Another week away on the road...

Work sent me back down to Margaret River again for another full week of client meetings on the road which was unexpected and this time I really was on my own!

I was even more nervous this time, not sure if the driving down there alone, (at least last time I had Micky to accompany me), or the pressure to conduct meetings to new clients, was more daunting.

On the Sunday afternoon drive down from Bunbury to Margaret River (luckily we’d spent the weekend in Mandurah so that was a quarter of the route already done), I found talking to myself helped. Don’t they say that’s a sign of insanity..? Anyway, I needed to hear noise it was eerily quiet on the road. No iPod connection in our car for a little musical company and I haven’t owned a cassette tape since the mid-nineties to play in the cars’ cassette player. The car is Micky’s parents’ old car which they kindly gave to us when Micky arrived. I kept thinking ‘just don’t run over any kangaroos!’

My week wasn’t as successful as the first but I did manage to win some premium new clients such as; Gabriel Chocolates, (a lovely boutique chocolate shop), Arimia Wines, (a lovely little cellar door winery and restaurant with a lovely owner who came up with the vineyard name from her two daughters; ‘Ari’ and ‘Mia’), Wise Vineyard and Restaurant, a winery and restaurant in an amazing setting with gorgeous scenery nestled in the hills overlooking Eagle Bay and the ocean. I had another incident with farm animals, this time it was chickens! I visited an artist and when I met her on her organic farm she led me into her studio which was a five minute walk out into the field. I’d forgotten to take some magazines from the car for her so I insisted I walk back to the car to get them – I wish I hadn’t. A dozen or so chickens start to follow me so fast that I start to walk faster and then I ran and as I did they scurried along faster behind me, I was a bit scared. Why are you chasing me chickens? Surely you're not after a copy of Scoop magazine! By the time I got back to the studio I was so out of breath from running away from the chickens chasing me that my client said “did you run back?” “Yes, your chickens were chasing me!" I replied. "You can tell I’m not from the country can’t you!”.

I gained confidence each day on the road, I honestly surprised myself so much that I hope I can now maintain this confidence and calm in Perth where the driving is a bit more challenging on the busier roads. I even kept up to the speed limits, 110k/hour on some roads. I stayed in the same accommodation as before and spent my evenings cocooned up in my hotel room as I’d be pretty exhausted from the day. Must admit I felt relieved to come home at the end of the week. Whist it’s always good to get away and explore a beautiful region here in WA, being away on two work trips for two weeks over the last month has meant that I haven’t managed to do much else socially or even personal things for myself. I intend to get more settled in Perth now that I’m back at home, including unpacking the rest of the shipped boxes that arrived from the UK two months ago…

Arimia

Nice setting for a work meeting at Arimia :-)

Brookland Valley winery

Driving along scary roads

My Aussie wheels

View from Wise Winery

Weekend in Mandurah

We spent last weekend in a new city called Mandurah with our friends Youngey and Ali and their one year old daughter Lacey. Our friends enjoy getting away every so often and taking weekend trips down here so I was eager to check it out. We shared a huge spacious two bedroomed apartment at The Sebel situated on the Mandurah Estuary with spectacular waterfront views over the marina.  I was stunned at the views from our own very wide balcony. Although the weather has cooled down lately, it was perfect for this weekend at 25 degrees.

On Saturday morning we took a semi-circular stroll along the boardwalk around the marina passing all species of birds including pelicans and shags. Unfortunately, we didn’t spot dolphins although it is a frequent dolphin spotting (and whale watching) area. We took Lacey to the park and stopped for coffee and just enjoyed strolling around in the sun.  We conveniently ended up at some market shops and I found a couple of small things to for our new home (another French style clock and some flowers!) Our friends are getting married here in October so Ali was excited to show me the exact spot where they had chosen to tie the knot in a very low-key ceremony which we are very happy to be part of.

