area where you can see Quokkas. These little animals remind me of a cross between kangaroo and mouse.

They certainly greet you with some strange looks, but are quite funny to observe. Wouldn’t try touching them though.

Time to the end of a long tour with a coffee! A cafe near the jetty serves some good coffee, which you enjoy before it’s time to board the ferry again.

Don’t forget to take the bikes with you. They’ll be loaded back onto the ferry…

…as such. For those who have been to Fremantle before, you’ll recognise the building on the horizon, the Maritime museum. A day well spent ended in enjoying the sunset while cruising up the river back to Barrack Street docks.

The Perth skyline at dusk (with a bunch of cranes adding to the scenery)

As you disembark from the boat and make your way off the docks, you’ll see the bell tower once more, albeit a little differently lit.

If you’re interested in visiting Rottnest island, read more about it on their website. Other activities on the island include swimming, snorkeling and heaps more. You’ll definitely will not run out of things to do! I’ll definitely go back again for some other activities in future and to explore more of the areas that I had to leave out this time.

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I lugged a modestly sized bag and a massive bag onboard with me at the start of the trip. Melbourne-Perth was my first stop and whilst I was waiting for my plane at Tullamarine International Airport very early in the morning, a coffee was probably the only thing that was on my mind (if you’ve been following Melodious Expeditions for some time, then you’ll know that I love taking pictures of coffee)!

A few hours later and two hours back in time, I arrived at Perth’s domestic terminal. The international and domestic terminals are separated in Perth, but you can get a shuttle bus between them.

Rainy weather greeted me as I travelled into the city centre, where I would take public transport to where I was staying. This post is more about my strolls through the city centre and surroundings.

You could class Perth’s CBD into business and shopping areas. The shopping area is located on two major streets: Murray and Hay St (Hay St is one of the major “bloodlines” that runs out into the suburbs, when I do a post on the suburb of Subiaco in the near future, you’ll hear that name again)

Murray Street in the central shopping district is a pedestrian road, lined with a nice arcade of trees, not forgetting a heap of shops. If you’re looking for either Optus or Telstra telephone shops and service centres, you’ll not run out of options in the city.

Forrest Chase shopping complex, with a Myer department store and a lot of other useful places that’ll hurt your wallet. The building is also directly connected to the main train station via a bridge.

Here’s another view of Murray Street from the overhead bridge that connects Forrest Chase with its neighbour Carillon Centre.

I find it advantageous to have all-pedestrian zones in major shopping districts. Just makes the place very attractive for walking.

In the several visits I have made to Perth this year, I’ve made this cafe my regular place. You’ll find Bocelli just as you come down the escalator from Forrest Chase near the central area.

They do sandwiches and other light snacks as well! Very tasty!

The construction here was well underway in June when I visited and has now been completed. I was guessing what it could’ve been back then and simply dismissed it as renovation works, but it turns out that they’ve built a stage and placed some green artwork in this area.

The central post office on the opposite end backing onto the Commonwealth bank building, both in a rather old-style architecture that gives character to the place.

A view from the Fremantle line platform (number 7) at Perth train station. Like Melbourne, they’ve kept the traditional architecture of the train station, situated amongst many modern tall buildings.

I am lucky that I do not have to wait 82 minutes for the Armadale line. My ride was just four minutes away.

Out in the suburbs, you get a very different impression. A lot of greenery and less of the urban greyness. And this is only a few stops away.

The city is also lined with bicycle paths everywhere so you can easily transport yourself from one end to the other. I have to try that one day, but since there’s no way of shrinking my bike to fit in my suitcase, it’ll have to wait.

Strolling through Perth also did not just include the city centre, but also the coast. I would say that you’d be walking at a brisk pace for about an hour from CBD to the nearest beach (if you’re up for it). I tried and it was a pleasant walk on a fairly warm day. Sunset is amazing so I’d recommend getting there for the event.

Perth has got a lot of nice beaches. Cottesloe being the most popular I would believe. Will find a chance to go there the next time I’m in Perth.

Moving our attention back to the city, another well-known place in Perth is King’s Park, a gigantic mass of greenery raised well above river level. I walked there from the CBD and was greeted by a nice evening sky. The buildings on the horizon are residential towers that overlook the city.

…and this is the view you get if you can afford a place here. After a ridiculous climb up an uncountable number of steps to get to the top and start of the park, I finally caught my breath while taking pictures. If you love jogging and are in Perth, you’ll want to find this long staircase. The climb will certainly toughen you up for any mountain you’d like to conquer.

Overall, Perth is a great mix of the grey, the green and the water. At night you can still see the hustle and bustle of the highway, but also the tranquility that seems to reside over the city. Am I sounding to poetic? Alright, I’ll stop.

