Don't listen to the doubters!

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Many a conversation of backpackers along the way involves the following..

'Adelaide?! Why on earth would you want to go there?'

Backpacker gossip is, at best, flimsy. While it's good to hear stories of where you should visit, where to avoid etc, there is a tendency for gossip to get out of hand. Like the rumour along the whole of the east coast that you had to pay to get onto Bondi Beach for Christmas Day. Or, indeed, that Adelaide is dull and best avoided.

I headed into town on the tram this morning from Paul and Jules's place. Adelaide's not a big place but it's built on a grid system so I can't get lost...can I?! I wandered around the streets to see some of the older buildings mixed with the new - it's a very clean city, helped by the glorious sunshine today of course. There's a small cultural quarter next to the railway station and backing onto Elder Park, where black swans are swimming around to the nearest tourist wanting to feed them. There's also a little shopping mall - well when I say little, it's not tiny by any means but small compared to most Westfields that I've been to. Everything you need in there, including air conditioning over lunch for me, when the heat became too much!

Everyone seems friendly too - there's a great vibe about Adelaide that's more laid back than Melbourne. More of a town feel to it than a city, where everyone knows everyone else and as a result, they all tend to care about their surroundings. I can see why Paul and Jules chose to live here - it's got a homely feel that must have made such a big jump easier to do.

When the heat got too much for me mid afternoon, I jumped on the tram until the end of the line - Glenelg Beach - where I flapped around in the water for an hour to get cool. The beach is still packed full of kids on their summer holidays, jumping from the end of the wooden pier then climbing back up the ladder to repeat the same again. A really laid back spirit here too - reaffirming the fact that I really like Adelaide.

Back at the Sparkes household and Paul is BBQing. Turns out he's a fairly nifty cook - and also have a brand new item for the BBQ when I get home (if we get a summer this year that is, rather than just a heatwave in October...). Sweet potato and halloumi is the way forward!

Tomorrow I might head back to the cricket again after such a good day today. The time however is flying by in Adelaide already and I'm at the half way point before going back to Melbourne. They say time flies when you're having fun eh...

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