Adelaide - South Australia's "free" city

The old man sitting next to me on the bus enquired if I was a visitor.  When I said I was he was eager  to tell me that Adelaide "Was never a convict colony, you know."  I was aware of that but rather surprised that it was still a source of great pride to some of the residents of this fair city.

Adelaide from my hotel room

I was pleased to be spending a few days in Adelaide at the end of the Ghan train trip since a friend of mine was born there and had long extolled the city's virtues.  And she was right, it is a lovely place.  One of the founding fathers of this "free" city was Colonel William Light who drew plans for a one mile square city centre in a grid pattern,  with wide streets and public squares, completely surrounded by parkland.  The plan was adhered to and although nowadays the suburbs sprawl out well beyond the parklands, which now have heritage status, the city centre remains compact, attractive and easy to walk around. I couldn't help but compare it to my home city of Auckland, with an almost identical population (1.2million). Auckland sprawls endlessly in all directions with little thought to planning and, unfortunately, continues to gobble up surrounding green space as fast as it possibly can.  One amusing fact is that the founding fathers of Adelaide believed that because the city was not a convict colony there would be no need to include a prison in the plans.  That belief was quickly overturned!




Adelaide Central Market

Adelaide  has regularly featured highly in the World's Most Liveable City lists and I can understand why. It has a pleasant vibe and although, as the capital of South Australia, it is a busy productive city it still felt relaxed and easy  to get around. Don't worry, though, it offers plenty of interest and all that a city this size should.  The Museums and Galleries on North Terrace are well worth a visit.  I particularly enjoyed the Aboriginal Culture Gallery at the Adelaide Museum and the Asian ceramics at the Art Gallery but, of course, both have extensive galleries of interest to suit everyone. 

Adelaide Arcade

The Adelaide Central Market has 80 stalls selling fruit, vegetables, meats, cheeses and all the other
delights of a good food market. Right next to Central Market is Adelaide's China Town with a great range of  ethnic restaurants to choose from and across the nearby square is the beautiful St Peter's Anglican Cathedral. Rundle Mall in the heart of the city shopping district boasts the usual chain stores but I preferred the lovely laneways and beautiful little arcades, nearby, with their independent shops. Adelaide Arcade dating from 1885 is Australia's oldest arcade and is said to be haunted by the ghost of a caretaker who fell to his death there. Unfortunately, or maybe, luckily, I never saw him despite spending  a lot of time in the arcade, strolling, drinking coffee or simply people watching.

No visit to Adelaide would be complete without a visit to Haigh's Chocolates.  Haigh's is an Adelaide company founded in 1915 and now into the fourth generation as a family run business.  I think their chocolates are delectable, this from someone who rarely eats chocolate.

Glenalg

One day I took the tram out to the seaside suburb of Glenalg.  It has a lovely beach with golden sands and a pier and the usual seaside ice cream shops, cafes and bars.  Although the weather was fine there was a chill autumn wind and it was quiet and sleepy and a bit dead. Beach resorts are never at their best in the off season, I imagine it is a buzzy, busy place in summer.




So,   my friend was right, Adelaide is a beautiful city, one  I can quite happily imagine living in and that's something I don't say about many places I've been.

Australia's Barossa Valley and a wine master class

I'm standing at a bar in a winery trying to work out whether I am drinking a red or a white wine.  I am not blind folded, the wine has been served to us in black glasses so it is impossible to tell its colour.   As it happens all of us are able to pick which is a red and which is a white but the wine type is a little more difficult to judge, only one of us aces it.  Prior to the wine tasting we have sniffed at cotton wool drenched in various essences to test our ability to pick the key notes in various wines.Our group of ten  is at a wine master class at Jacob's Creek Winery in Adelaide's beautiful Barossa Valley.  This is my first wine master class and I had no idea it would be so interesting or so much fun.


