Blogs from Nuriootpa, Barossa Valley, South Australia, Australia, Oceania

The highway across the top of the Great Australian Bight, including the Nullarbor was first opened in 1941 and was finally sealed in the late 1970’s. From Kalgoorlie to the border is 900km, and then to the agreed end at Ceduna in South Australia a further 500km. From Perth to Adelaide the total is 2700km to give an idea of the distances involved. It’s a very good road all the way with one straight piece of 140km, the longest in Australia. As the main highway there was quite a bit of traffic, mostly large trucks and caravans. Some of the trucks were oversize, and we had to pull over to let them past. We either had no wind or a following wind, so traveled at about 85 to 90kmh. Fuel consumption (diesel) is about 17.5 litres ... read more

The Barossa Valley is one of the premier wine regions of Australia, famous for growing Shiraz grapes. Wolf Blass is based here, as is Penfolds and Jacob Creek. It's a picturesque area, with many more wineries and vineyards in a stunning South Australia setting.... read more

2 April 2011 Hello All! A week ago, on what we thought would be our last evening in the Barossa, we sat on the lawns of a lovely little family-owned winery and listened to live, local, acoustic music while eating our picnic dinner. It was lovely! But... we are still here in the Barossa!! Do you remember mention of grape-picking in my last entry? Well, fools that we are, we did it!! We have just finished a week of hard physical work and are both a size 8 now! We saw an ad. for grape-pickers and phoned. The immediate response was, "You're hired". That was the easiest job interview I've ever had! After I expressed concern about whether we would manage with our "nurses' backs", he said he give anyone a go. Good, anyone was us! ... read more

this blog site lists 10 options for which continent i'm currently on...sketchy? regardless, it is the only site i could actually figure out so it will have to do. this first entry has photos from my time in the barossa valley, arguably australia's most famous wine region. hopefully i will be working as a cellar hand at torbreak winery in the fall. that is fall down here. which is spring for all of you at home. trust me, i know how confusing that is. remember the television show sabrina the teenage witch? and remember how she would go to the other relm through her bedroom mirror where everything was the exact opposite as the real world? that is how i feel every single day. crossing the street, jogging, standing on an escalator, round abouts, EVERYTHING. i'm ... read more

A short trip to the Barossa Valley staying in the Novotel Resort. The view from the room and from the Restaurant is great. A wonderful layout of buildings just below the rim of the hill, arced around the valley leading down to the river. The grounds were landscaped with a mixture of Australian natives and small groups of vines. During dinner we watched the weather pass over the hills on the other side of the valley. The hills were hidden beneath rain clouds, then bathed in a deep orange during sunset. The food was good for both dinner and at the breakfast service. The wines were overpriced which was strange when your in the heart of the vineyards. There are plenty of walks in the resort and along the river, and the golf course just over ... read more