The highlight of the day was hiring some bicycles from just outside of our hotel and going on a sunny cycling tour around the estuary with Micky. The area certainly has a relaxed holiday atmosphere to it as we took in the coastal features.  It was only when Micky and I were cycling around and stopped to check out a pretty rustic-looking hut standing at the end of a small jetty in a secluded area near some big trees and grassland that it dawned on me that this could also be a contending spot for our friends to tie the knot later this year… I was so excited to find it and tell Ali and the next day I showed her the spot and she fell in love with it – this was now the spot for their wedding!! 

We also cycled beyond the marina and around parts of the town. The city has experienced a large population boom over the last 10-15 years and is one of the fastest growing regional cities in Western Australia. We cycled past lots of newly built unusually modern houses (Perth is also full of them) - everything from the roads to the houses and Venetian-like bridges looked newly built. Mandurah is also fast becoming very popular with tourist and it clear to see why. We had Cicerellos for dinner that night, "WA's best fish and chips" apparently, it was pretty good but in my opinion not as tasty as good old-fashioned English fish and chips back home. My obligatory gherkin and pickled onion were missing for starters!! Youngey brought along a new board game called Balderdash so the four of us spent spent the evening playing this extremely hilarious board game in our apartment and laughing for hours. A great weekend, it was so needed. We'll be coming back for the wedding weekend and I think I'll also bring my mum here when she visits in December...

The Hut!

My week in Margaret River

My week away in Margaret River was a mini adventure, just with lots of work! Driving down there was long and challenging; almost four hours south of Perth by car with part of the route covering roads set in bush land, lucky I had Micky on board to coach and direct me on the way down! As well as being very rusty and not the most confident person behind the wheel, I was most worried about encounters with kangaroos on the journey down as I had been warned by colleagues that it isn’t uncommon for kangaroos to hop out onto the roads in front of passing cars and the Margaret River region is full of them. We made it down in one piece though and I can now say that that was the longest journey I have ever driven (270 kilometres) and fastest too, hitting 110k per hour a lot the way.

Over the course of the week, I met with lots of SCOOP Traveller  clients - mostly wineries this week. Some of the estates I visited were beautiful set in the most stunning natural scenery, many with acres upon acres of neatly lined vineyards and gardens. I also visited a chocolate factory/shop and a giant hedge maze. My accommodation was arranged at some serviced apartments in central Margaret River called Darby Park which were nice and spacious and just a two minute walk from the main high street on Bussell Highway so Micky and I would take a tour around the charming little shops on the main street after work. The weather was still cheerful  as we approach winter (mid twenties) with a little rain at times.

Amongst the clients I met with were a couple of fellow Brits who had emigrated to Perth/WA years ago and it was really interesting to hear their stories of when they emigrated and what it was like and their Australian journeys since. The English lady from Woody Nook Wines had even invited Micky and I to go cycling with them in Perth! I managed to get at least one out of two clients renewed into the next edition of the magazine which was a good result as the market is tough right now and the industry is in its quieter season.

A funny tale of drama to tell you from my meeting with Marri Wood Park: I met with Lisa, the owner of this organic winery who was a friendly, chatty lady. We had our meeting outside on her lawn and we were discussing the magazine when a gaggle of geese wander on over approaching our table and walking under it close to my feet wedged in my open-toed shoes – ewww! It just so happened that they also farm their own organic produce too! So up I jumped from my seat! People who know me, know that me and animals, (ALL animals) don’t mix! Then two of her dogs come barking over too and then she picks two of the geese up from the ground and sits them on her lap like they’re two adorable little twin babies – OMG! I’m trying to keep a professional demeanour and remain seated continuing to talk business whilst these farm animals surround me. I know Aussies are renowned for their laid-back nature, but this is taking their behaviour to another level! Anyway, an hour later I’m still there sipping on a peppermint tea and talking about living in various places around the world so I suppose I accomplished something else this week too! I don’t think I’ve quite had a business meeting like this before. All in all, an interesting week in a lovely part of Western Australia...

Woody Nook

Voyager Estate

The Geese

Queen of Spades