Perth, Australia 2025
- jennaoliverva
- Jun 2, 2025
- 5 min read
In April/May, Lucas and I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Perth, Australia for Tokyo Alley. Naturally, we wanted a few extra days to explore Perth, and I have to say that I absolutely LOVE it there.
After an incredibly rough start to the trip due to missed connections, we finally arrived in Perth, and settled into the hotel for the night. (Can I just say that having a washing machine in your room is the most incredible thing for a hotel ever?) The next morning we woke up pretty early due to jet lag so we walked around the city. It was so peaceful, and I immediately felt at home there.
We found a cute cafe by the water, watched the black swans swim around then headed to the dock to take the ferry to Wadjemup (Rottnest Island). This was such a unique experience. I feel like we were maybe lucky in the fact that we went during the offseason because the beaches and trails outside of the main part of the island were nearly empty. At times it felt like Lucas and I were the only two people left in the whole world. A very surreal experience. And the quokka?! ADORABLE!
It was sad leaving Wadjemup. I would have loved one more day to explore the parts of the island that we didn’t have time to see, but maybe one day Lucas and I can spend the night there in one of those cute cabins by the beach.
The ferry ride back to Perth was lovely. We met a nice couple from Seattle who were visiting their daughter who lived there. We chatted, watched the sunset and even spotted dolphins. I didn’t think anything could top that experience, but the very next day proved me wrong.
Lucas is very much the planner. He will find cool things to do and I just follow him around like a happy puppy haha So when he told me he booked a day trip out to the sand dunes and the Pinnacle Desert, I thought, “Okay, that’s cool”. But “cool” was an understatement.
The Lancelin sand dunes were wicked fun! The smell of the white lime sand was pretty pungent at first, but once I got used to it, I was able to fully appreciate the beauty of the area.
The coolest thing about Lancelin is the fact that you can go Sandboarding! There were a few people who were able to stand up on the boards (Lucas included) but I wiped out just sitting on it so I wasn’t gonna risk trying to stand haha
After our sandboarding adventure, we headed down to the beautiful beach nearby. It was really quiet there so you could just soak in the majesty of nature.
I was already over the moon from the sights we had already seen, but then we got to one of the most magnificent places I have ever been fortunate enough to see. The Pinnacles Desert in Nambung National Park. I don’t even know how to begin describing this place. Magical might be the closet word, but not even “magical” can encapsulate the enchantment of this place.
The tour group we went with allowed us to wander around the desert on our own, which was really nice. I ended up going quite far, to the point where I couldn’t even see another person. Just kangaroos 🦘
The Yued people consider Nambung a sacred place— especially for women, and I could feel it. I’m not really a spiritual person, but there was no denying the energy I felt while walking around alone. My mind and my heart just knew that there was something special about this land.
The night ended perfectly. I got to sit next to Lucas as the sun faded beyond the horizon and the Milky Way light up the sky. Anyone who knows me well, knows that I am obsessed with space and stars so this was an incredible moment. I wish I lived closer so I could come here whenever I need to decompress.
The next day was spent exploring the city of Perth. We walked about 16 hours that day, hitting up the botanical gardens, a cool playground and trails through King’s Park, and then ended up at the beach, where we met up with the convention staff and other guests for dinner. The botanical gardens were neat because it was a lot of plants and flowers we had never seen before. There was also a lot of signage explaining the importance of the plants and animals of the area and of the culture of the Whadjuk Noongar people.
The next day, the Tokyo Alley crew took us to Caversham Wildlife Park, which was tons of fun! I finally got to see a kookaburra and a koala in person! And Lucas and I got to touch a wallaby, who was very grumpy hahah Lucas was “adopted” by a joey, who only wanted food and ear scritches from him. It was super cute! 🥰 The cassowary was really neat, too, but they are kind of scary! Those massive talons!! 😱
After the zoo, Lucas and I ended walking to the kangaroo sanctuary. It was a looooong walk, but we were along the water for the majority of it so there was always a nice view. We didn’t end up seeing many kangaroos. There was one that a group of people were surrounding (despite the signs saying to keep your distance), but we managed to find one on our way out. He was BIIIIIG, too! Much bigger than the ones at the wildlife park. I tried to get a picture to show his size, but he ended up looking small since I stayed pretty far away so I didn’t disturb his dinner.
With a kangaroo successfully found, it was time to head back to Perth to get ready for Day One of Tokyo Alley! Our timing was perfect because we got to talk back while the sun began to set.
Tokyo Alley time!
Tokyo Alley was an absolute blast, but also a whirlwind! I mainly stayed at Lucas’ table to help out, and so many people came up to chat with us. A lot of people who watched our videos when they were younger, which was so touching 😭💕 Though, I definitely felt old when someone who is now a doctor said they watched us when they were a kid 😅 But it’s super cool that people wanted to come meet us after so long! And hearing people’s stories about what our videos meant to them brought tears to my eyes.
Just so incredibly grateful for everything cosplay has given Lucas and I.
A huge thank you to the Tokyo Alley staff for their kindness and hospitality. Lucas and I had an AMAZING time, and we hope we can come back another year.
With the convention over, it was time to return home. I definitely fell in love with Perth. There are only a few places that I could see myself living there n besides Vancouver, but Perth is definitely one of them— even with all the spiders and snakes and drop bears 👀
Until next time, Perth!
⭐️Jenna
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