Fire, Flood, Pestilence

Part 9 : Perth to Adelaide 

"The journey is the destination"
Daniel Robert Eldon

Once we had checked out of our Murray Street apartment and bundled all our belongings into the boot of our car, it finally dawned on us that we would be leaving Perth the following day for a completely new adventure.

We had hoped that we would have been able to do and see so much more than we had done during our week in Western Australia.

We had not spent one idol moment since our arrival but it felt like we had only seen a fraction of what this extraordinary state has to offer and less than half what we had written on our 'must see' list.

Our daughter and future son-in-law had recommended so many wonderful things to us which we couldn't fit into our tourist schedule in the short time we were there.

They told us about their trips to Cottesloe and Scarborough beaches, their recent mini break on a Margaret River wine tour, and a jaunt to Busselton where they saw the longest pier / jetty in the Southern Hemisphere.

They also recommended snorkelling in Rockingham and a trip to the Pinnacles Desert in Nambung National Park.

Pictures of their four week outback tour to the Kimberleys are breathtaking.

That is definitely something we would have considered doing had we had more time even if I think we may have opted to hire a utility vehicle or mini camper van rather than sleep in sleeping bags on the ground as they did.

I must say though, that waking up to a desert sunrise is an experience I would definitely love to have one day.

On balance we feel now that to have tried to fit anymore sightseeing into our busy tourist schedule whilst there could have detracted from our positive experience in that it would have been tiring and stressful and we wouldn't have savoured the moments spent there as fully as we had done.

What is important for us when travelling is that we have time to familiarise ourselves as much as possible, with an area or a new city at a gentle, relaxed pace rather than rush from one location to another to cram in as much 'sightseeing' as possible without ever having time to pause and take stock.

We like to get the 'feel' of a place, establish connections with people, cafés, pubs, markets and live as 'locals' as much as is possible when travelling.

Obviously we would have loved to see more but we both agree that any more cramming would have certainly proved counter productive.

The one regret I do have now, however, is that we booked to spend our final night back at the Airbnb accommodation in Ascot and decided against spending it at the Doubletree by Hilton in Northbridge as recommended by our daughter.

Our daughter and her fiancé had booked their first three nights in Perth at the Northbridge Hilton when they first arrived in Australia in January 2019 and they both agreed that it was the perfect introduction to their extraordinary Australian adventure.

Sitting in the hotel rooftop pool sipping an aperitivo cocktail and watching the sunset over the city remains one of their best memories of their entire time in Australia.

Sadly we opted against it due to the elevated Australia Day rates which tended to match New Year's Eve hotel rates in Sydney; we also reasoned that Ascot was so much closer to the airport than Northbridge and we would need to leave for the airport so early that it made sense to go for the closer option.

But now, with the benefit of hindsight (especially after years of social distancing and lockdown), I SO wish we had taken their advice and stayed at the Hilton instead, especially as the Ascot accommodation was particularly pungent when we checked in late that evening and it was clear that on that occasion it hadn't even been cleaned.

A visitation from two cockroaches in the kitchen and shower areas, didn't do much to enhance our opinion of it.

How we wished at that moment that we were sipping digestifs around that beautiful rooftop pool rather than chasing cockroaches out of our makeshift kitchen area in Ascot. 🐜

Kings Park and Botanic Gardens Perth

When you are visiting a town or city that you have never been to before, it is inevitable and certainly not unwelcome, that friends or acquaintances who know that city well, like to recommend or suggest places that you might like to visit whilst there.

Often they suggest different things depending on their age, interests or holiday budget.

This was definitely the case with us with regard to everywhere we visited in Australia and New Zealand but when it came to Perth, the one place that everyone seemed to agree on was that we should not miss seeing Kings Park. 

According to https://www.bgpa.wa.gov.au/kings-park, "Kings Park is one of the world’s largest and most beautiful inner city parks".

I can certainly confirm that with its dramatic views over the Swan Valley and Perth CBD, it is by far the most beautiful inner city park that I have ever visited. 

The site goes on to state that "it is rich in Aboriginal and European history, contemporary culture and offers innovative design, displays and services"

It claims that "Kings Park has an international reputation for scientific research, leading horticulture, conservation and public education and is home to the spectacular Western Australian Botanic Garden, which displays over 3,000 species of the State’s unique flora".

It would seem that "two thirds of the 400 hectare park is protected as bushland and provides a haven for native biological diversity".

"Visitors can enjoy sweeping views of the Swan and Canning Rivers, the city skyline and the Darling Ranges to the east".

The views on all sides are certainly mesmerising.

If you had to pick just one place to visit in Perth on a busy business trip, then let it be this. 

The site also mentions "bushland  walk trails, immaculate gardens and parklands and a variety of children’s discovery play areas".

Sadly we did not have time for a very long bushland trail walk but the few hours we did spend there were totally magical. 