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Bought a circular polarizer filter for my DSLR camera recently. Had the chance to test it out yesterday! Pictures are without and with filter. You’ll recognise the scenery if you’ve been following this blog since last year!

Without filter…

With filter…

I love the gain in colour saturation and how the sky just gains much more depth!

Without filter…

With filter…

Clouds look surreal!

The Altstadt is currently hosting a giant crane. Looks like the Swarovski building is undergoing some renovation. I’m not exactly sure what it entails though. Perfect timing to be seeing the Swarovski crystal worlds bus pass by as well, haha…

Related posts:

1. Welcome back to Innsbruck!
2. Innsbruck Nightwalk – Techniker Street
3. Hiking in the alps – The Northern Chain (Nordkette)

That would probably be the first thing I’d say after several months of completely neglecting my blog. My work has just been too busy and it has made it very difficult for me to find time to sit down and do some blogging. Yet, every time I think back of my blogging times last year and early this year, I remember how I enjoyed talking about my experiences and how I miss it and wish I could find time. Well, I’ve decided that I’m going to make time rather than find it.

Despite not having updated this site for ages, I appreciate the weekly visits I am still getting and hope that readers have been finding this site informative and fun to browse. If you ever have any constructive feedback about this site, how I could improve things or just generally, what you’d like to see, please leave a comment below.

So… as this post says, a few life-changing and busy work events later…

I’ve had a very stressful last few months dealing with major milestones in my work as well as a few changes that have forced me to do a complete overhaul and rethink of my life, but now that it has all settled, I hope to continue blogging more actively in the upcoming months (until, hopefully not, my time gets taken away again). The last time you heard from me here (just look one post below you), I was still reminiscing about my winter trip in Innsbruck. Well, I returned to Kuala Lumpur for a few weeks and then to Melbourne, where I stayed until just a few days ago. I’ve decided on a fresh start before I go back to this backlog of posts (hey, at least I won’t run out of things to write, haha).

I am currently in Perth. I have started a long three-month journey around the world, again. Yes, I’m quite the jet setting researcher and I do like seeing the world quite a bit. Over the next few weeks, you’ll be hearing from me in various places: Perth, Kuala Lumpur, Innsbruck once again and South America later in September (you’ll get it in September if I find an internet connection). Apart from travelling, I hope to write a bit about other things as well (stay tuned).

Sorry for the delay, but look forward to a revival soon!

Pete

Related posts:

1. A very busy start to 2011

Caught a lucky moment when I had most of the inner dining room to myself. The front area of the cafe was packed and I was searching for somewhere quiet to sit down and reflect on some ideas that have been lingering in my head for some time. The waiter sat me down here where literally no one else was and ran down the menu fairly quickly with me.

A painting of the original hotel Sacher in Vienna reminded me of my trips back in mid 2010. You will only find a branch of the cafe here in Innsbruck, but the Sacher Torte that they serve was assured to be the original, which I recognise from the logo and the packaging of cakes in gift boxes in the display cabinet just outside the cafe.

The waiter recommended me a small and highly condensed version of the Sacher Torte, the thing was literally smaller than my cappucino, which I found quite amusing, yet the whole thing did take me quite some time to finish because of its intense richness. The original chocolate Sacher logo was a sign of the original

Famous visitors to the cafe perhaps? The interior was generously decorated.

Menu and history are all available for your browsing pleasure at the tables. Gotta love the logo, never have I seen the letter S stand out so prominently!

Just beside me was the window, where I could peer out into the narrow alleys of the Altstadt that were quite empty (after all, it was already around 9pm), nearing the end of the Christmas market for the day. The stalls set up in the Altstadt and Maria-Theresien street usually pack up by around 8 and by 9 the streets look rather deserted.

The front room of the cafe was also slowly starting to empty. Many tourists visit this cafe. After all, even though you can order a Sacher Torte from another cafe that I stumbled upon near the Maria-Theresien street, the original will always remain with its inventor!

The entrance to the cafe is off the main street: a little glass door with the logo and the menu hung outside.

Spent about two hours in the cafe slowly working through my cake and coffee, but it was a pleasant time and I had managed to jot down some ideas that had been in my mind for some time, so all was good.

If you’re looking for the cafe, simply walk up to the Golden Roof and turn to your right. Follow the alleyway until you come across a white and yellow striped building with the sign Cafe Sacher. Although I seemed to have missed it or the fact that it was there never seemed to have occurred to me, the cafe is there and fairly easy to spot.

Related posts:

1. A collection of the European diet
2. Swarovski Crystal Worlds, Wattens, Austria
3. Innsbruck Departure, Thank you for the memories!