On The Road Again - South Australia

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Waiting at the tram stop, rain falling from a leaden sky and we were wondering if we’d done the right thing in coming to Adelaide. A cold wind whipped up and even the fact we were on our way to the races didn’t make me much happier. Our initial plan had been to carry on down from Brisbane and visit Sydney again but, for a number of reasons (mainly the fact we’d been there before) we chose to come to Adelaide instead. We hadn’t counted on this weather though and, despite the fact we’d put on all our warmest clothes, this was a shock to the system. Back in Queensland the temperature had rarely dropped below 30 degrees, yet here it was 15 degrees and a climate with a distinct similarity to what we’d have expected back in the UK.

I’m glad to say that, after this initial shock, our decision was fully vindicated. The weather improved significantly from that moment forward and almost in direct correlation, Sydney’s took a significant downturn. Places look many times better with a blue sky and sunshine (this is doubly important when travelling with a limited wardrobe) and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that, as the climate improved so did our view of Adelaide.

Earlier that day we’d flown out of Brisbane having had a fantastic time in Queensland and had some incredible experiences there. Two hours later we landed in South Australia (SA) - the driest state of the driest continent (I guess that makes the rain on our arrival even more ironic). I’m still getting used to the idea that the Australian summer is just starting - normally, we associate November with cold mornings and the night’s drawing in, but here it’s time to dust down the barby or head for the beach.

Adelaide itself is home to more than 1 million of SA’s 1.5 million population and is a mixture of old colonial style buildings dating back to the 1800’s and typical, modern malls and tower blocks. The City straddles the Torrens River and has a laid back, almost country feel to it. Our apartment was located centrally and meant everywhere was in easy walking distance and a great hub to explore the city from.

As I mentioned, our first day there coincided with a meeting at one of the city’s racecourses - Morphettville. We had an great day up there (the weather had already started to improve by the time we got off at its tram stop) but really this was just a precursor to the Melbourne Cup three days later. I mentioned this in my last entry and you really just cannot believe the build up to this event. Everyone (and I mean everyone) you talk to is looking forwards to it and there’s wall to wall coverage on TV, in the papers etc. They call it “The Race That Stops the Nation” and, although it isn’t a public holiday (yet - there’s talk of swapping it for the Queen’s Birthday one which would make sense to me) it’s a wonder anything happens on the first Tuesday in November.

We were in a different city than it was taking place in (150,000 people attend the actual event at Flemington in Melbourne) but that didn’t matter. Every pub, club, restaurant and casino was holding an event and everyone dresses up in their finest - the first race on the card was at 9.50 in the morning and the “hospitality” starts before that, leading to some very dishevelled sights very early in the day!! We opted to go back to Morphettville to watch it there but all their packages had been sold out long ago; this meant we just attended the races in a “normal” capacity and watched the Melbourne Cup on the huge screen in the middle of the course with 12,000 others. The races itself was won by a 25/1 outsider which few backed (unfortunately, including me) but no-one seemed to care and a great day was had by all.

There’s also a fascinating (honestly!!) election campaign going on out here at the moment with the big day only a couple of weeks away. The current Prime Minister (John Howard) has been in power for five terms now but is in real danger of being ousted by the opposition Labour Party. His position wasn’t helped by the fact that the Labour candidate, Kevin Rudd (he of ear picking fame................if you don’t know, I won’t sicken you...) selected the winner of the race whilst Howard only managed third. Their choice of horses were well publicised before the race and a disproportionate (to me) amount of importance placed on them; it seems that the ability to select the Melbourne Cup winner is vastly more important to most of the electorate here than sound policies or a good economic strategy for the country.

