westward bound, part 2

Our second day in Perth started quite late. Margaret had already left for work when we got up!

The plan for the day was to explore the Swan Valley, a wine-growing area near Perth. Armed with Margaret's street directory and Scott's travel pointers, Malc & I headed off to Swan Valley.

After being impressed with the Fremantle Chocolate Factory, our first stop was another chocolate place, the Margaret River Chocolate Company (5123 West Swan Road,West Swan WA ph 08 9250 1588). The shop was full of chocolate in all shapes, forms and sizes! There were even trays of chocolate bits for customers to taste the more "exotic" flavours, which I thoroughly enjoyed. While we were pondering at what chocolate goodies to procure, we had coffee (Malc) and hot chocolate (me) at the shop's cafe.

Next stop was Edgecombe Brothers winery (Cnr Gnangara and West Swan Roads, Ellenbrook WA, ph 08 9296 4307). The winery does not only offer wines but also some of the local produce. So while Malc was going through the wine tasting list, I busied myself by sampling the five fresh grape varieties on offer. Malc & I really enjoyed our visit to Edgecombe Brothers, and Rita, the staff that served us, was very engaging.

After Edgecombe Brothers, it was time for lunch and Scott recommended we go to Caversham House (141 Caversham Avenue, Caversham WA ph 08 9279 1167). The place was quite pretty (bordering a bit on being over-the-top) with manicured lawns, full-sized Gargoyle statues and a man-made waterfall. The food, though, was heavenly. Malcolm had seafood linguini, with prawns, scallops, squid, snapper and mussels lightly steamed with garlic, parsley and fresh tomato. I must say that this dish was exceptional, the sauce captured the sweet taste of fresh seafood. And I had moist fillet of Tasmanian salmon with an interesting accompaniment of roast eggplant crust and baked Mediterranian vegetables, finished with salsa verde and saffron butter.

After lunch, Malc was not interested in dessert, but I was eyeing the cheese platter. So, I ordered the gourmet cheese platter for one. And, I was glad I only had the single serve option as the plate was huge and was more than enough for Malc & I to share.

After lunch, Malc & I strolled the Caversham House grounds and after taking a few pictures, we headed back to Perth where Scott and Margaret have some yummy dinner plans for us.

nine lives

April has been quite a month of celebrations for us. First it was Malc's citizenship ceremony, birthday and then, last Thursday was our 9th wedding anniversary!

NINE YEARS! ! ! Whoa, has it really been that long? Maybe we've been having loads of fun because it does not feel that long.

* * *

Well, the special day started on a funny note. Malc woke up at 4:30 am, not to plan any surprise, but to watch a UEFA Champions' League match. And then later, off we went to work, still no mention of the anniversary . . . at 9:00 am I finally rang Malc to tell him what day it was.

We did not plan for dinner because Malc had to go to the reception for a seminar he's attending, so we went for a quick lunch at Certo, and the celebrations were postponed for the weekend.

* * *

We spent last weekend at Cypress Lakes Resort and Spa (Cor McDonalds and Thompson Roads, Pokolbin, NSW ph 02 4993 1555) in the Hunter Valley. There was a catch though, Malc was going to be at a seminar the whole time, so we did not really spend a lot of time together.

So while Malc was 'working,' I spent Saturday morning watching cable TV and then the afternoon, driving to the Ogishi Glass Studio and then to the Binorie Cheese Shop. I also spent a few hours enjoying the spa, although I must say, that it was not as luxurious or as pampering as I thought it would be.

Malc and I then joined the dinner for seminar attendees. It was held in a winery restaurant and the food was sublime. Malc strongly suggested that I not take photos of the food served, as it may adversely affect his career, so instead, I scanned the menu.

Malc's seminar ended at noon next day, and by that time we were both eager to go home, so after lunch at the Pokolbin village centre, we drove back home.

Happy anniversary to us, and many more years to come.