Just remember to bring a hat and suncream if you visit the park in summer.

It was a very hot day when we were there in late January and we came across quite a few tourists whose shoulders, noses and in the case of one poor chap's bald patch, were far redder and shinier than I'm sure was comfortable.  

Cottesloe Beach 

https://www.westernaustralia.com/en/Attraction/Cottesloe_Beach/56b2678fd5f1565045daabd8

Cottesloe Beach is recognised as one of Australia's most beautiful beaches.

Its dazzling 0.6 miles of shining white sand and crystal waters certainly captivated us from the moment we first saw it.

When we arrived in Cottesloe that afternoon we couldn't believe how few people we found there.

Considering this was a gloriously sunny day in the height of summer and this is known to be one of the most beautiful beaches in Australia, we were astounded when we arrived to discover that we had the entire beach to ourselves.

If a beach looked like this anywhere in Europe, you would have to arrive at the crack of dawn to secure your spot on it on a sunny day in summer.

But sadly beaches such as these are rarities indeed in Europe.

This was the Indian Ocean.

We had seen spectacular beaches like this before when we went to a friend's wedding on the tropical island of Langkawi in Malaysia.

Silky, smooth pure white sand and sea water so warm that it feels like a hot bath.

It was spellbinding. 

We only had a few hours there sadly so we decided to walk the length of the beach and back again then find a suitable beachside spot for an early evening aperitivo.

Cottesloe beach is lined with excellent cafes, restaurants and bars so we had a lot of choice.

I wasn't surprised to read later that this beach in Western Australia had been voted as the second best beach in the world by both tourists and locals.

This was based on the quality and cleanliness of both the beach and the water, the many events and watersports available to tourists and local residents throughout the entire year (though some only from October to April) and the extensive choice of restaurants, bars, hotels and guest houses to suit all budgets.

If you happen to be in the area in March, you'll be able to see or even participate in the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition which transforms the beach into a super scenic art gallery.

Cottesloe beach came about when the early British settlers in Perth created the River Swan colony.

Their experience of going to a ‘beach’ prior to this would have been a day out in Blackpool, Brighton, Southend or similar (which is perfectly ok on a sunny day!!!), so the mesmerising beauty of Cottesloe must have blown their minds and certainly affirmed their decision to have moved down under.

The beach is popularly known as ‘Cott’ among the locals and is one of the most frequented spots, by locals as well as by tourists visiting Perth, though they were definitely not frequenting it on the day we decided to visit. 

I read somewhere that every Sunday local residents gather on a particular spot on the beach with picnics or drinks or both so they can meet up or to get to know their neighbours in a uniquely convivial manner. Definitely something that appealed to us had we been there longer. 

The drive from Cottesloe to central Perth took less than half an hour but finding a parking space in Northbridge at that time of day during the Fringeworld season proved totally impossible.

After almost as long looking for a parking space as the drive from Cottesloe, we gave up and parked the car in the underground parking facility near our apartment, it just meant that we had to walk at a brisk pace to get back to Northbridge on foot and meet our daughter just before 6:00 pm as previously arranged.

We hadn't planned to hire a car in Perth initially but we changed our minds after our first two taxi transfers on arrival, which we calculated had cost as much as the hire of a small car for five days.

Having a car did make life easier overall for us as I had a meeting arranged in Mount Lawley the day after our arrival then the day after that we had an airport pick up, but I can categorically affirm that parking in Perth was a nightmare and not at all cheap so if you ever have the good fortune to visit this enchanting area of Western Australia, do take that into account when considering whether to hire a car or not or whether to pay extra for accommodation which includes free parking on site,

Return to Sherlock then The Moon in Northbridge

www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/uptodate/2010/09/100928_kyeutd_edgy_page.shtml

As parking problems in Perth had caused us to miss the first 15 minutes of the Improvised Sherlock Holmes on Saturday, our daughter had arranged for us to see it again on this evening with three complimentary tickets courtesy of her fiancé's agent.

As the central theme of each show is selected by members of the audience on the day, no two shows are the same so we were thoroughly entertained by the art of Mr Conan-Doyle and three maverick comedians for the second time in three days. 

After the show we joined our daughter, the cast of Sherlock and their agent for drinks at The Moon in William Street in edgy Northbridge. 

According to bbc.co.uk, "the idea behind 'edgy', is that the edge is the most forward part of something, the place where new things are happening, where the future is becoming the present.

We talk, too, of innovation taking place 'at the leading edge' or 'at the cutting edge".

So Northbridge is innovative, alternative, cutting edge.

What with Fringe World and all its wild and wonderful cafés and eateries, I would say that it certainly fits that description.

As for The Moon, judging by the numbers of patrons queuing at its doors all the evenings we were there, it is undoubtedly one of its most cherished bars, restaurants, night spots.

It was too full to accommodate us all on Saturday but we were told that tables were available for an hour on this occasion so we decided to have drinks there then go somewhere else for dinner before going to our next show at 10:00 pm.