At Jacob's Creek Winery

I am on a day tour of the Barossa Valley and a visit to Jacob's Creek was one of the stops which most attracted me to this particular tour.  For one thing I have a son named Jacob and secondly, as newly weds in the early 1970s, when the now famous New Zealand wine industry was still developing into an international industry, drinking wine from the Barossa Valley seemed glamorous with Jacob's Creek becoming one of my husband and my favourites.  A visit to the Barossa Valley was on my husband's bucket list which he, sadly, never made, so it is up to me to fulfil his dream.  It is no hardship.  The Barossa Valley is beautiful with verdant rolling hills, pretty villages, wineries and a number of unique points of interest.

Seppeltsfield Winery

Our first stop, after driving through vast plantings of grapes dripping gold for autumn, had been at the exquisitely maintained Seppeltsfield Estate. Seppeltsfield now belongs to a trust so that the lovely ochre buildings and courtyards adorned with palms and fountains can be enjoyed by the public.  There we had a wine tasting of 7 different wines. It's early in the day but, what the heck, I'm not driving!  We were also shown a 100 year old port which we could sniff but not taste.  It smelt like maple syrup.

Chateau Barrosa

Lunch is at Barrosa Chateau (the different spelling is correct) This faux chateau was built by Herman Thumm at the remarkable age of 85.  He lived to be 98. A tasty lunch is served here in an old fashioned  and slightly gloomy room. After lunch we tour Thumm's private museum in an  adjoining gallery.  This is an amazing collection of fine glass, porcelain, art works and furniture. The chateau's rose garden is purported to be the largest in the Southern Hemisphere but it is the wrong time of year to see any roses.  It must be magnificent when in bloom, nevertheless, for some reason I find the chateau dreary and soulless.

Art Gallery at Chateau Barrosa

Next is a short stop at the Barossa Resevoir to test the Whispering Wall, a fascinating phenomenon, allowing someone to whisper a message at the far end of the dam wall which is heard clearly more than 100 metres away at the other end of the dam.  The story goes that it was discovered accidently by a boss who heard his staff complaining about him at the other end.  Rather embarrassing for his staff, I would think! We test it....it works.




German Architecture, Hahndorf

The final stop is at the pretty German village of Hahndorf, founded by Prussian Lutherans in 1838.  It is a strange sight to see buildings with steeply pitched roofs designed  to cope with heavy snow which never falls in this part of Australia.  The shops are crammed with very expensive German souvenirs, cuckoo clocks, Christmas decorations etc.  There is a German bakery with delectable pastries and several German restaurants to choose from.  The village is pretty and quaint but rather ruined by the constant noisy traffic flowing right through it's centre.


German novelties, Hahndorf

Our trip back to Adelaide is through beautiful, lush, fertile countryside.   The long steep highway back into Adelaide from the top of the Adelaide Hills is a marvel, it seems to go down hill, almost straight, forever.  It's been a great day.  I'm happy.





A Taste of Home and a favourite recipe

One of my sons has lived in the United Kingdom for nearly 20 years, yes, surprising but true! He is, nevertheless, still a Kiwi boy at heart and the saying "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" certainly rings true for him when it comes to food.  On his recent trip to New Zealand, with his family, he arrived armed with an extensive list of New Zealand delights unavailable, or at least hard to find, in the UK, and a determination to tick everything off the list. Over the course of his three and a half week visit he managed to achieve his wish and the rest of the family were left in awe of his amazing ability to sniff out a treat on his list from a thousand paces!

First off was a New Zealand lamb roast dinner with fresh vegetables from my garden and a bottle of good New Zealand Savignon Blanc.  That was easy because I had prepared that for their welcome home meal.  Tick one!

Tamarillos - a delectable winter fruit

Then, of course there was the deliciousness of feijoas (refer my post:  Feijoa - Autumn's delicious bounty) which I had ensured a supply of in the form of jams and chutneys, and the wintry delight of ruby red tamarillos sliced and sprinkled with brown sugar.

Then the wickedness began...lots and lots of sweet unhealthy treats.  He tried to convince me this happens only once every few years.  Yes, um, Ok, I believe him, I think.

