Fremantle has a well deserved reputation for being a haven of tolerance and a magnet for arty types and alternative lifestylers. Perhaps the most obvious manifestation of this would be the crowd at the Fremantle Markets. While it's pretty heterogenous, you'll see a lot more ferals, hippies, New Agers and hipsters there than you will at other public venues, that's for sure.

You'll also see signs of Freo's pervasive alternativeness if you walk down its residential streets. More than a few of the houses have lavishly tended gardens rich in native flora, some with various ornaments, statues and the like.

And you'll sometimes find little artists' co-ops and similar meeting places for the alternative-minded. A good example of this is the Fremantle Fibonacci Centre in Blinco St.

The centre's website describes it as "a place of creation, collaboration, education, and inspiration, for all the artists and designers within its walls, and also the greater community".

I wandered past there today and got these shots. As well as being a hub for artists, the distinctively designed building contains a cafe that is quite popular.