The Moon seemed to be particularly popular with young entertainers performing at the fringe as quite a few of them met up there that evening whilst we were there.

We were quite happy to be there as we were with our daughter, future son-in-law and all their lovely friends but given the choice I would opt for Henry's Rooftop Bar with its spectacular harbourside views, over the Moon every time.

No contest at all.

Sorry Moon Bar.

But this is just my opinion.

Considering the sheer number of people that frequented this night spot every evening we were there, it is clear that not everyone agrees with me so try it for yourselves if you're ever in Northbridge.

You may love it.

Our daughter and her friends certainly do. 

Lucky Chan’s Laundry + Noodle Bar, Perth

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/weekend-australian-magazine/lucky-chans-laundry--noodle-bar-perth-restaurant-review/news-story/345cabafbfebdea52cafa7440c34ba84

Our next stop was dinner at Lucky Chan's also in William Street Northbridge.

Our daughter, her partner and their friends had been there several times prior to our arrival so they were keen for us to try it.

Unfortunately, our experience of it was far less favourable than theirs.

More UNlucky Chan on the day we went alas!

I expect that was due to their young servers not being able to cope with the large numbers of Australia Day tourists and probably because they don't take reservations which is fine on a normal day but during a busy summer bank holiday period, this is definitely counterproductive.

Either way, if you are in Perth I firmly suggest that you avoid Lucky Chan's Noodle Bar during any of the major holiday periods.

This rather harsh review written by John Lethlean in the Australian Weekend magazine sums up my experience of this gastronomic "delight" perfectly:

I have adapted it slightly as Mr Lethlean did actually manage to eat there, whereas we did not.

We just waited and waited and waited ......then left 

"Lucky Chan’s Laundry + Noodle Bar is in hipster central Northbridge (of course), takes no bookings" (it really SHOULD), "has food designed to share" - which sadly was not on offer when we were there.

By 'hipster Central Northbridge', I believe Mr Lethlean means "most if not all of William Street".

Mr Lethlean dedicates much of that section of his article to the definition of the word 'hipster' as he believes that the restaurant targets this particular group of young adults as the main body of their regular clientele.

He describes them as a "a subculture of men and women typically in their 20s and 30s who value independent thinking, counter-culture, progressive politics, an appreciation of art and indie-rock, creativity, intelligence, and witty banter,"

All very informative I'm sure but how that explains our poor experience of this gastronomic marvel, I do not know, unless he is implying that we were recognised as clearly not belonging to that subculture and so were singled out for poor service.

Mr Lethlean, then explains that Lucky Chan's is the first permanent restaurant in Australia to open with the assistance of crowd funding".

It appears that "more than $100,000 was raised via Pozible to get the doors of this quirky, mod-Asian open", states Mr Lethlean, with more than just the faintest hint of sarcasm. "That kind of dough doesn’t buy much in the way of restaurant stuff, but it has sure bought them outstanding publicity.

Clever clever" (sarcasm is not faint at all now).

Pozible I understand is a crowdfunding platform in Australia.

"So", continues Mr Lethlean, "while many Northbridge eateries struggle, we’re sitting in the “reception” of Lucky’s".

"It’s like an old-fashioned Chinese takeaway, but filled with quirky stuff that speaks to the laundry theme.

Old laundromat machines full of clothes, signs for washing and drying, light fittings made from washing machine drums, Chinese lanterns, an ironing board". 

"The people behind this place have their collective tongue so far in their cheek it must hurt".

And we’re waiting for a table; the joint is full", .

"The wacky Anglo take on pan-Asian dining — none of Lucky’s partners is remotely oriental — is a bona fide thing these days".

Could this be a nuance of Lethlean cynicism?

"There’s no culinary homogeneity; rather, a grab-bag of ideas and flavours that work together well enough to sell booze and give folks a good time.

It helps that staff are pleasant, efficient, and don’t push sales or move you along".

Though I really must add that on the evening we went a little 'pushing of sales' and delivering to the table before we had to leave would have been appreciated.

Staff were barely visible on our visit there and as for service...........

Well, to say it was slow is very much an understatement.  

And the food? As we weren't served any then we can't comment, but according to Mr Lethlean "it won’t make you nostalgic for Japan, Hong Kong or Thailand, but it’s OK".

"If you’re only out for the tucker", "there are places that do most of this stuff better, but Lucky’s isn’t aimed at people who go out just for the food".

Though I would have thought that serving food to people that go and sit in your restaurant would be a good start but then what do I know?

On his visit there Mr Lethlean was fortunate to have been served:

"Dusted/fried whitebait with fried lotus seeds and wasabi mayo. “Crispy” strips of seasoned, floured and fried pig ear, with a wedge of lime and more mayo, if you like that sort of overtly porcine snack", we would have loved it on the evening we were there.