The Aussie politicians are ruthless and really don’t seem to worry at all about what they say about each other. This makes for great entertainment and there isn’t a day goes by without one or other of them making a horrendous gaff or causing great insult to somebody. One of the prime movers in the opposition is a guy called Peter Garrett who is also the lead singer of the band Midnight Oil (of “Beds are Burning” fame) - he’s about six foot four, totally bald and quite evil looking. Now as if having a “Hills Have Eyes” lookalike as a potential Environment Minister isn’t bad enough, he got himself into serious trouble last week with some “off the record” comments. He was at an airport apparently telling all who’d listen not to worry too much about the party’s current policies as, when they’d won the election, they were going to “change them all anyway”!! Great stuff (at least they’re up front about it out here) and I’m looking forward to the entertainment the rest of the campaign brings.

After four days it was time to leave Adelaide and head out on another road trip. We picked up an aptly named Subaru Outback for a one way drop off in Melbourne, around 1,200km away down the Great Ocean Road. This option (as opposed to flying) is a really good fun way of doing things as you motor at your own discretion and choose to stay wherever looks nice along the way.

Before we headed south east in the direction of Melbourne, we wanted to first drive North out of Adelaide for an hour to a place we were both keen to visit - the Barossa Valley wine region. This is an area of outstanding beauty and is incredibly relaxing. It’s home to well over sixty wineries, their vines spread for miles over the rolling hills and only interrupted periodically by peaceful little villages. The one we picked to stay in was called Tanunda; we chose a little cottage the owners had named “Memory Lane” (?!!) as our home and it was really, really cosy. In a sleepy street just out of the centre, it was loaded with antique furniture, a four poster bed and large back garden with the obligatory barbecue. The owners had stocked the fridge with a huge basket of provisions and the lounge thoughtfully had a box of chocolates and a decanter full of port (you don’t get that in Travelodge’s back home!!).

The cottage made a great base to explore the Barossa from for a couple of days and it is a truly beautiful place; full of flowers and vivid colours everywhere. There’s a distinct German feel as many of them settled here in the 1840’s to escape religious persecution. Indeed, one of the first wineries in the area was set up by a gentleman you may have heard of named Wolf Blass and, along with this one, other household names that are based here are Jacob’s Creek, Penfolds, St Hallets etc. There’s a scenic driving tour of around 60km which we did to take in the views across the vineyards and stopped at a couple of wineries to try their wares on the way. We’d done an organised wine tour in the Margaret River area in Western Australia but there was no need here as they were all so close together and we could do it under our own steam.

Some of the vineyards hold outdoor concerts every so often; Shirley Bassey has performed here as has Michael Ball, Pavarotti, Joe Cocker and others. Elton John is on very soon and our timing is perfect as we’ll be well gone by the time arrives (haha!!).

From the Barossa we headed south back past Adelaide and on with our journey; once we were past the city it was time to join the Great Ocean Road and head out towards Victoria and our final stop in Oz - Melbourne.

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Photos

Morphettville Racecourse
Blue sky entering on the left, grey clouds moving off stage right. A cameo of the weather during our time in Adelaide - Melbourne Cup day there was great fun.

Taking Time Out
Adelaide's Botanical Gardens made a really relaxing place (especially as it was home to SA's Wine Appreciation Centre!!

Into The (Barossa) Valley
Our Barossa Home - "Memory Lane". Great location, cosy and bursting with memorabilia of the Titanic?!!

The Barossa Valley
So many wineries - so little time..............

We Love Lobster.......
...but you can't eat a full one in Kingston, SA. Actually, this was the town's highspot so we drove through and stayed elsewhere.

No Blog In Oz.......
....Would be complete without a picture like this.

Comments

[Sean Loftus]

G'day cobbers
Hi Both Good to see some grey skies, should help with any home sickness that you may be suffering- Ha Ha yeah right! Ac are you feeding DC? He looks like he is wasting away, the trip is doing him the world of Good. I am sure that Rachs ankles are breathing a hue sigh of relieve when we hopefully catch up when you get back!! ;-) Any way must go and I am about to do the prep work for the 2008 price reviews -oh what joy! ( DC just see what you are missing!) All the best Sean, Rach and Ella x