435 Fitzgerald Street
North Perth Western Australia 6006
(08) 9227 6529
Website
Hours:
Mon-Fri 8 am - 12:30 pm
Mon-Fri 1:30 pm - 4:30 pm
Part of the recently opened Fitzgerald Medical Centre, this tiny collection office offers the usual services provided by Clinipath: collection of blood, urine and other biological samples.
The office is attended by a lovely charming chatty lady, who works on her own the whole day, and makes your visit very enjoyable. If I had to rate her services would be five stars.
I cannot give this place more stars because, this lady being alone, the place can run slow in the mornings. The practice was "full" in the early hours of the morning, when fasting samples are collected, and it took me more than 30 minutes to have a simple blood test done despite the waiting room having just 5 people. I came to this collection centre because I thought it would be faster than the one in the city, which is always crowded in the mornings, but it wasn't the case. The place might be empty and things flow later on during the day.
Shop 14, City Station Concourse
378 Wellington St
Perth 6000
(Corner Wellington & Barrack Streets)
(08) 9221 4747(08) 9225 1188
Hours:
8am-6pm
(Weekends/Holidays 9am-6pm)
Website
I cannot speak more highly of the doctors that I usually visit there, Dr Jenny Ho and Dr Wolman, and of any other I have visited in case of emergency when these two were not available. They give you the time you need, are professional and welcoming, and treat you like a person, not like a case. That is always great.
The facilities are very pleasant, clean and in the heart of the city, and the practice is open every day of the week.
The place suffers from too-late-itis often. I think the problem is how the front desk organises the schedule of the doctors. In my last visit, my doctor was 45 minutes late. No apologies from anybody when I asked if I was visiting at the right time slot or how much would I have to wait. The girl at the desk was unapologetic, her treatment bordering rudeness.
The ladies at the front desk are matter of fact, fast and professional, but rarely welcoming, and some of them abrupt.
They will send you an email or sms with the results of your blood and imaging tests, so you don't have to visit the practice unless necessary. That is great for your pocket, and to keep the practice empty of results collectors, and things flowing.
Hicaps payments available.
Same day Appointments
Prices are a bit high, but this is a private practice in the heart of the city.
1/687 Beaufort Street
Mt Lawley Western Australia 605008 9272 7718
Website
Small facilities but well organised, semi-hidden at the bottom of the Mt Lawley Medical Centre.
The place works well, fast and fluidly every time I have visited.
The staff doing the imaging are very friendly and professional.
The staff at reception are matter of fact, but they do what they are supposed to do, and do it fast and well.
Results are fast passed on to Doctor, but customers have to collect the images personally. This is a bit backwards, as most radiological and imaging clinics post images directly via computer and the Internet nowadays.
Toilets need to be revamped and those horrible paintings on the wall removed.
60 Walcott St
Mt Lawley Western Australia 6050
(08) 9370 1172
Hours
Tue - Fri: 10:00 - 21:00
Sat - Sun: 08:00 - 21:00
Facebook
Downey Cafe would be a successful story if they were located in the city business area, where sandwich lovers and big-serving lovers would rejoice in a munching celebration. Unfortunately for Downey Cafe, they are located in the heart of Mt Lawley, off Beaufort St, where hypeness and fanciness are a successful magic de-facto couple and working-day sort of meals are not well appreciated.
The decor of the place is very functional, pleasant to the eye, but it lacks character for the always demanding Mt Lawley clientele. Still, the place is comfortable. The fact that the place is not popular or trendy makes it perfect for quiet chatty cue-free, noise-free rendezvous, which is always great.The place is very clean and have lovely toilets! Children friendly. Family friendly. Me friendly.
Downey specialises in what I call manly food: sandwiches and burgers, but they have a selection of salads and cakes. Their sandwiches are very fresh and tasty, huge in size, and they come always with crunchy delicious chips. Their breakfast menu is not the usual one you find everywhere, very tasty and generous in size; however, the time I had mine there, I got my eggs tepid, which is a big no-no for the cranky-in-the-mornings me.
Their coffee is Ok.
Service is fast. The staff are matter of fact, still affable.
The pricing is great.
Shop 3 & 4, Manning Arcade, High Street,
Fremantle Western Australia 6160
(08) 9433 209
Hours:
Mon-Wed, Fri-Sat 9 am - 5 pm
Thu 9 am - 8 pm
Sun 11 am - 5 pm
Website
Facebook
Located in the heart of Fremantle, in the quiet Manning Arcade, The Blue Buddha is an eclectic harmonious and extensive bazaar that mixes the esoteric, the New Age, the Fen Shui and the otherworldly, and allows you to travel from Tibet to Fairyland by walking the shop's long and sinuous arcade-following layout.
They have one of the most extensive range of tarot and oracle desks I have seen in Perth, a huge selection of crystals and semiprecious stones (mounted and unmounted), tons of decoration items, meditation and relaxation CDs, aromatherapy and tarot material, hippy-style clothing, Indian-style furniture and tons of figurines. There is also also
several rotating psychics and tarot readers in the shop, just in case
you feel like consulting the Gods via their mediums (50 bucks for half
an hour, 100 for an hour). The two stand-outs, to me, are the tarot and aromatherapy areas.