"Some are over-fried". Wouldn't have bothered us at all.

"Gyoza, smothered in fresh basil and coriander, are supposed to be filled with “sticky” beef shin meat."

"The meat’s not sticky; it’s lean, and rather boring." Boring meat would have worked for us.

"And a soy-based sauce with star anise is, presumably, the source of the licorice flavour. No thanks".

We would have thanked them profusely had we been served it.

I love liquorice.

"Four over-steamed prawn and snapper dumplings garnished with tobiko are, at $3.50 each, a waste of money."

All sounds good to me.

"And while pleasant enough, a Thai-style yellow curry of snapper and green papaya, served on rice stick noodle, isn’t screaming “value for money” either."

"The flavours are fine, if a little timid, but I’ve never eaten curry with rice noodle before."

Again, I wish we had been given the opportunity to decide all this for ourselves.

"No, what you come here for is the ramen."

"They do good ramen.
That is, the noodle soup, as the menu says, that was “born in China, raised in Japan and modernised in New York”.

"The golden, pork bone broth is delicious, the noodles firm and the produce within, such as chicken breast, fish cake, nori and beanshoots, is of decent quality."

"Mine was pimped with miso-buttered corn for a supplement of $3.50. Go for the ramen. It’s good value".

We did actually go there for the ramen.

Our daughter and her friends raved about it so much that we ate very little that day knowing that we would be tucking into a massive bowl of ramen later that evening.

That was the point of going there at all but what Mr Lethlean failed to include in his review is that the ramen is not readily available to everyone who orders it.

The reason for this remains a mystery to us.

We were among 5 members of our party of 11 for whom it was not on offer but others who arrived after us had no problems at all, and were served it immediately.

After waiting for what felt like an age in the laundrette reception, our party was led up three floors to an open terrace area and seated at a narrow semi-circular table.

The first four people at the end of the semi circle that did not include us, were able to place their order for ramen immediately. 

A few minutes later two people in the centre of the semi-circle ordered their bowls of ramen as well but then the servers did an extraordinary disappearing act and we did not see them again until one returned with the ramen bowls for the first groups who had ordered them 10 minutes sooner. 

At this point we asked when we could order our ramen bowls but the server said he had to ask the chef if further ramen bowls for our table would be possible or not.

He returned after a few minutes to tell us that there would be a 50 minute wait for more ramen bowls for us and as we were in a hurry we should order something else which would take less time.

I asked this curt young "hipster" what the logic behind that was as others had received their ramen bowls within minutes, but apparently it's what the chef had said so they couldn't argue against it.

We had no idea what else to order as I didn't recognise some of the items on the menu as human food so we told them to bring a selection of dishes which were ready now so we would have time to consume them before having to leave for our show. 

In the meantime a group of four arrived and were seated adjacent to us.

They ordered four ramen bowls which arrived within minutes so all we could assume was that there was a limit to the number of ramen bowls which we could order per table. 

Or they just didn't like the non-hipster look of the three of us.

Whatever the reason, we certainly appeared to be singled out for poor service.

Those on our table who had by now finished their ramen bowls and also consumed the Lucky Chan equivalent of coffee, paid their bills and left for the show so that they could save us seats at the back.

We think they must have spoken to someone on their way out as a few minutes later two different servers arrived with what looked like bar snacks, a reduced drinks bill and apologies from the chef for the misunderstanding.

I asked them what they meant by misunderstanding, as surely it was simply a question of our not being permitted to order food.

But we had no time to wait for the response from the chef on that, so we asked this second hipster to bring us some bags or containers so we could eat our 'snacks' en route to the show.

The servers themselves, did not appear to have permission to comment at all on anything without direct reference to 'the chef' which seemed odd to us, even apologies for their poor service had to come from the chef.

Sadly but unsurprisingly the promised containers didn't materialise so I wrapped everything in napkins and stuffed it all in my hand-bag. 

Munching on fried animal ears, edamame beans, lotus seeds and other items which I could not identify, in our Uber on the way to the show is not something we will forget in a hurry.

This was certainly not our best gastronomic experience downunder.

It was without any doubt at all, our worst (and there does always need to be one of those otherwise what's the point of travel logs such as these), but if this experience proved anything at all is that you can sell anyone anything no matter how bad it is, providing your marketing strategy is on point.

Tongues in cheeks all the way to the bank for the Lucky Chan corporate team I don't doubt.

But at least we can say that we ate (or tried to eat) in the first crowd-funded restaurant in edgy Northbridge 🤣

Chris Turner at Fringeworld Perth 2020

http://www.christurnercomedy.com/about

https://fringeworld.com.au/whats_on/chris-turner-rap-god-fw2020

Our final booking at Fringeworld Perth 2020 was the Opening Night solo show of this excellent young comedian who is also a good friend of our daughter and future son-in-law and whose wife is a member of the Improvised Sherlock cast.