L & P, Peanut Slab, Anzac Biscuits and
 Peanut Brownies

I had already bought his all time favourite, Ginger Crunch, which he devoured greedily and then  we were off on the trail to buy L & P, short for Lemon and Paeroa, a New Zealand soft drink, Whittakers Peanut Slab, Anzac Biscuits, Raspberry Slice and boy was he over the moon when he found his first ever triple decker Raspberry Slice in a small bakery in Warkworth, an hour north of Auckland. Then there were Peanut Brownies, and Lamingtons.  The Lamingtons posed a problem.  They seemed to have gone out of fashion and despite calling in at every bakery we passed no one seemed to sell them anymore. But those amazing detection skills came into play and there in the main street of Howick, a suburb of Auckland, he somehow knew that a bakery further down the road had Lamingtons...and he was right.


Lamingtons and Ginger Crunch

A visit to the Clevedon Farmers Market where he bought Feijoa juice and a huge Whitebait Fritter completed his food odyssey and he was contented.  Not exactly a gourmet's journey through the wonderful food available in New Zealand but more a journey through childhood memories of home which become all the stronger when you live far away. To be honest I think his memories of the food were more enjoyable than the actual eating of them in some cases and, no doubt, if he lived in New Zealand he would eat most of them only occasionally, but food does have an amazing power to evoke a time and place and bring back happy memories in much the same way as a piece of music or a perfume does. And we all enjoyed the journey.

My daughter in law and Grandson enjoying a Whitebait Fritter
 at Clevedon Farmers' Market

Here is the recipe for my son's all time favourite. 

                                                GINGER CRUNCH
                                    (This is the oaty version we prefer)
INGREDIENTS

• 150gms butter
• 2 tablespoons golden syrup
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

ICING

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 teaspoons golden syrup
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 8 tablespoons icing sugar

METHOD
Preheat oven to 180C. melt butter, golden syrup and brown sugar in a pot and then remove from heat.  Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl and then add the mixture from the pot and mix thoroughly.  Press the mixture into a lightly greased 20cm by 30cm tin and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.  Mark into squares while still warm. Ice when cool with the ginger icing.

Heat all icing ingredients in a pot until melted and beat until smooth.  Poor over the cool base.  When completely cold cut through the icing to separate the squares. Some people prefer a thicker icing so add more icing sugar.  Small pieces of crystallised ginger can be added to the icing too.

The Breakaways - The Ghan Adventure continued

Australian Dog Fence

One of the very best things about travel is discovering new and amazing places you never knew existed. For me travel is always about finding out what is around the next corner. You could say I'm addicted to it.  And what a surprise was waiting "around the corner" when we left Coober Pedy and drove further out into the desert alongside the famous Australian Dog Fence. Sometimes known as the Dingo Fence, it looks just like an ordinary wire fence but at 5,500 kms long, is also the longest man-made structure in the world. Built in the 1880s to protect ranchers from dingo attacks on their cattle it has proved to be successful despite the many ingenious ways the dingos try to breach it. An Australian icon and a symbol of man's endurance in a harsh environment the Dog Fence has featured in novels, movies and folk legend.

The stunning Breakaways landscape

As interesting as the Dog Fence was that wasn't the thrilling part of this trip, that honour goes to The Breakaways. I had never heard of this spectacular ancient  landscape, an inland sea 70 to 100 million years ago, located 33kms north of Coober Pedy.  Known as Umoona by the Antakirinja Matuntjara Yankunytjatara Aboriginal people, who are the traditional owners and custodians of the area, it is now a desert landscape which endures very high summer temperatures and very cold nights. The name, The Breakaways, comes from the fact that the series of dramatic flat topped mountains in the area had broken away from the main mountain range many millions of years ago. The mountains range in colour from chalky white to gold to russet and all colours in between. The scenery is nothing short of sensational and I was gob smacked. What an absolutely unexpected thrill and definitely one of those "round the corner" discoveries.

Our coach drove to the top of one of the mountains where we had time to drink in the amazing views and take photograph after photograph. We also had time to drink a glass of bubbly because, much to our delight, a table had been set up, complete with waiter and wine, especially for us. We were all so enthralled by the views that even the pesky, sticky, Aussie flies didn't dampen our spirits.

