I travelled through Perth frequently on my way to the Pilbara supporting the twelve iron ore mines and one diamond mine in Argyle from Rio Tinto. This time I was going to be away in West Angelas and Pannawonica during Filomena’s birthday and we decided that she would meet me in Perth after my work to celebrate her birthday. Our friends Lena and Cagi decided to go us well and we turned it in a bit of a holiday.
Perth, the capital of Western Australia (WA) is located on the banks of the beautiful Swan River and nearby natural bushland in Kings Park. The City of Perth was officially named on 20 September 1856.
I met them in Perth on Filomena’s birthday and organised a dinner and a cruise in the Swan River. The next day after a nice breakfast in town we headed for Fremantle where we spend the day. We include a photo gallery with some views of Perth that will give you an idea of how beautiful the city is.
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Fremantle is a major Australian port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth and was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829 and has a population of approximately 27,000. Fremantle has sister city relationship with Funchal I the Madeira Islands since 1996.
Portuguese migrants from the islands of Madeira settled in Fremantle in WA in the 1950s and established a fishing community which, by the mid-1980s, had grown to about 6,000 people. It is very common to hear Portuguese speaking in the public places.
The other important aspect of Fremantle is its historic Jail of Gaol as they call it. The six-hectare site includes the prison cellblocks, gatehouse, perimeter walls, cottages, and tunnels. Initially known as the Convict Establishment or The Establishment, it was constructed as a prison for convicts, using convict labour, between 1851 and 1859.
Punishments varied over the years, with flogging and time in irons eventually replaced by lengthening of sentences and restriction from visitors or entertainment. The gallows room was the only lawful place of execution in Western Australia. More than 40 hangings were carried out at Fremantle Prison between 1888 and 1984!!!
We spent a day in Fremantle and visited the Jail and enjoy a nice Portuguese meal in one of the harbour’s restaurants.
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On our second day in WA we visited Margaret River and had a good taste of its wines. Margaret River is a town in the South West of Western Australia, located at 277 kilometres south of Perth.
Margaret River's coast to the west of the town is a renowned surfing location, with world wide notoriety for its surf breaks. Colloquially, the area is referred to as Margs.
The surrounding area is the Margaret River Wine Region and is known for its wine production and tourism, attracting an estimated 500,000 visitors annually. In earlier days the area was better known for hardwood timber and agricultural production.
The town is named after the river, which is presumed to be named after Margaret Whicher, cousin of John Garrett Bussell (founder of Busselton) in 1831. The name is first shown on a map of the region published in 1839. European migrants lived in the area as early as 1850, with timber logging commencing in around 1870. By 1910, the town had a hotel which also operated as a post office.
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I have been working in the Pilbara since I joined Rio Tinto and providing consultancy work for their Iron Ore mines and this time I was in West Angelas and Pannawonica doing some work.
The town of Pannawonica is an iron-ore mining town located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, near the Robe River, about 200 km south-west from Karratha and 1986 km North from Perth. At the 2011 census, Pannawonica had a population of 686. In 2011, it reportedly had the highest median weekly income of any town in Australia, due to the high income of its mine workers.
The township’s name was derived from nearby Pannawonica Hill, named by a surveyor in 1885 and based on the Aboriginal name which is said to mean "the hill that came from the sea". The traditional legend is that two local Aboriginal tribes were arguing over the ownership of the hill which was located by the sea. The sea spirit decided to resolve the dispute by moving the hill inland. As the hill was dragged over the land it left a deep indentation which became the Robe River.
The West Angelas mine is also an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region, 110 kilometres North West of Newman.
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