I love the fact that all every tarot or oracle pile of decks has one open to browse at you heart's content. Tarots and oracle desks are like perfumes, they could talk and be perfect for you, or not to speak to you at all. Having one box open allows you to let the magic work magic, and choose a deck that you know is going to speak to you. This is always better, and cheaper than purchasing a deck hopping that the cards will speak to you once you open it.
The people attending to
the shop are very knowledgeable about what they sell, and help you
find anything you like if you are a bit lost in the shop. You can wander
without being disturbed if you decide to.
Prices are OK, not cheap, but not expensive, and very similar to what you find in similar shops or bookshops. Let's be honest, unless you are a professional tarot reader or psychic, you do not need anything of what they sell, so it is matter of feeding your whimsical wishes without being wishy-washy with your money.
I do
not like, though, how crowded the shop is and the small space to move
around, which becomes obvious when there are more than two people standing in the
same area. Still, this is what a bazaar is.
There are other Blue Buddha Shops in Fremantle and in Perth, but this one is my favourite. If you feel lazy, you can also shop online.
82 High St
(Inside the New Edition Bookshop)
Fremantle Western Australia 6160
(08) 9335 2383
Hours:
Mon to Fri 7.30am-5pm
Sat 8am-5pm
Sun 9am-5pm
Website
Facebook
There is little to say about this café, and everything is good. The most important thing about the Grumpy Sailor is that they have an excellent coffee. In fact, they have one of the best coffees, if not the best, in the whole Perth Metropolitan Area -my opinion-, plus one of the cutest and more recognisable branded logos and cups in the city. They also have an awesome selection of home-made sweets. The pistachio brownie is my winner!
Located within the New Edition Bookshop, this cafe is a dream for any book lover. You are having a damn good cup of coffee surrounded by an ocean of books, in a place that is ample, cosy and charming. The Grumpy sailor has cute and comfortable pieces of furniture and table service, a lovely wall with iconic movie posters, and an ambience that induces you to very good things beyond "coffeeing", like enjoying your company's company, having a intellectual conversation, listening to other people's conversations, reading, writing, browsing the newspaper, playing with your tarot cards, doing solitaires, or watching the Fremantlites pass by. You choose your mood and what you want to do, and push your bottom down into one of their lovely seating areas: one of the tables around the cafe, one of the many tables spread around the bookshop, or one of the little seating places located at the faux-balcony facing the street.
The service at the café is diligent and helpful but, unlike the guys who used to attend at the Grumpy Sailor Northbridge, the ones I have found during my visits here lack a bit of warmth.
The pricing of the sweets is a bit high and the size small. They are great and yummy, though. Bagels are not my thing, so I have not tried theirs.
The Grumpy Sailor is worth the ride to Fremantle. You will feel like one of Woody Allen's characters, if you aren't already one. Follow the rail Camino and you will get to any caffiend's pilgrimage destination. No sailing needed. We are all grumpy.
Perth City Train Station to Fremantle Train Station
Perth Western Australia 6000
13 62 13
TransPerth Website
The Fremantle Railway Line was the first train line opened in Perth, in 1881, during the charming Colonial era, when trains and steam machines had the wow factor. Fremantle Train Line is still a charming line, whether you need to use it, want to get lost, or you are a tourist.
The train departs from
Perth and passes trough City West, West
Leederville, Subiaco, Daglish, Shenton Park, Karrakatta, Loch Street, Showgrounds,
Claremont, Swanbourne, Grant Street, and North Fremantle before arriving at Fremantle. The whole ride takes about half an hour.
This is my favourite train line, and one of those lines that I enjoy riding for the sake of riding it, disregarding I need to go somewhere, or just want to venture somewhere out of the blue. There are many charming places you might decide to stop at to have a meal, a coffee, a drink, go to traditional markets, visit an exhibition or fair, or just to take a stroll. My favourite stops are Subiaco, Swanbourne, Cottesloe and Fremantle.
One of the things I like the most about this line is the fact that it traverses very different urban areas: from the dry City of Perth to the coastal towns of Cottlesloe and Fremantle; from the urban to the suburban, from the middle and middle-upper class areas to the bohemian areas. No surprise, this line also has a mixed colourful group of riders: locals, tourists, beach lovers, market lovers, students, business people, families with kids, intellectuals, Footy fans, loonies, loners, you name it. An archetypal collection of human beings. You will not need a book or a phone to pass the time. Just open your eyes and enjoy the ride.
Fremantle is within TransPerth Zone 2. Fees from Perth to Fremantle or vice versa (effective 1/7/2013), are 50 cents for students, 4.20 cash (or 1.70 concession), 3.47-3.15 for multi-rider users (1.45-1.28 concession).
The Fremantle Train Line's timetable is very good, the service very frequent all day long and great part of the night. Some of the trains stop at all stations, and others just at selected ones.
MIND
Two main shuts will affect this line in the coming days. Alternative transportation will be provided. Afterwards, there were be changes in the trains timetables.
Shut 1: Friday 12 July- Wednesday 17 July 2013.
Shut 2: Wednesday 31 July-Sunday 4 August 2013
