Howdy, Y’all – (no, that is not in honor of the fact that we’re in “South” Australia; just a change from “G’day”!)
When last we blogged, we were comfortably ensconced in our wonderful condo in the suburbs of Adelaide – and had yet to walk out on our patio – and meet Miriam and Ray, our next-door neighbors! Have to say, I think Aussies must be the friendliest people on the planet! Before we knew it, we were enjoying several wonderful bottles of Australian wine and having a lovely evening! So much so, in fact, that by the time we came in, it was after 9 p.m. and I still had to make dinner! So…actually solved the problem by doing what we do occasionally in Tucson – call for delivery pizza! And found a Domino’s in the phone book! Pizza came in record time – something like 15 minutes (remember when they promised to get it to you in 20 minutes or less??) – two “large” pizzas – the biggest they supposedly have – although to be honest, I’m not sure it’s not the ONLY size they have! At any rate, ordered 2 pepperoni/mushroom pizzas, which was good as they were only about 10” each!! So not much leftover for breakfast, let me tell you! And, as a parting shot, I invited Miriam and Ray over for dinner … as R says, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!! Not sure…
Woke up to a lovely day in Adelaide, and took a nice long walk along the lake; scullers rowing away; day fairly cool at this point, but with the promise of heat later on. So, decided that, as the sun was shining, we would head up to the Barossa Valley. However, as I was still a little spooked from seeing the police road-check in Margaret River, it was agreed that I would drive, and R would taste; not a very pleasurable option, but one that would keep us out of trouble at any rate! The drive was indeed lovely. It doesn’t take long at all to get out of Adelaide and up into the hills. And, while it was VERY dry all around, there were several reservoirs and lakes that we past which were lovely. We stopped in Tanunda for lunch in a café – got out of the car, and almost melted from the heat!! R had a sandwich of prosciutto, pesto and cheese; I had a leek and cheese quiche with greens; both excellent! Then off for a bit of tasting. We tried Saltram, Stanley Lambert and Penfolds – the last of which was the only one I’d ever heard of before! All nice tasting rooms; very nice people – and it’s the PITS not being able to taste! But just like in Margaret River, one of the ladies told us that just the day before (Sunday) there had been some special events in some of the wineries, and the police were picking off the cars one by one as they drove through town! So, not a bad decision, but not very conducive to wine tasting…We bought 6 bottles total, as we’ll have 5 more nights to drink them…including having company tonight!
Got back to the condo around 4 (needing to stop at Cole’s to supplement groceries and pick up a dessert for dinner!). R put the cricket (still Sri Lanka vs. OZ) test match on TV, and I made dinner. Fortunately, a very well supplied kitchen! Lots of dishes and utensils to choose from! Ray and Miriam came over about 6:15 – complete with two bottles of wine! Made beef tips over rice, with green beans and salad; cheese and crackers to start and carrot cake to end…and we drank LOTS of wine … and they didn’t leave until after 11 p.m., which is WAY beyond this little pumpkin’s bedtime! And we still had to do dishes! Finally finished clearing away (thank goodness for the dishwasher…) and got to bed around midnight…whew! And we’re invited over to their place for a BBQ tonight! Can we keep up this pace? Fortunately, we won’t be able to stay too late, as we need to be up at 5 tomorrow morning to get everything packed up and be on the road by 6. We’re told that it takes 2 hours to get from here to Port Jervis, where we catch the ferry for Kangaroo Island, and it leaves at 9…So…
Up this morning a bit later than normal – I actually didn’t get up until 8, which is unheard of for me! And it looks like the low pressure center has struck yet again! YEA!! VERY cloudy and overcast, and a very fresh breeze coming through! Actual raindrops here and there outside; just wonderful! I’d been wanting to take the bus into Adelaide, rather than drive and have to hunt for parking, so we caught the bus just down the street from our condo; incredibly convenient! Took about 45 minutes to get us into town, but a lovely trip! Lots of neat houses to see and things to look at – was a nice change for me by not having to drive. I really do love public transport!
Got off in downtown Adelaide, which is really lovely. Quite a combination of old and new buildings. First went down Rundle Mall, which is a pedestrian-only section of town to look at the shops; stopped at a Starbucks so R could have coffee; told him we should have brought the computer! Then we headed a block north to North Terrace, where many of the public buildings are located. Strolled past Government House and through the State Library to the South Australia Museum. Very interesting place. They had a large section on aboriginal culture; lots of interactive exhibits and information. Some very, very sad stories about the forced separation of aboriginals from their families in an attempt to “civilize” them by placing them with non-aboriginal families. Reminded us a bit of an exhibit we saw at the Herd Museum in Phoenix, about American Indian children being sent off the schools for basically the same purpose…
As it was now approaching lunchtime, we decided to see what was on offer at the SA Museum’s restaurant – and it was GREAT! R had a prawn and green mango salad with lemon squash to drink, and I had their “spud of the day” – which was a HUGE potato filled with chunks of chicken, zucchini, capsicum (red peppers), and topped with cheese and LOTS of sour cream and chives – then the whole thing was baked in the oven until the cheese toasted – it was GREAT!
From there, headed via the wonderful little central tram, a bit further downtown to the Central Market, which Miriam recommended. SO glad we’d already eaten, as it was easier to walk around the stalls with a full stomach – some WONDERFUL shops; lots of cheeses, fruits, coffees, chocolate – you name it, they probably had it there! As I say, good thing we weren’t hungry…We then took the tram back to Rundle Mall and walked a few blocks to our bus stop. Caught another bus (there are 3 that go past here to the City, and this one’s route followed the coastline; lovely pier in Henley!) and greatly enjoyed the ride back to the condo! Am now doing – yes, friends – yet, again, more LAUNDRY! Am NOT looking forward to packing up yet again, but at least we don’t have to make anymore airplane trips until we head home a week from tomorrow!
Oh! And while I’m thinking of it, HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all of our American friends! Much love!
m
No comments:
Post a Comment