Adelaide

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Day 22 to 27

Adelaide to Albany



Before we go to the news the photos are mostly of Freemantle and Perth, if they actually appear. Have inserted them once but they seem to be missing now. Will try again later! Publishing this though. Hope you find it interesting reading.



Seems to be some problem with Adelaide and Albany and the boat trip photos. I have them on my phone but it doesn't want to upload them for some reason. Anyway, little coloured boat is Albany and about 5 more but unfortunately the ones of osprey and more pelicans are missing here. They will be in my album though, when I make it......sooner than last time( that's still waiting!)

The photos of the sculptures are at Coteslie Beach, between Freemantle and Perth, there is King‘s Park and views of Perth from The Swan River, for information.





Details of the excursions in Freemantle and Perth in the next blog.





Day 22



Wednesday 4th March, 2020



Adelaide



And into port again! This time we were docked about 40 mins from the actual town of Adelaide, out near the naval shipyards in an industrial area. Port Adelaide, the first settled area, was about 5-10 mins away, at the mouth of the Torrens River. Here there is still the feeling of a frontier town, with a lot of the old buildings, warehouses and hotels renovated.

Facts
<ul class="ul1" style="caret-color:� color:� -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Adelaide is on the South coast of Australia in South Australia, a state that is 4 times the size of UK, but a population of only half a million.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Darwin is 2096 miles north, Perth is 1690 miles west (38hrs by train), Sydney is 900 miles east and Melbourne 454 miles southeast.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">It has a Mediterranean climate with warm to hot dry summers and cool to mild winters.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">The first inhabitants of the area around present day Adelaide were the semi nomadic Kaurna Aborigines several thousand up years ago.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">In 1697 Peter Nuyts m the Dutch explorer, mapped part of the local coastline but little happened until the beginning of the 19th century.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">In 1802 an Englishman, Matthew Flinders and a Frenchman, Nicholas Baudin, met in Encounter bay whilst surveying the coast.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Captain Cook had sailed into Botany Bay in 1770 and promptly claimed the country for Britain. Eighteen years later the first convicts set foot on the east coast of Australia but the first settlers in S Australia were American sealers on Kangaroo Island.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Following favourable reports plans were made for free settlers to move into the area. HMS Buffalo and the first governor, Captain John Hindmarsh arrived at Glenelg on 28th December 1836. The new settlement was proclaimed under an unusually bent gum tree, which still stands.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Wife of the British monarch William IV. Many of the buildings date from the first 30 years of its existence<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Agriculture and mining( silver, lead and copper) flourished and many migrants from Britain and Europe decided to take their chance in S Australia. In the 1860s Lutheran refugees arrived from Europe and and the German influence is very marked in the vine growing area of the Barossa valley and in the town ship of Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills (more later).


We had booked a trip for Hahndorf on the 2nd day in Adelaide but planned to explore under our own steam the first day. We took the shuttle bus into the centre which dropped us off at Rundle Square and decided to take the tram out of the city to the seaside suburb of Adelaide called Glenelg. Public transport around the centre of the city is free but as we were going out of the centre roger did manage, with a bit of help from locals, to get the relevant tickets from the ticket machine on the tram. It took about 30 mins and the tram stop at the end of the line was practically on the beach. We thought there would be a promenade with cafes, bars, eateries, etc, but they were confined to the main streets and side streets. The sea front was mainly hotels. The beach was very wide with lovely sand and a pier/ jetty. There seemed to be a lot of big school kids around and as we went along the sea front it became obvious that there was an inter schools volleyball championship going on on the beach. We had some lunch at a Chinese cafe/ restaurant before a quick walk around and then caught the tram back to the centre, where we picked up the coach transfer to the ship.

We went to a movie later in the afternoon and then has a relaxing eve in the piano bar after supper listening to the live music.



Day 23



Thursday 5th March



Adelaide 2



We set out for our trip to Hahndorf with another knowledgeable guide who was a fount of information, about the surrounding area as well as the town we were heading for.
<ul class="ul1" style="caret-color:� color:� -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Lots of wheat is exported from Adelaide including some to Ireland to make the ‘black stuff’!<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">There are large numbers of solar panels in S Australia, 1st in the world and the state can get 100% of its energy from renewable sources.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Upstate are some of the largest copper mines in the world.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Port Adelaide, the first settlement was at the mouth of a tidal river. It was swampy, wet, cold and infested with mosquitoes and the settlement was also known as Port Misery.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Australia is the oldest continent in the world and had a culture from 60,000 years ago or even double that time. The people came across from the N in boats, and it was likely there were 250 large groups with up to 750 tribes. In this area the group was called the Kaurha.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Matthew Flinders circumnavigated Australia in 1802 plotting maps of the coastline which have been used until recently. The Frenchman Boudin was doing the same.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Kangaroo Island was settled in 1806 by sealers and whalers.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">In 1834 an act was passed that there should be Parklands all around the city. These should be just wider than a cannon ball could fly. These are still in existence today and mark the edge of the city. These wide open spaces are used for recreation, sports activities, even a car park for park and ride.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">The roads run in a rectangular block, more EW than NS, protecting city from prevailing winds from the NS winds. S Australia is the driest sate but there is an artesian well under the state. Water in the city is recycled, purple water is used to water the parklands.