 Keen movie viewers would recognise the landscape from Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Mad Max 3 and Red Planet. This visit to The Breakaways was something really special...a must do if you ever visit Coober Pedy.

Delighted with my "round the corner" discovery

Back at the train we were welcomed with more drinks and finger food set out at lantern lit tables in the red desert landscape. Everyone was on a high as we mixed and mingled and shared our delighted thoughts of the day.  The perfect way to spend the last evening of The Ghan trip.

Coober Pedy, the Opal Town - The Ghan Adventure continued

Well I have to say Coober Pedy must be the most unusual, funkiest town I have ever visited.  It was the first time I had been to a town which has mining as its whole purpose, and where many, if not most, of it's inhabitants live underground to escape the searing heat of Australian desert summers. This certainly makes for  an interesting place.

Mining camp, Coober Pedy

     The Ghan stopped way out in the middle of the desert at a place called Manguri Siding and then it was about an hour by bus to Coober Pedy.  First indications that we were getting close to town were the conical piles of mine tailings heaped row upon row amidst  rusty old trucks whose motors are used to power the blowers for the mines. It's a kind of wild west sort of place, dusty and untidy with piles of abandoned, broken down equipment and machinery here and there.

Mountains of mine tailings

Inside St Elijah's Church

 But there is beauty as we discovered at our first stop, the Serbian, Orthodox church of St Elijah, built underground into the side of a hill.   This was an amazing revelation - carefully excavated from cool, creamy rock with elaborate stained glass and carvings and a calm, peaceful atmosphere.  Our next stop, at an opal mine, was more prosaic but no less interesting. Here, suitably kitted out in hard hats, we were shown how opals are mined.  As with all mining it is pretty back breaking work but a good opal find must be very exciting. We had a lunch of food and wine seated at long tables right within the mine - very atmospheric. Afterwards we had time to tour the adjoining museum and art gallery before our next, and I must say, keenly anticipated, stop, an opal shop.



Coober Pedy's Raison d'etre

                                                                                 I was mesmerised by the variety, colours and fire in the opals on display and can understand how mining for them becomes a "thrill of the chase" and somewhat addictive.  Many of us bought opals, including me.  An extravagance I know but I don't expect to be back in Coober Pedy any time soon.                                                                                

Inside an underground house

                                                                                                                                                                  It was intriguing to look through a couple of underground homes; one a no longer used miner's shanty, basic but comfortable, and the other a quite large family home.  I was surprised at how spacious it was with all mod cons and even a chandelier but I know I would find it disconcerting to have to rely on a clock to tell me whether it was daytime or not. 
The beauty of these underground homes is that they are a constant, comfortable 21 degrees all year round while, outside, the summers can be searingly hot, up to 51 degrees, and the winter nights, bitterly cold.

Coober Pedy's "Boot Hill'

                                                                                                                                                              We had a good look around the town, weaving around the residential streets, noting the number of homes by the number of  air vents peppering the small hills.  We even called in at the local cemetery, a real "Boot Hill", with its makeshift headstones of beer kegs and mining equipment. 

A number of homes are under this hill

I am so pleased I went to Coober Pedy.  I found it extraordinary although there is no way I would want to live there.  Our tour guide was a German who said he had arrived in the town, to mine, 40 odd years ago and fell in love with it.  He has never wanted to leave.  On my way home from Australia I met a very friendly woman who shared her airport taxi with me.  She said she had a two year teaching contract in Coober Pedy and was loving every minute of her time there and could happily stay forever.  So, there you go, what do I know?



Recipes - Aussie Outback Bush Tucker (refreshments)

They breed them tough in the Aussie outback - strong, resourceful people who know how to make do, still, their essentials for life are the same as anybody's - a cup of tea and a bit of fresh bread, oh, and a comfortable swag to roll out under the stars.  Here are some genuine recipes from the Australian bush, staples for the Aussie bushman.