We had seen Chris Turner before in the excellent Racing Minds improv show at the Edinburgh Fringe but had never seen his solo show so we were very much looking forward to it.

This show was "a one-man comedy and hip-hop spectacular. Jaw-dropping freestyles, hilarious stand-up, and dextrous raps combine for an hour of high-octane musical comedy"

"Chris Turner is an Edinburgh Fringe Festival favorite who has won multiple awards during 11 years of sell-out shows.

Chris is a British comedian and freestyle rapper based in the USA where he writes for Epic Rap Battles of History and is a regular closing act at the world-famous Comed Cellar in New York, and the Comedy and Magic Club in Los Angeles.

This is Chris's fifth time at Perth FRINGE WORLD, where he has also performed with audience favourites and British improv extraordinaires, Racing Minds, and their show 'Aaaand Now For Something Completely Improvised"

Chris's debut performance on 27 January 2020 certainly did not disappoint.

We had never seen a rap comedy act before so we were totally enthralled by it.

Chris filled the stage with his repartee, his improvised musical renditions based on a variety of items suggested by random members of the audience (including our edamame beans) and the images projected on the wall behind him throughout the show.

The audience was engaged from the moment of arrival to departure. It was fantastic. Just what we needed after our less than favourable Lucky Chan experience.

I will definitely aim to see his solo show again and I totally recommend that others do so too.

If you are a fringe festival aficionado then do look out for him in future years.

You will not be disappointed.

"Chris is also a sought-after entertainer on the corporate circuit, hosting awards and performing for many of the world’s largest organisations, as well as being a firm favourite of many of the UK’s biggest sports teams.

He has worked with Yorkshire Tea to create Blessed are the Teamakers, a tea-centric rap with 6m+ views, and with Coca-Cola to produce comedic content for their mobile media platform".

"He speaks at conferences on the applications of improvised rap in business; his performance at tech conference Wired 2016 led to invitations to events across the globe, and in May 2017, he appeared at renowned human rights conference the Oslo Freedom Forum".

"Together with Tom Skelton and Daniel Nils Roberts, he s a founding member of Racing Minds, one of the UK's most respected improv troupes, with 7 sell-out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe performing Aaaand Now For Something Completely Improvised, a twelve-part series recorded for Audible, and 600,000+ Soundcloud subscribers to their 50s style radio comedy The Wireless Podcast".

Wednesday 29 January 2020

Farewell Perth, Good Morning Adelaide 

Saying goodbye to wonderful Western Australia was not easy.

We had thoroughly enjoyed our time there and this unwelcomed departure day had come far too soon.

We would next see our daughter and future son-in-law in mid February in New Zealand.

We planned to meet in the arrivals lounge at Christchurch international airport at midnight on 19 February.

They were not sure at that point where they would be living the following year; they were considering settling in New Zealand for a while or spending longer in Australia if they could; either way they were certainly planning to return to Fringe World Perth in January 2021.

As we had enjoyed it all so much, our daughter suggested that we should return to Western Australia as well at that point.

It was a lovely thought and we definitely would have considered taking them up on their offer, but the world changed beyond all recognition just a few weeks after that Perth encounter so no one would be going anywhere at all for a while and mass gatherings like festivals and fringe events would all be cancelled or reduced in size for the following two years or more 😥

Fortunately we were not travelling from Perth to Adelaide on Tigerair so we were spared the meticulous weighing and measuring of bags and the discomfort of having to stand in a crowded corridor until our flight was called. 

I slept for most of the 2:50 hour journey so I recall no views at all of Adelaide from the aircraft.

However, I did feel more refreshed than I expected to feel when we arrived at our accommodation that afternoon.

As Adelaide is 2:30 hours ahead of Perth at that time of year, we landed in Adelaide at 12:20 local time; by the time we collected our bags, found a taxi and arrived at our accommodation in central Adelaide it was after 2:00 pm so we were able to check into our Airbnb apartment immediately.

Just as in Perth, this Airbnb apartment shared the same building as a local hotel.

In fact when we entered the building and saw the Oaks Hotel reception desk, we thought we were in the wrong place but the young man at the desk was very kind; he explained that Oaks Hotel only managed the lower floors but the upper floors were all privately owned apartments.

He then offered to help us with our bags and told us to feel free to ask for any help or tourist information that we required.

Such a pleasant introduction to Adelaide.

Our 6th floor apartment was incredible; it had either been newly built or recently refurbished.

It was sleek, modern and equipped with the latest appliances.

The added bonus was the use of the Hotel fitness centre in the building opposite ours which included an indoor balcony swimming pool.

Yet another Airbnb success.

Just as in Perth, we were staying in the equivalent of a stylish, modern, inner city Aparthotel for a fraction of the cost.

We weren't sure how the swimming pool on the balcony worked exactly but we had every intention of finding out, though it couldn't be that afternoon as we were due to meet up with friends in Glenelg a few hours later so we had to quickly unpack, shower, get changed and head for the nearest tram stop as soon as we could.

