Did you know that Australia has a land mass about the same size as our lower 48? The country is divided into 6 large separate states each the size of our countries multi-state regions. Our decision to visit New Zealand brought us close enough to Australia to justify visiting at least a small part of this island continent. Hot beaches and the dry outback did not appeal so with our remaining three weeks of travel time we chose to visit the state of South Australia which is a 3 hour flight west of Sydney. Around 80% of South Australia’s 1.7M people live in and around the capital city of Adelaide which spans an area 12 miles east to west from the sea to the hills and 60 miles north to south from the outback to the southern coast. This is similar to the population distribution of Arizona which is a very rural state outside the Phoenix metro area where the majority of the state’s population resides. Such cities enjoy most of a state’s resources so Adelaide’s infrastructure is quite well developed and serves as the hub for core commercial, retail, government, health, education, history/arts and tourism sectors along with many outdoor amenities and a strong transportation network. Adelaide also has a vibrant food market district due to the state’s agricultural underpinning and its diverse population demographic leading to all kinds of eating and drinking establishments, city events and festivals.
During our time here, the Adelaide Fringe Festival has been underway. This month long event brings hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world to the city for what is a very large diverse performing arts event played out in numerous venues throughout the city. Suffice it to say, the streets have been teeming with all kinds of interesting people who are probably still within a “wide range of normal” amongst humanity. Having said that, I suspect most Review readers, if confronted by any of these individuals or groups on the streets of Milbank, would challenge who and what fits the definition of normal. Paul and I are too old and pragmatic to understand much less participate in the fun and frivolity happening around us which I feel is unfortunate but which Paul seems perfectly fine about. Oh well, after an activity or two during the day we are both shot and happy to recover and read in the evenings.
Our level of “shot” is exacerbated by one of the things we have discovered to do during the day here. I just read that 50% of Australian wine is produced in the state of South Australia and as we have driven around the hills surrounding this fine city we have discovered why this is so. We have come upon acres and acres of vineyards and many of what the Aussies refer to as “cellar doors” in the Barossa Valley and Adelaide Hills, which are just two of some 18 wine regions around Adelaide. There must be 100’s of these wine tasting establishments surrounding Adelaide and being the wine enthusiasts that we are, we are properly educating ourselves in Australian viticulture and vinification. The rich spicy varietal wine known as Shiraz here (Syrah in US) is “King” but most other types are available for tasting as well. I have discovered a fondness for chilled Sparkling Shiraz which I am enjoying as I write this article and we prepare to head out for Chinese food this evening! Yesterday, we enjoyed German food in the small village of Hahndorf, the night before it was Vietnamese, before that Italian or was it Greek? Gastronomic life is good here in South Australia but Paul and I often have divergent tastes. When visiting the Central Food Market, Paul headed straight to the smelly cheeses and I made a beeline to the yogurt stall; at least they are both in the same food group. In closing, I guess all of these experiences will add “new spice” to our summer suppers at the lake. 2019