Perth: Backwoods Outpost or Cultural Mecca?

I have heard Perthians proudly describe their home as a large country town with the benefits of a city. That's about right. There are positives and negatives to both, and here are a few.

Positives:
--> Fresh and delicious, preservative-free produce that is reasonably priced
--> Great weather 75% of the year
--> Friendly people
--> Terrific coffee, lunch cafés, and wines
--> Reliable and low cost public transportation
--> Negligeable traffic on streets and freeways

Negatives:
--> Beautiful beaches and nature/wildlife
--> Preservative-free produce means shopping every other day
--> It's the only "city" for 2,000 miles around
--> The cost of living is very high
--> Variable quality in medical care, manufactured goods (especially clothing), infrastructure. It's great in some places, not so great in others.
--> Restaurants tend to be outrageously expensive

Depends on who you ask:
--> Laid back culture, slower pace of life, drinking culture (alcohol is a great social lubricant)
--> Lots of time off work due to more vacation time
--> Multicultural population; 1 in 4 Australian citizens come from somewhere else
--> Only two freeways
--> Mostly outdoor activities; sports is just the beginning.

Verdict: it's not like America, where everything is available almost all the time, but we like it here anyway. For example, the movie "Avator" arrived a week ago, and Sherlock Holmes got here just after Christmas. Not sure when "Extraordinary Measures" will get here, but it takes 2 to 3 months for new releases to make it over here. An exception is "The Lovely Bones" which has been here for some time. On the other hand, Perth is in the middle of a 3 month long Arts festival, and we have seen a number of interesting foreign films that either don't make it to Houston or don't stay very long. There is no national theatre to speak of in Perth, but there are a series of smaller theaters producing varied works. Haven't been too impressed so far, but it does exist. Most Australian TV is awful in my opinion, but I think that about most American TV (except HGTV of course!).

There are some interesting sculptures in town which show off the talent of the designers as well as their sense of humor. For example, check out these kangaroos in the city's business district.

And this sculpture of a diver, meant to commemorate the public baths that once stood on the spot. She's now something of a life sized Betsy McCall (the over 50 crowd will get that joke). Every time I drive down Stirling Highway she is dressed in a new outfit. (If you're curious about Betsy, follow this link) http://www.thebleudoor.com/betsymccallhome.htm

Here's a link to a story about this sculpture.

http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/eliza-statue-gets-set-to-have-babies-20090224-8gir.html

A public message for a loved one :-)

It's hard to see (I took this from a moving car) but the diver is dressed as Santa Claus.

His Majesty's Theater in the city centre hosts ballet, opera, plays, some concerts, touring musicals when they come to town (Chicago will be here in a couple of weeks) and performances from the likes of David Sedaris (will be here next month). This is possible because there are fewer performances of each genre. They compensate for this by holding events in interesting venues, like ballet at the quarry (yes, it really is a quarry, with terraced rows of stone seating) and movies in the park. Next month the city will sponsor "movies on the Swan." They will project a movie onto the screen erected in the middle of the river. You bring a picnic (they're big on picnics here), lawn chairs and some wine, have a nice dinner and enjoy a movie in the outdoors. Remember the bug spray.

Last week Al Green came to town (remember him?) for one night. The concert was held at Perth Zoo, of all places. The zoo has a very large green area, suitable for, you guessed it, picnics with lawn chairs, wine and sandwiches. The concert was phenomenal. Al has still got "it" -- that blend of charisma, charm and sex appeal -- at age 63. And since the zoo is walking distance from our apartment, we were home before most people got to the parking lot. Next month Diana Krall will be here, as well as the Beach Boys. But Australia is still a far off island and it costs a lot to get here, which is reflected in ticket prices. Tickets are $100+ for BB and $200+ for Ms. Krall. And the concerts are sold out.

So... "kulcha" is alive and well here if you can afford it and you're willing to seek it out. It isn't cheap, but sometimes it's just worth it. How long will we have the ability to walk to the zoo, eat the world's best strawberries or watch movies on the river from our balcony?