The one last sighseeing adventure we had always planned to undertake during our wind-down in Fremantle was a visit to Rottnest Island. It is about 30 minutes from downtown Perth on a fast ferry and is famous for its population of Quokkas. These are small macropods (like mini kangaroos, approximately) about the size of a family cat and are the reason the island got its name. In 1696 Dutch captain Willem de Vlamingh spent 6 days on the island and mistaking the Quokkas for large rats named the island 't Eylandt 't Rottenest ("Rats' Nest Island"). The current population of Quokkas is estimated at around 10-12,000 and they appear to be everywhere on the island; particularly where human visitors are likely to be consuming food. You will notice in the last few photos below that Nina had some difficulty eating her lunch without sharing it with a quokka. There is a $150 fine for feeding the animals.