Twilight Sailing

Managed to hitch a ride on my friend's yacht for an evening sailing experience.

5pm:
Set off from the Aquarama marina. Surrounding was still bright.
Meet my fellow crew

6pm:
Sailed upstream along Swan River... from north Fremantle all the way to Narrows Bridge.
Along the way, we met this cuboid-looking thing floating around...
At a closer look, there's pple on it!

At an even closer look, it is actually a 2-story floating restaurant. We can see tables, chairs and a bar counter through the glass walls.

Its called the Crystal Swan!View of narrows bridge from the river.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narrows_Bridge_(Perth))

7pm:
Thursday is the twilight sailing day at several yacht clubs... You can see many other sailboats along the river.
This is the view of Perth city during sunset. You can even see the moon.
It slowly gets darker...
and darker....

8pm:
Berthed at Royal Perth Yacht Club for a BBQ dinner

9.30pm:
Started sailing back towards Aquarama marina.
Its completely dark by now...

11pm:
Arrived back at Aquarama marina..
Packed up the boat,
and off I go home to sleep. What a tiring day sailing : )


Here's the route we took today.

Abalone Fishing

How to go about catching Abalones during summer

1) Apply a licence from the Department of Fisheries. WA is one of the few places in the world where abalone fishing is allowed.
I cost AUD40 for 1 licence. Each licence entitles you to catch up to 20 sizable abalones each time.

2) On the days where its open for fishing, go to the assigned beach.

You can see other pple (mostly asians) already there way earlier than us.

3) Get ready, and be properly attired. You will need booties, wetsuit, snokeling mask, screwdriver (to wedge the abalone out from the reef) etc.
Negative examples: ie, Johnny, who is under-dressed

The is by far the UGLIEST wetsuit I have ever seen:

4) After an hour of diving/swimming/digging and braving the cold morning seawater, its time to admire your catch of the day:

Caught abt 35 that dayThis is the biggest one we got:


5) Cleaning and Preparation. Dig the abalone out from the shell, trim off the dirty edges and the guts, and wash the remaining meat.
Empty shell:
This is the end-product. Its much smaller than before.

6) Eat it. You can eat it raw (sashimi-style),

or cook it with soup/porridge/noodles etc...

RockPool - Most expensive steak in Perth

In order to "celebrate" my one-year anniversary in Perth, a bunch of us decided to try out the best steak in Perth - at RockPool Bar and Grill.

This restaurant in Burswood is opened by celebrity chef Neil Perry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Perry), his 3rd branch in Australia.

The restaurant showcases top-quality produce. The beef is all Australian, expertly aged and prepared on the premises. Rockpool Bar & Grill has its own butcher and there are five tonnes of meat in its specially constructed ageing rooms at any one time.

The facade:
Posh and classy entrance....

Behind this door is a dimly-lid pathway to the dining area:
As you walked through, look at the glasses on your left and right, you might find something interesting.
They actually showcase their aging steaks....

Dining area

Kitchen:

Bar counter:
Starters:
The yellow cuboid on the wooden tray is not a bar of soap. It is actually some f***king good French butter which is so smooth and will just melt in your mouth the moment you eat it.

RockPool also has an extensive range of wine. Their wine menu is actually thicker than a novel!
After some recommendation, we decided on this Pinot Noir.

The Food Menu:
Rockpool Bar & Grill is not cheap.

Steaks range from AU$49 for the 29-day aged skirt steak (240g) with most hovering around the $50-$60 mark. David Blackmore’s 29-day dry aged full blood Wagyu Rib-eye (200g) tops the list at AU$119. (SGD$160). I ordered it!


200g steak for SGD$160 !!
This is what it looks like
Marble score 9+ ... lots of fats in the meat.
The meat is truly heavenly.... tender juicy meat which melts in your mouth. Definitely the best steak I have had so far.

Would we go back? Yes, without hesitation! Although the price is a bit crazy, the ambiance, service and food quality is definitely unparalleled in Perth. :)

Fremantle Prison

Joined the touchlight tour at night. Nothing scary at all... disappointment..



A mannequin of a dead convict..

Some convicts were allowed to paint on the cell walls prior to being released... Impressive!



There is even an art gallery for it