An Outback outlook with a twist

By RON CRITTALL

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 4, 2000

Perth, the world's most isolated continental capital city, combines a sweeping blend of international flavor and frontier action.

PERTH -- The Swan River meanders through the city and suburbs of Perth, capital of Western Australia, providing a focus, an inspiration and a playground. The water sparkles and glitters as the sea breeze ruffles the surface. Triangles of canvas and nylon, of all colors and sizes, speckle the broad, sheltered waters. Pelicans and black swans idly paddle back and forth in reed-fringed bay; in the background, tall office towers glint in the afternoon sun.

One of Perth's great attributes is that, with the exception of the harbors and yacht clubs, the sea and river frontages are public land and accessible by everyone. The grassy areas along the shoreline are full of families picnicking under tall gum trees. Fishermen idle their hours away on the edges of jetties. Cyclists, inline skaters, joggers and dog walkers make their way along the adjacent paths; kites fly high as the breeze strengthens.

Upstream of the city center, the Swan is just an ordinary waterway, and downstream it narrows again before passing through Fremantle Harbour and into the Indian Ocean. Opposite and below the city it broadens out to form a wide expanse -- a lake in all but name.

For all its shining glass, concrete and steel, Perth does not really see itself as a major international city. Yet an estimated thousand mining and exploration companies, digging the dirt in the vast outback of Western Australia, are based here. These firms bring a touch of the brash, frontier town, a feeling aided by Perth being the world's most-isolated continental capital city. Adelaide is about 1,675 miles away.

[Times art: Teresanne Cossetta]

Interspersed between all the tower blocks are remnants of Perth's early British heritage. There are several churches, the town hall and the old courthouse (the oldest building, from 1837), while some marvelously ornate over-the-top hotels, shops and theaters date from the Gold Rush of about 100 years ago.

The Perth Mint, established to process this output, is housed in a lovely classical limestone building and is now a world center for the production of precious coins and medallions.

The discovery of gold at Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie, almost 370 miles east of Perth, transformed the state and the city. Much the same has happened with the Mineral Boom of the past 30 years, with the growth of the nickel, iron ore, oil and gas industries. The towers and neon signs of mineral giants and oil companies jostle for prominence with those of banks, insurance firms and stock brokers.

Perth is the capital and center for the enormous though empty state of Western Australia, which is more than one-fourth the size of the United States, yet with less than 2-million people.

The city proper forms a narrow rectangle along four long, east-west streets, parallel to the river. St. Georges Terrace is the main commercial street and canyon-like home to most of the high-rises. Broad, open parkland lies between river and city, contrasting and emphasising both.

At one end of the rectangle is Perth's jewel: Kings Park is 1,000 magnificent acres of pristine natural bushland, occupying a prime position above city and river. A few areas are given over to lawns and a botanical garden, and numerous memorials provide silent testament to Australia's part in most of the past century's wars. Otherwise it is bush, with winding paths leading past wildflowers and soaring jarrah trees complete with laughing kookaburras and swooping, squawking parrots.

At the other end of the city is a monument of another kind, the Burswood Casino. It sits on reclaimed land just across the Swan River, with a public golf course on one side and landscaped gardens on the other. A Heritage Walk provides a peaceful, sculptured introduction to the history of Perth and its river.

Even further upriver, rolling fields of grape vines sweep away on either bank of what is here little more than a stream. Large commercial wineries vie with smaller enterprises, some under the control of their founding Yugoslav families.

Summer in this wine-producing area is a mixture of festivals and fun, grapes and golf. The Houghton Winery is Western Australia's largest, and home to Australia's top-selling white wine. The winery hosts a series of open-air jazz, folk and blues performances under jacaranda trees.

At the top end of the valley, the Heineken Classic attracts some of the world's top golfers to the Vines Resort in late January, for Australia's richest tournament.

Getting out to the Swan Valley or, in fact, anywhere around Perth, is easy. There are good suburban bus and rail services, with frequent and free Central Area Transit buses circling the inner city. Essentially, however, Perth is a city built for cars. Freeways, broad streets, ample parking and few traffic jams make it simple to get about.

Pedestrians are not totally forgotten. The two main shopping blocks in the city, the Hay Street and Murray Street malls, are vehicle-free and are linked by several shopping arcades. More often, open-air cafes are the places to be seen, now that eating out of doors is no longer illegal.

Perth has become an international city, with tourism a major industry. The Outback is not far away. Beyond the metropolitan area, there is a broad area of woodland across the Darling Range, and then the Wheat Belt, whose vast sweeps of wheat and sheep gradually give way to endless miles of progressively drier country.

Perth has absorbed some of the Outback outlook. There's a feeling of space and distance, an independence of view and style, a simple country friendliness. Visitors are welcomed, travelers are helped when they break down, and even the taxi drivers are cheerful and efficient.

If you go

When to go: Perth has a Mediterranean climate -- ideal for sun, surf, swimming and sailing during the summer months of December through March. Temperatures can top 100 degrees, but it is relatively dry and most days are tempered by the cooling sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor."

While most major events, such as the Perth International Arts Festival and the Heineken Classic, are held during summer, some visitors prefer the cooler, greener spring. Then, the Western Australia countryside is transformed by a spectacular wildflower show from August through October, with a display of color sometimes stretching for miles across the usually barren interior.

Ron Crittall is a freelance writer living in Subiaco, Australia.

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