Glenelg 

We were due to meet our friends at the war memorial in Adelaide's stylish coastal suburb of Glenelg at 6:00 pm but we were hoping to get there at around 2:30 pm for a long beach walk, maybe some sea bathing and definitely a beachside aperitivo prior to meeting them.

Of course that was before we realised that there was a 2.30 hour time difference between Perth and Adelaide.

As Western Australia does not change its clocks to summer time mode in October whereas South Australia does, there is a 2:30 time difference between them rather than 1:30 as we originally thought.

So the loss of the extra hour plus the time spent in the apartment unpacking and recovering from the journey meant that we only had two hours in Glenelg before having to meet our friends at the war memorial.

Glenelg is yet another stunningly beautiful Australian coastal town.

It was in Glenelg that we saw the majestic Southern Ocean for the very first time.

This is the ocean that Australia shares with the continent of Antarctica.

It was strange thinking of that as we enjoyed the sea views over the pier into the wide blue expanse ahead of us. 

One thing we were not prepared for at all, was the extreme heat we were faced with when we arrived in this area of South Australia.

Our daughter had explained that Western Australia would be hotter than New South Wales and we had received several temperature management alerts via email when we first booked our trip to the Northern Territory but no one had prepared us for the intense heat that we would encounter in South Australia.

Of course, when you look at a map you can clearly see how accessible the Northern Territory is from South Australia.

To drive to Uluru from Adelaide only takes 15 hours, whereas you need to allow 30 hours to drive there from Sydney.

It makes sense, therefore, that South Australia would share a similar climate to that of the Northern Territory.

I read later on: https://phys.org/news

"The South Australian capital Adelaide on Jan. 24 recorded the hottest day ever for a major Australian city—a searing 46.6 C (115.9 F).

On the same day, the South Australian town of Port Augusta, population 15,000, recorded 49.5 C (121.1 F)—the highest maximum temperature anywhere in Australia".

On arrival at Glenelg that afternoon, we embarked upon our coastal walk as we had done in Cottesloe the previous day, but less than 20 minutes later we all agreed that the heat was far too intense for us to walk any further along this unshaded coastal path, so we decided to turn back and go and sit on the pier (jetty) and enjoy the coastal cross breeze.

Unfortunately we experienced no evidence of cross breezes at all on that pier so after a while we all felt as if the skin on our faces and shoulders was burning.

We had administered generous quantities of high factor sun cream, but it was clear that it was not enough protection against that Glenelg SA heat.

We had only been out in the sun for 20 to 30 minutes maximum but all three of us had suffered facial and shoulder sunburn. 

Interestingly, we saw a continental-style beach set-up near the pier where you could hire sun loungers, deck chairs and parasols.

We had never seen this before in Australia so we were keen to take advantage of it.

We asked the young man in charge how much it would cost to hire three deck chairs and a large parasol for just over an hour.

The daily rate ranged from $300 to $80 (half that for just morning or afternoon), depending on exactly what we selected; there appeared to be no hourly option but he would have been happy to negotiate one for us if we were keen.

While we were thinking about it a young family was just leaving the area and they told us not to bother as the intense heat combined with the lack of any sea breeze at all made it feel swelteringly hot under those parasols.

Good advice I think as we then found a wonderful air conditioned café / bar where we sat at window seats and enjoyed glorious views of the southern Ocean whilst sipping refreshing aperitivi. 

A Brief History of Glenelg 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenelg,_South_Australia

"Glenelg is located on the shore of Holdfast Bay in Gulf St Vincent.

Established in 1836, it is the oldest European settlement on mainland South Australia.

It was named after Lord Glenelg, a member of the British Cabinet and Secretary of State for War and the Colonies.

The name Glenelg derives from Glenelg, in the Scottish Highlands.

Prior to the 1836 British colonisation of South Australia, Glenelg and the rest of the Adelaide Plains was home to the Kaurna group of Aboriginal Australians.

They knew the area as "Pattawilya" and the local river as "Pattawilyangga", now named the Patawalonga River.

Evidence has shown that at least two smallpox epidemics had killed the majority of the Kaurna population prior to 1836.

The disease appeared to have come down the Murray River from New South Wales and the Kaurna had no natural immunity to it. 

The first British settlers set sail for South Australia in 1836.

Several locations for the settlement were considered, including Kangaroo Island, Port Lincoln and Encounter Bay.

The Adelaide plains were chosen by Colonel William Light, and Governor John Hindmarsh proclaimed the province of South Australia at the site of The Old Gum Tree in Glenelg North on 28 December 1836.

The first post office in Glenelg opened on 5 December 1849; the first postmaster was John McDonald of the St Leonard's Inn.

A telegraph office was opened in September 1859 and the two offices amalgamated in 1868.

The present post office building on Moseley Square was built in 1912.

