Thursday week 3

Of course, it's now Friday morning in Adelaide and I'm celebrating Andy Murray's success in winning through last night to another Aussie Open Final on Sunday. Hope he does a bit better than the last time we were in Melbourne 4 years ago.

The train journey in to the city yesterday was easy. We got on at Peterhead station and were advised by a friendly lady not to bother buying tickets on the train but just to wait and do it at the machines when we arrived in Adelaide. Well, there were no machines so we had to stand in line at the information kiosk - and, incidentally, they don't give free travel to overseas Seniors - only locals.

We had a to do/wish list but there was nothing really desperate on it so we weren't really in despair when we failed on most of the tasks. We managed to get me a new watch strap and I did pick up a book from the Oxfam store, but otherwise it was failure.

We had a lovely fatty nibble and drink at Brunelli's and we hoped to have a beer at the Exeter but it seems there has been a change of ownership there and it was all Cooper's beers so I exited and we went instead to the nearby Elephant British Pub. It was OK but perhaps we should have popped in to the Austral instead.

Only one photo from yesterday - Miller sweeping up:

Today we're getting ready to head back down south again - to a house in Carrickalinga that Kelly and Chris like to go to. A couple of nights there and then back on Sunday evening.

Some observations of the little bit of this vast continent that we've seen so far on this visit:

• Ants - lots of them - especially in Derby St. Thankfully not in the house.
• Barkless trees - huge chunks of bark appear to fall off the trees entirely randomly. Mind your head!
• Not as hot yet as previous visits - very pleasant in fact - we've only had a few days in the 30's so far.
• Mosquitoes - I've had a few more bites than on previous visits. Nothing more than an irritation, however, and nothing like as bad as Scottish midges!
• Spiders - the house Huntsman is nowhere to be seen. Where has she gone? There is a spider in one of Kelly's car's mirrors, however, as you can tell from the webs that are there every day:

Wednesday

I made a start on this blog diary entry last night but didn't get very far. It's now Thursday morning and therefore the present tense no longer applies.

Jo's watching The Block on TV so I'm passing the time by blogging about today's events.

Kelly was off work so she took us on a drive up the Adelaide Hills, just past Hahndorf to the Kiddies' Farm Barn. Miller took a shine to some of the animals, but, strangely, not the little cute ones like the kid goats and the Guinea Pigs.

It's definitely more of a farm and not a zoo - you're allowed to enter the outdoor pens and feed the large animals. We had one packet of feed and Jo was carrying it when we entered the enclosure containing the deer, who instantly accosted her for it:

They were harmless, but quite aggressive in their search for the goodies and Jo felt quite intimidated. One of them ripped the bottom of the packet open and seed scattered everywhere, whereupon Jo threw the rest away, hoping the deer would then go away. No chance - they reckoned she must have had more and when she and Kelly turned their backs on them, the deer started to nibble at the bottom of their cardigans. (We were up in the hills and it was still morning so there was a bit of a chill wind at times).

Miller really loved the old tractor that was lying around:

Lunch was at a pretty little place in Hahndorf - speciality salads - after which we headed back down to the city and took a slight detour out to have a look at Penfolds Magill Estate. They had tours and tastings going on, but there was also a huge amount of building work going on - apparently a major extension of their visitor facilities. With Miller asleep in the car with Kelly, Jo and I just popped out for a few photos, including these ones of the beautifully maintained old buildings:

We got back to Semaphore mid-afternoon, affording me the opportunity to go for another cycle and attempt to justify the beers that would end my very brief alcohol abstention. I headed south along the beach esplanade this time - right in to the teeth of what was a pretty strong wind coming off the Southern Ocean. I guess the last land the wind crossed would be Antartica, but you would never know it - it was strong but warm. This is the track I cycle on:

I only went as far as Grange, where Jo and I had walked to a couple of weeks ago, so it was just a little longer than yesterday at 19+ kms. Here I am at the cafe that Jo and I had breakfast at:

My knee has coped well with our various walks and the 2 recent cycles - it must have known that my appointment to fix my torn cartilage was imminent and, sure enough, I've just had confirmation that the operation will be on Monday 23rd February - just 2 days after we get back.

Today (Thursday) Jo and I are home alone again and are planning to catch the train in to the city to have a stroll around and do a bit of shopping. Chris' car is also available, but I don't think we'll need it.

Tuesday - down day

Yesterday was very quiet - Miller was at Day Care and Kelly and Chris were back at work, so Jo and I were home alone. Jo wasn't feeling on top of the world - listless is how I would describe her - so all we did was walk down to Semaphore Road and buy the ingredients for the salad for tea from Foodland - although we did stop for a cold drink and some dips at Swedish Tart.

We also decided to have an alcohol free day - our first since we came here. Surprise, surprise, Jo's feeling better today.