Hahndorf was founded in 1839 by 39 Lutheran families from Silesia in N Germany. The captain of the ship was called Captain Hahn, a Dane, and dry means a town, hence Hahndorf. The town is built in the typical style from Germany, u-shaped with a church at each end of the U. The town is in the Onkerparinga valley which is very fertile and is well known for its fruits, wines, chocolate and cheese.

On the way, after we had left the town we went to the highest point in the area to the top of Mount Lofty for a view of the town......which was covered in low cloud, but we got the idea!

The town is basically one street long, with typical German tourist shops and bars, beer and cheese advertised everywhere and German sausage of course. Roger was interested in the cuckoo clock shop so we headed for there. It was indeed fascinating and the craftsmanship was superb. The clocks were all on different times and so the was a continuous sound of the cuckoos! We looked in an Aboriginal art shop, which also proved to be very interesting. Really loved the artwork. We then had a rest in a nearby cafe, which turned out to be run by an Irish couple where we had some seafood chowder and Roger a Guinness before we headed off back to the coach.

Sail away today was at 5.30 and we had bought tickets for a cocktail and canapés party with the officers in the crows nest bar and on a foredeck not open to most passengers. There’s was certainly plenty of cocktails available, they just kept coming, but unfortunately, although it was a super view it was very windy and quite cool we didn’t stay that long and weaved our way down to supper!

(We’ve booked another for departing Freemantle next week! Hope it’s not so windy.)

The show this evening was the Ship’s Headliner Theatre company presenting Blame it on the Boogie, a celebration of 70s boogies!





Days 24 and 25



Friday 6th March, Saturday 7th Match, 2020



Sea Days



Friday the morning speaker was Sharon Davies, the Olympic swimmer and presenter. She was extremely personable and very entertaining to listen to. She has had an interesting life in sport and was very enthusiastic!

Had a pamper session, and pedicure booked to fill in some time.

Nathan Sinclair was playing his Flamenco music again in the afternoon so we went to the recital.

Weather not particularly warm, ok to sit in the Aquarius pool area where the ceiling was closed but not warm enough for me to sit out on the deck. However our balcony was sheltered from the wind so was able to read very cosily out there!

The evening performance was by Luke Burrage, an International Juggler and Entertainer. He was excellent. Very funny too and very entertaining as well as a superb juggler.



Saturday was much the same, Sharon Davies sharing her suggestions for a fitness regime, if you were fit enough to do it of course. We were on a heading of 270 degrees for practically the whole 2 days, crossing the Great Australian Bight. I was really into my Jeffrey Archer books and spent a good amount of time reading, instead of writing up the blog. Again it was sunny although not that warm on the decks. However our cabin’s balcony was beautifully protected from the wind and faced the sun so while Roger had a siesta I read and dozed in the sunshine.

The evening entertainment was Elektra, the 2 superb violinists. We succumbed to buying a CD, especially as Ashokan Lament was in it , one of Roger’s favourite pieces of music.



Day 26



Sunday 8th March, 2020



Albany



We arrived more or less on time, gangway ready to access just after 8.30 and were read to go. We had booked a Calgon River cruise and boarded the bus for the 20 min transfer to Emu point and Oyster Bay for our flat bottomed boat.



Albany - never heard of it!

It’s on the SW corner of Western Australia., 418 km SE of Perth. It is located on the northern shore of one of the world’s largest natural harbours, King George Sound, ( 2nd in Australia, 6th in world) and is regarded as one of the most attractive places in Australia.
<ul class="ul1" style="caret-color:� color:� -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"><li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">Before European settlement the Great Southern was the traditional home of the Mina Noonar people. Evidence of aboriginal presence in the area dates back about 25,000 years.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">The first European siting of what was to become the Albany region was attributed toPeter Nuyts from the Gulden Zeepard in 1627. In 1791 George Vancouver and his party claimed New Holland ( which later became Western Australia) as a British possession and named King George iII Sound.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">After Vancouver’s visit there were several French expeditions to the area one of whom was Boudin. These were paralleled by a range of British expeditions and voyages, most notable of which are probably those of Charles Darwin in the Beagle and Matthew Flimders in The Investigatorr.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">The British government ordered a settlement to be founded in King George III Sound in part to prevent the French establishing a hold on the. Australian continent, but mainly because of growing dissatisfaction with the convict settle,went Ian Port Macquarie in New South Wales.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">The first settlers, a small detachment of soldiers and a working party of convicts under the command of Major Edmund Lockyer, arrived on Christmas Day 1826, when the 142 ton brig Amity entered the harbour from Sydney.<li class="li3" style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 17.4px; line-height: normal;">The new settlement was named Fre

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