Australia - Day 4

We began the day with a visit to the Perth Mint. I know. Doesn’t sound too exciting but it was actually pretty interesting. The Perth Mint is Australia’s leading precious metals house so there was lots of gold and silver to see. They gave an interesting little tour which ended with a gold pouring demonstration. So how many of you can say that you have seen liquid gold being poured into a gold bar in person? It was amazing how quickly the gold cooled off after being poured into the bar mold.


They had this replica of an old prospectors camp set up and the gold pieces the boys are holding are plastic copies of real gold nuggets that were discovered in Australia. It turns out the most of the world’s biggest gold nuggets were found on this continent. You learn something new everyday. We also got to design our very own silver coin and have it made as a Christmas gift. Definitely a one of a kind treasure. But the boys prized possession from the mint was a copper coin that they watched get stamped in a big machine that they deposited money in.

After the mint, we grabbed a bite to eat and then hit the road. We were off to Margaret River. It was about a 3 and a half hour drive south of Perth. Margaret River is one of the well known wine regions in Australia. About 45 minutes from the actual town of Margaret River we started to see vineyards. And as we approached the town, grapevines seemed to be everywhere nestled among lots of trees. The area reminded me a lot of the Napa/Sonoma area, except not as hilly and open. Many of the wineries were tucked away behind trees and off the main roads where you couldn't see them. However it had a very similar climate, which would make sense. And the town of Margaret River reminded me a lot of Sonoma. It was a cute little town with one "main street" area lined with shops and restuarants and was always a buzz with people walking around during business hours. And there is one other difference I should note...the people. The town seemed to have an interesting mix of surfers, wine enthusiasts and tourists.

Here we got to stay in our own little villa. It had 2 bedrooms, an upstairs loft and a kitchen. The extra space was great. And off our back patio was a little grassy area and a stream, which the boys seemed to enjoy.

Being here definitely felt more like a vacation. The pace of life was slower and more relaxed.