It's Wednesday so Kelly's off and we're planning to go somewhere today - perhaps a winery and/or the Kids' Farm Barn. She's just back from the gym - Chris was at his gym before he went to work, so we were in charge of Miller between gym sessions. Jo skulked in her room for a while before Miller and I invaded her space.

I did, however, manage my first cycle of the year yesterday on Chris' bike, complete with Miller's baby seat. I stayed off the road and cycled north up the beach jogging/walking/cycling path, covering a modest 16 + kms and stopping for occasional photo opportunities, including this one at the Marina:

Australia Day

Well, it was a delightful, if slightly boozy, day yesterday, starting with champagne - 3 bottles' worth - for brunch at 11am. Chris' Dad David's specialty is devilled eggs so we had these with smoked salmon pancakes, followed by large shell-on prawns/langoustines/shrimp - delete as appropriate, depending on which country you're from.

Earlier on, I'd taken Miller for a walk/carry down to the beach, to allow his parents to get on with the preparations for the big day. The table was set:

Even the front door had the flags up:

Miller was waving the flag too - check this video out - http://youtu.be/HsSfwGIk_fY

Miller loves the beach - his eyes widened when we arrived there - http://youtu.be/GOIVcdn5kok

He looks a little sad - thwarted by the wall of seaweed - here, however:

Chris' brother Matt belied his apparent reputation and arrived not too long after his parents, armed with a pile of bacon and promising to do the barbie, putting his young brother out of his usual job. Before that, however, a couple of beers and then, in deference to the previous day's Burns Day, Chris got the whisky out - the bottle Ross gave him last year:

Perspective is a wonderful thing. Matt is quite big and David is quite small, but the photo above exaggerates this somewhat. Drams - and it's not even noon yet!

Meanwhile, Miller is in heaven, getting the full attention from both his Grannie and his Nan:

Matt's barbie consisted of bacon, large mushrooms, tomato and fried eggs and we had large rolls as well.

Later on, we thought it would be a good idea to go for a short stroll and find a coffee somewhere. Matt took Miller in his stroller:

We had been led to believe there was Aboriginal/original/indigenous Australian dancing and music going on down the shore and sure enough there was plenty of activity, but it was mostly rock/blues music. We then wandered off to the Palais for coffee, where Miller was again being spoiled:

Back at the ranch, all that was left to do before David and Lorene set off home again was for a team photo. There's always one of the Steele's does something a little silly - but it wasn't Matt this time:

OK, let's try again:

We were still sipping red wine in the evening and nibbling away at leftovers when Kelly decided she wanted an ice cream - so we all had to have one. Connoisseur is a bit like a Magnum, only better. Salted Caramel was popular.

Sunday in the Adelaide Hills

Happy Australia Day everyone!

Chris and Kelly did the last of their shopping for today's celebrations yesterday morning and then we headed for the hills - back to our favourite microbrewery, the Lobethal Bierhaus - a little gem of a place that was really buzzing yesterday. Encouragingly, they're even in the process of installing 4 handpumps to serve British style real ale.

Lunch was lovely and we finished off our beers on the lawn:

Kelly and Chris obviously thought a session here was insufficient to keep our alcohol levels up to the standard to which they have recently been accustomed, so they took us on a slight detour to visit the beautiful little Pike & Joyce winery on the way home:

Back home, we had planned to have flathead for dinner, but none of us were really hungry so we just nibbled at scraps and settled down to watch some of the Aussie Open tennis. I ended up on the midnight shift, waiting for Andy Murray to finish off his opponent.

Here's one of Miller playing with my sunglasses:

I imagine Chris' parents will be getting ready to leave their home in Port Eliot about now to come and join us. Chris is cleaning the BBQ just now and Kelly is preparing some of the brunch, whilst Jo keeps Miller occupied. As for Chris' brother Matt, nobody is sure exactly when he will arrive - presumably with daughter Abby.

Saturday in Port Adelaide

We drove down to Henley Beach to go shopping in Foodland with Kelly on Saturday morning, and, in the afternoon, we all went to nearby Port Adelaide where there was a large scale graffiti-style art exhibition. Here's some examples:

Also in the Port was the oldest Clipper style ship in the world, shipped over to Adelaide from Scotland last year. It's even older than the only other survivor, the Cutty Sark, which also has a Scottish connection. Its "modern" name, the City of Adelaide, makes it obvious where it should reside. It's on exhibition just now:

Chris had arranged to meet up with some of their friends and we caught up with them at the Old Port Hotel Brewery. After a couple of drinks there, we wandered off round the Port a bit more:

The final bit was the kiddies' corner, where Miller had a ball - check http://youtu.be/aQafjq1wmII

Kelly and Chris are out just now shopping for the big Australia Day celebration tomorrow. Today is Burns' Day, however and we hope Andy can do the business in Melbourne this afternoon.