The sale of the surveyed lots that constitute the Town of Glenelg was quite remarkable: the right to purchase, at £1 per "town acre", was allocated by means of a ballot held in February 1839.

The "winner" was a syndicate of six led by William Finke, with Osmond Gilles, his nephew John Jackson Oakden and H. R. Wigley (father of W. R. Wigley).

Among the town's earliest public buildings were the Independent (Congregational) church, opened 7 March 1848, St Peter's (Anglican) church, opened 28 March 1852 and the Pier Hotel, opened Christmas Day 1856, all the work of Henry J. Moseley, for whom Moseley Street and Moseley Square were named.

No trace of the original structures remains unfortunately.

The Corporate Town of Glenelg was proclaimed in 1855, separating local governance of the township of Glenelg from that of the West Torrens and Brighton district councils.

Construction of the Glenelg Institute, which is now the Glenelg Town Hall started in 1875.

The institute opened in 1877, with lecture rooms, a concert hall and a library.

The classical structure was designed by Edmund Wright, whose works include the Adelaide Town Hall and Adelaide General Post Office on King William Street.

The hall sits on Moseley Square, just off the beach.

The Holdfast Bay city council acquired the hall in 1887.

Today it houses a museum, a tourist information centre and restaurants.

In August 1857, construction of Glenelg's first jetty (pier) commenced; it was opened on 25 April 1859.

Costing over £31,000 to build, the structure was 381 metres (1,250 ft) long.

The pier was used not only by fishermen but also to unload cargo from ships, including a mail service operated by P&O, until Port Adelaide replaced it as Adelaide's main port.

Passengers were also able travel from the Glenelg jetty to Kangaroo Island by steamer.

A lighthouse was built in 1872 at the jetty's end, but a year later it caught fire and was cast into the sea to save the rest of the structure.

A replacement lighthouse was built in 1874, and was 12.1 metres (40 ft) tall.

Other additions included public baths, an aquarium, a police shed and a three-story kiosk with tea rooms.

The kiosk was wrecked in a storm in 1943, and the jetty was severely damaged by a freak cyclone in 1948. Most of the structure washed away and the remaining structure was deemed unsafe.

Just two weeks later, the local council began drafting plans for a new jetty and construction was completed in 1969.

The new structure was just 215 metres (705 ft) long, less than two-thirds of the length of the original jetty.

The second jetty continues to stand today, at the end of Jetty Road".

An Evening with Friends in Glenelg 

Our friend collected us from the war memorial in Glenelg as previously arranged and took us to their beautiful home a short drive away.

She noticed our sunburn immediately and warned us to be extra vigilant the following day as weather warnings had been issued advising people to stay at home or at least out of the sun if at all possible.

It was due to be an even hotter day than the one we had just experienced which apparently had peaked at 43c.

The predictions for the following day ranged from 45c to 49c.

Not a pleasant prospect at all.

We spent a wonderful evening with our Glenelg friends catching up on news about our travels, our children's studies and respective careers, hydroponic gardening and trout farming.

These friends were keen horticulturalists and had set up a sustainable hyodroponic garden and mini trout farm which had proved extraordinarily productive. 

Although I had heard of hydroponic gardening before I knew very little about the science behind it.

In fact the term our friends used was AQUAPONICS.

This is best explained in: http://groweatgather.co.uk/backyard-fish-farming/ where it states:

"If you have a greenhouse, the combination of fish culture and hydroponics (aquaponics) provides a truly symbiotic and effective technique for growing both fish and vegetables".

As the climate in South Australia is favourable all year round, our friends deduced that they did not even require a greenhouse. 

"Aquaponics is the growing of crops and fish in a closed loop system and is perhaps one of the more efficient farming methods for growing your own food.

The grow beds and tanks can be any size, shape or material, but the best material is fibreglass. It’s also scalable and can produce large amounts of food 10-20 times traditional row cropping when combined with vertical high-density gardening".

Obviously the example we saw of this in Glenelg was designed for a family of four in a medium sized garden plot but nonetheless the vertical, fibreglass structures were extremely impressive.

Tomatoes, potatoes, cauliflowers, beans, all growing in multiple layers in seemingly larger quantities than if they had been planted in the traditional manner.

"The water from the fish tank, including waste from the fish, is pumped through the grow beds, which are filled with gravel or clay balls". 

"The plants convert the ammonia from the fish effluent into nitrates and the resulting filtered water is pumped back to the fish tank.

It’s a closed system and, unlike aquaculture or hydroponics, no water is wasted".

We were all extremely impressed with the sheer quantity of food that this system of gardening was producing for them. 

They had two large chest freezers full of vegetables, trout and fruit. They clearly needed to buy very little else. It was extraordinary. 

Of course it is not surprising that one of these friends is a research scientist and they are both medically trained.

The excellent meal we were served later was all home produced through their sustainable aquaponic method. The tomatoes and peppers were particularly delicious. 

