Rhonda Bracey: At Random

This morning I had a breakfast meeting in a cafe on the edge of the Swan River near the ferry terminal. I could’ve driven in to town and hassled with paid parking (even though the meeting started at 7:30am and parking shouldn’t have been a problem), but instead I decided to do something I haven’t done in ages – catch the ferry in to the city. At that hour I was able to park for free in a South Perth street close to the ferry terminal, then take the 7 minute ride across the river to the CBD.

It was glorious! The sun came peeking over the horizon as we left the South Perth terminal and with the ducks, pelicans, gulls and even a black swan or two in the distance, as well as the early morning sunlight bouncing off the windows of the fancy apartments on the South Perth esplanade, it was delightful. I realised how much I missed the stillness of the river, and its ever-changing nature. A few times when I’ve had contracts right in the heart of the CBD, I’ve commuted by ferry, but these days, my work takes me further afield, so public transport is not a realistic option.

But if I was working in the CBD again, I’d do that ferry trip every day in a heartbeat. It’s a great place to meditate on the day ahead, or the one just finished.

The breakfast meeting finished just before 9:00am, so I walked the one minute back to the ferry, hopped on, repeated the process back to South Perth – then jumped in my car and drove to work :-(. That ferry trip was darned good for the soul.