by Rob Merlino

Created on: February 20, 2007   Last Updated: April 24, 2009

Western Australia is remote. Perth, the capital of WA is the most remote capital city in the world. It is a very clean and urbane city with great nightlife and fine dining. Freemantle is just South of Perth. It is a nifty little seaside town with a 19th century feel. There is an interesting marketplace there as well as an old prison and an Aussie Football Field. The 1980 America's Cup Race was held out of the Freemantle Yatch Club-a place we became familiar with as our hosts-my wife's cousin and her husband- had a very nice 42 foot catamaran moored there. Rottnest Island-named for the Quokka (a small marsupial that looks like a mini kangaroo up close and was mistaken for a large rat by the island's original inhabitants) is a former prison island turned resort is only a short ferry ride (about 17 miles) from Freemantle. You can day trip there or stay overnight in one of the small hotels or cabins for rent there. The beaches and snorkeling were fantastic. I swam with a six foot sting ray! We also saw "okkies" (octopi), many rays, tropical fish and a small shark.

There are many opportunities for wild life encounters in WA. One is Rockingham Dolphins. This company operates tours that allow folks to swim with wild dolphins in Rockingham Bay. Rockingham is about an hour South of Freemantle. About 20 years ago the fellow who started this company decided to devote a year of his life to "getting to know" the dolphins in Rockingham Bay. It took him about 9 months to gain the trust of the dolphins in the bay and he was soon leading tours of people to watch him swim with the dolphins. Now guests can swim with the dolphins themselves. You'll don a wet suit, flotation belt, mask and snorkel. A staff member wearing a flotation belt leads a "chain" of 8-10 guests; everyone holds onto the belt of the person in front of them. Another staff member (the guy with the self-proclaimed "Best Job in Australia") free swims with the dolphins and gets them to interact with the guests. The sight of wild dolphins emerging from the depths to swim with me was an experience I'll never forget. I have done Dolphin Quest in Bermuda and this experience was far superior to that!

Another neat encounter was at Cohunu Park. The park is a research, rescue and breeding facility for koala bears. For a fee, which supports the park's research, you can cuddle with a koala for 10 minutes or so. They are very gentle animals-you'll want to take them home. I took a picture of my wife holding a koala wearing my

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