BILLY TEA

• First make your fire.  NB: What ever you do, don't start a bush fire.
• Get a billy.  A billy is a tin can with a handle.  In the early days  they were empty bully beef cans, but now you can buy them or, if you are a true bushman, make your own from a large fruit can with a wire handle
• Fill the can 2/3rds with water
• Toss in a handful of tea leaves
• Hang it over the fire
• Leave to brew to your satisfaction
• Lift off with a stick and swing the billy around your body 3 times.  Yes, I know this sounds ridiculous and requires some practice but it makes the leaves drop to the bottom.  BE CAREFUL! and don't do it near children
• Sit back and drink and it is essential to let out a great big "Aaaah" after your first sip

BEER DAMPER

Ingredients:
3 cups self raising flour - ahem - a true bush man wouldn't have anything as fancy as self raising!
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
Pinch salt
50gms butter
2 cups of beer, any kind

• Mix flour, baking soda and salt together
• Rub in butter
• Mix in beer until just combined, don't over mix or it will be tough
• Put into a greased billy and cook over the camp fire until done
• If you don't live in the outback you can bake in an oven at 180C or 350F for 25 - 30 minutes
• Best served with great dollops of butter, billy tea, tall tales and a sing along around the camp fire
• Can be used to mop up bush stew or smothered in golden syrup for desert
• ENJOY and as they say in the outback "bonza, mate"

Wild life and a genuine Aussie Outback BBQ - Ghan Adventure continued

Along with several other Ghan passengers I had chosen to spend the afternoon at the Alice Springs Desert Park, a wildlife park nestled at the base of the MacDonnell Ranges. There we were met by a Park Ranger and shown into a cinema for a brief introduction to the plants and wildlife of the park.  Australia has a rich and wildly varied animal and plant life and I found the film interesting but the best thing of all happened right at the end when the giant screen dropped down to reveal massive panoramic windows and a stunning view up to the MacDonnell Ranges bathed in golden sunlight and towering above us.  I have never seen anything like that before, definitely a "wow" moment.  

The scene behind the screen - this photo
 doesn't do it justice

A captivating talk from this Park Ranger

                    I was lucky enough to join a tour led by an Aboriginal park ranger and was completely spell bound by his tales of how Aborigines find water and track animals. It was truly fascinating . The park is an authentic desert landscape and contains more than 200 desert animals, including kangaroos, emus and dingoes, and 400 plants.  There are also a number of walk through aviaries and a nocturnal house where I saw, for the first time, the cute, scurrying, desert bilby and mala. It was an absorbing place to while away the afternoon. Late in the day the Ghan passengers were special guests at a bird show.  This was remarkable with birds perfectly trained to fly in and out of the arena on cue, swooping so low over our heads that we could feel the wind from their wings. And high above, wild eagles circled the MacDonnell Ranges.

The bird show

A dingo

The Outback Barbecue with tree stump seats

                                                                                                                                                            That evening we were guests at a "genuine" Aussie barbecue held in an old quarry, 20 minutes from Alice Springs, now converted into a barbeque venue. It was like stepping onto the set of McLeod's Daughters with all the Australiana scattered around - a traditional outback windmill, stacks of fire wood, an old wagon and implements, blazing camp fires,and pretty staff in checked shirts and acubra hats. Nevertheless, it still maintained a natural, not overly commercialised feel.  It was a beautiful evening and we enjoyed drinks and nibbles bathed in the rays of the setting sun.

 Left: A perfect outback BBQ setting

Right: Riding a camel

Below: Barbeque time!





                                                                                             There were two camels available to ride so of course, you know me, I had to have a ride. Good fun! Dinner was served in a huge corrugated iron barn with a sand floor - man sized steaks, baked potatoes and salads followed by apple crumble and cream while we were entertained by a  balladeer singing outback songs and by a very humorous presentation on how to make damper, or bush bread. Then it was time to head back outside to sit around the camp fires and be serenaded with well known Australian songs, including, of course, Waltzing Matilda. 

Most people joined in and the feeling was one of great friendship and camaraderie. All in all this was a magical night.  There was only one disappointment - a cloud cover which hid the stars, said to be sensational way out in the desert, but everything else was fantastic, so I'm not complaining!