In the last few months, I have had the pleasure of being in both the original Perth Scotland and the newer Perth Western Australia. I have enjoyed these cities immensely although the fact that they are in different hemispheres means that I have been in Winter and Summer in the space of a few weeks.
Perth Scotland is the smaller of the two and yet it is a city I have always enjoyed visiting and particularly the countryside that surrounds it, this time I was lucky to spend some time staying in a small farm cottage called Shenval Cottage.
Shenval Cottage Perth Scotland
Of course a visit to Perth is not complete without a visit to St Johns Kirk. This is a fabulous building much smaller than a Minster or Cathedral but full of history. It has a special historical feature for me as it is the site from which John Knox preached a sermon that lead to the burning of the Perth Friaries in 1559. I have to confess that as a student of history and religion after long nights of study I often had nightmares about John Knox, it seems that the man still has the ability to haunt me even today.
In Perth Western Australia, I had the opposite extremes, that is not to say that Perth Australia is a city full of the irreligious although Northbridge on a Friday night may lead one to that conclusion.
Rather here it is the opposite extreme of heat rarely a day below 30 degrees Celsius and more often above 35 degrees. There is no rain and although the gardens and parks are kept green by constant watering there is a sense of the never-ending battle against the ever present summer sun. Although not a big fan of the heat, I have enjoyed my time here in Perth Australia
Further instead of being haunted by the ghost of John Knox, I had the opportunity to work again with a wonderful Catholic school called Prendiville Catholic College, and instead of being horrified by John Knox, I was able to tell my favourite horror story of Lord Fox. Below is a photo of me performing at Prendiville
Andrew at Prendiville Catholic College