Perth; the isolated city of Western Australia

As part of a blog post series, i'll be sharing with you my venturesome year exploring WA whilst living in Perth. Relocating to Perth was never my intended plan, actually, the idea had never once crossed my mind. I knew so little about the city or the state that hosted Perth, but thanks to a boy (of course), it would soon be my new home. Friends laughed when i announced my decision to relocate. To them, Perth was less of a city than Melbourne, a part of Australia that was too costly to bother visiting, they considered it to be a small country town, overpriced due to the mining boom. The most readily used farewell i received before my departure was "have a shit one". My expectations set low, i was astonished at how contradictory Western Australia was to my assumption. Yes, it was on the quiet side, but to me - Perth offered everything you could need. It's Idyllic beaches, delicious food, amazing weather and laid back lifestyle made me fall instantly in love with the city. Western Australia boasts a diverse landscape, down South you are privy to lush green lands and an abundance of wineries, but if you head up north - where my first weekend road trip took place, you are presented with gorgeous red desert and a barren landscape as far as the eye can see. Located roughly 200km's north of Perth is Nambung National Park, our set destination. The National Park was home to an amplitude of limestone pillars formed over the course 25,000 - 30,000 years by nature. The configuration of the rocks came to be known as the Pinnacles, and for years have been a major tourist attraction. We explored until the sun began to set, when it came to our sudden attention, neither of us allocated a place to camp for the night. Quickly we consumed a small dinner as the last rays of light disappeared below the horizon, our sleeping arrangements decided for us, we slept under the stars, hidden amongst the magical Pinnacles.  Awoken early by the morning sun (and the damp condensation that had sneaked up and soaked us), we packed camp and headed back towards Perth - taking a different route from the one we journeyed up on.  It was about an hour out of Numbung National Park,  that our attention turned to the gleaming white mountains that ran parallel to the road, 50 metres back through thick scrub. Trekking 50 meters through thick scrub, we arrived at the bottom of the dunes with tender scratched legs. Upon climbing the first dune, our pain was instantly diminished by the sheer spectacle that stood before us, a ceaseless sea of glistening white sand.  With our dosage of adventure served, we wearily made our way back home. T h e  C u l t u r e d  F o x