Roll up for a mystery flight
THE BEATLES should probably take the blame. For even as I was reading out my credit card number to a phone operator and buying a day trip to an unknown destination, I was singing about a magical mystery tour that was going to take me away.
I had been captivated by the idea of going on a 'mystery flight' ever since reading about it in a guidebook for Australia several years ago. The idea of trading certainty for surprise had a definite appeal - as had the thought of a break from Sydney, my home away from Hong Kong. Maybe I'll score a flight to Cairns, I thought wishfully, or Adelaide. Melbourne wouldn't be bad either, or even Hobart. 'One place I really hope we aren't sent to is Perth,' I told my fellow excursionist. 'It would be ridiculous to fly across Australia for a day.'
Our flight to Perth left at 6.15am. On Wednesday, 18 hours before departure, a ticketing officer whom I suspect was grinning on the other side of the phone as she revealed our destination, said, 'check-in begins at 5.30am'. So there we were in a half-empty Boeing 737 flying out of Sydney on a Thursday morning. The trip to and from Perth would take more than eight hours - about as long as a flight back to the SAR. At most we would have seven hours to spend in what's regarded as the most isolated capital city in the world. Taking into account the cost of the return tickets - A$167.20 each (about HK$650) - and a hire car costing A$43 for half a day, it was going to be an expensive and exhausting trip. Was it really worth it?
Somewhere around the Great Australian Bight, I stopped pouting and started planning. Out came the guidebook, pen and note pad. 'How much can we see in a day?' I asked my travel companion as squillions of trees came into view. 'Start the timer.'
8.05am: We land. Double-checking we are due to fly back to Sydney at 3.15pm and mindful of the fact that Perth is two hours behind the Olympic city, we rush off the plane and head for the car rental booths. (One minor detour is to the Qantas counter to ask whether it's possible to return on the last flight to Sydney, which departs just before midnight, returning passengers at dawn the next day. 'Not for A$167 you can't, mate', is the helpful response. Regular return fares ex-Sydney to Perth cost about A$400 more.) With keys to a Toyota Echo, we are on our way. ' 'Ave an avo a day' advises a road sign on the freeway, which, despite my aversion to avocados, reminds me that it's past 10am Sydney time and I still haven't had breakfast (vegetarians and others with individual dietary needs are not catered for on mystery flights because requests for special meals must be made more than 24 hours before departure).
8.55am: Arrive at Kings Park. Not bad considering we made a wrong turn on the highway. Eager to cycle around this breathtaking, four square-kilometre park perched above the Swan River, we make a beeline for the visitor's centre. Unfortunately the volunteers who run this outlet have yet to arrive and the Koala Bicycle Hire shed situated nearby shows no sign of life. So we settle for coffees and a couple of Mrs Mac's pies. A stroll around the verdant gardens reveals striking views of the city and offers close encounters with karri trees, the mammoth hardwoods that grow to 87 metres and are native to southwest Western Australia.