On departure we arranged to meet in Edinburgh in July 2022.

Our scientist friend was also an excellent musician and played in a bag-pipe band whenever he had the chance.

In 2012, he was one of the commonwealth pipers invited to play for the various festivities arranged for the Queen's diamond jubilee.

He was hoping to play at the Edinburgh Tattoo in 2022 and as we had never seen it ourselves, that would be the perfect time to book tickets.

Of course these plans were all made before the 2020 lockdown.

Since then both these friends have been actively involved in the fight against Covid.

One is a health care provider and as such worked on the front line for years since mid March.

The other has worked in medical research with so many others all over the world in an attempt to find a vaccine that would put an end to this pandemic sooner rather than later.

It goes without saying that we would like to thank all those everywhere like our two wonderful friends in Glenelg who went the extra mile in the fight against Covid.

I think it is true to say without any emotional coating at all, that we really cannot live without them.

The Botanical Gardens Adelaide 

https://www.botanicgardens.sa.gov.au/visit/adelaide-botanic-garden

We spent almost two hours in the life-giving air conditioned luxury of Adelaide's wonderful Central Market. 

I had never thought of air-conditioning as life-giving before but it definitely was on that day in Adelaide in South Australia.

The previous year whilst visiting the town of Bormio in the Italian alps on the borders of both Switzerland and Austria, I wondered how peasant farmers would have survived the intense winter cold of that area of Europe prior to modern central heating systems. 

Here in Adelaide I found myself wondering how the early settlers managed to survive the intense heat of regions such as these prior to the widespread use of air conditioning and electric fans. 

The Aboriginal people with their deep-seated understanding and innate respect for the natural world around them, built their cultures around the respective needs and demands of nature, so wherever they settled on this, sprawling, vast continent, they had learnt, over time, to manage it reasonably well.

But the early European settlers, came here with the intention of fully replicating life back home; they did not look to the Aboriginal people for guidance in any way, shape or form. At least not in those early days of colonisation.  

Considering they were totally unaccustomed to the intense heat and relatively harsh conditions of this very different land, I did wonder how they coped and how many of them had to perish before others realised that some level of adaptation was vital as it would be impossible to reproduce the same living conditions in this land as those back 'in the old country'.

With that thought in mind we planned our next 'sightseeing venture' on this hottest of hot days in South Australia. 

We decided that we would walk to the nearest bus stop and take a free 'circle line' bus to Adelaide's Botanical Gardens where we could take advantage of the shade from the trees and enjoy a short walk in beautiful surroundings before heading for the National Wine Centre of Australia nearby.

The bus trip through central Adelaide was very interesting as we were given the opportunity to see areas of this wonderful city which we had fully intended to explore on foot had the heat been slightly less oppressive. 

As we saw this city on a day when very few people were out and about, we wondered how busy it would be on a 'normal' day. This was clearly the Adelaide equivalent of our 'snow' days where everything in UK towns and cities comes to a standstill and people huddle at home in an attempt to stay as warm as possible. Obviously the aim here would have been to stay COOL. 

Our bus driver called out various areas of town as we approached them. Some were on our 'to visit' list which did make us feel a little sad as we realised that we would not be able to see them in person. 

We drove past what looked like the Laneways. In Adelaide's city centre, side streets are being transformed into Covent Garden style lanes with hidden bars and eateries everywhere.

We had planned to have lunch there but as all the eateries looked closed there was no point disembarking at that point. 

We were then told that we were approaching North Terrace, Adelaide’s grand tree-lined boulevard and home to the city’s most important cultural institutions. This was Adelaide's Champs Elysées.

In this boulevard was the Art Gallery of South Australia featuring a collection of more than 38,000 works spanning Australian, European, North American and Asian art. 

The South Australian Museum was nearby and that too was on our list. We had been looking forward to learning more about Australia’s natural and cultural heritage.

The Australian wildlife zoo was a short walk away apparently though we did not drive past it. We had made a point of supporting animal parks and sanctuaries in other areas we had visited so we would have done so here as well had it been possible. 

The next stop was ours. We had arrived at the Adelaide Botanical Gardens. 

We were still in Central Adelaide, in the heart of the city but once we walked in, it felt like we were in another world.

The beauty of this wonderful, natural space hit us immediately. The diversity of plants from across Australia and around the world were in evidence all around us.

We would have dearly loved to spend a few hours exploring some of the 50 hectares of magnificently maintained gardens and stunning architecture that we saw that day.

We walked in the shade of the trees for as long as we could but after a while even walking in the shade was difficult.

We noticed that the crows, ibis and pigeons were also struggling with the heat. They were standing motionless under the trees with their mouths open gasping for breath.

When we approached them they did not fly away. I had never seen anything like it. It must have been even hotter than any day we spent in the desert a few weeks before. It was certainly a day we would remember forever.