Parrots, Possums & Penguins

Thurs 8^th Dec   Adelaide – Parrots, Possums & Penguins

A slightly cooler day after the 39 C yesterday – although it’s a dry heat which seems quite manageable.  Headed off to the wine district of McLaren Vale, south of Adelaide . So many vineyards spread out across the valley.  Each winery has its own “Cellar door” where you can sample the wine they produce. We bought some “90 Mile” sparkling for Rob’s birthday tomorrow.

Onto the Fleurieu Peninsula & a quaint little town called  Willunga.  On from there to the coast at  Aldinga where we settled on the beach with our picnic. It’s a huge expanse of sand, so much so that the locals drive their cars down & set up camp for the day!

Refreshed & rested, we drove inland to Victor Harbour at the bottom of the peninsula. We were in search of penguins at Granite Island, a nature reserve across the causeway from Victor Harbour. We booked our place on the nature walk which starts at dusk (around 9 pm. )

With 5 hours to spare, we moved on to another pretty  town, Goolwa.  At Lime Café, coffee, handmade chocolates  & Roland’s life story passed a pleasant hour. He had been butler to a wealthy family in S.Ireland, residing in a Georgian pad of some substance. He couldn’t stand the grey winters so returned to his home town & set up the café. He also gave us a lesson on the local birdlife we’d been spotting all day – Galah (red chested parrots), Little Corella (a ceamy coloured parrot that flock & destroy crops) & the colourful Rainbow Lorikeets.

Driving into the Coorong – a vast expanse of marshland & scrub lying at the mouth of the River Murray & continuing eastwards for maybe 100 miles, over the bridge spanning the Murray to see where it met the sea. Apparently the river has only recently been flowing again after years of drought.

Back to Victor Harbour & fish & chips on the deserted beach (well, apart from some very well mannered seagulls. ) Then over the causeway for our nature walk. Our guide knew exactly where the penguins would be. They are the Little Penguins & only stand 30 cms tall.  We saw a baby waiting by its burrow just 2 weeks old. The parents are out at sea all day catching fish & only return after dusk. Another baby, 4 weeks old, maybe 3 times the size of the previous one. By the time they are ready to go out to sea at 7-8 weeks old, they dwarf their parents. We watched an adult pair climbing up the rocks returning to their burrow. We also saw Bushtail Possum feeding up on the cliffs.

 An unmissable experience that we will treasure.

Hello Australia!

Hello from Adelaide! We can hardly believe we are here in Ausralia, we have been planning it for so long & now it's reality.
Last night's flight was fine, we just got our heads down & got a good few hours sleep. We picked up the car, got a free upgrade, but found we had to pay an extra insurance premium to cover the $3000 excess (we weren't expecting that,) but better than ending up having to pay that much excess even if we aren't at fault. Insurance companies always have you over a barrel.
Our acommodation is good - a nice little self catering studio,with everything we need.
We set off to explore the city after a very welcome shower & change. Adelaide is a mix of older buildings, like the art gallery & museum & more modern offices & shops. We had a stroll round the central area & through the Botanical Gardens, where we saw our first parakeets enjoying the fountain.
A quiet evening in store after getting in some provisions from the Central Market & supermarket. The shops close at 5.30 unless they have a special licence to stay open till 7. The supermarkets don't sell alcohol, but the local chinese shop does!

Temples & the Arab Quarter

Checking out, we left our bags at the hotel & headed off in search of Temples! We started with the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, we were taken round by a very informative man (we didn't ask for a guide - he just appearred & offered & it was FOC!! ) He told us how it was built just 6 years ago funded by donations from Singapore's wealthy - it cost billions. The central area, housing the relic, is virtually all solid gold & the main  Buddha  statue  contains 420kg of gold! There are 10,000 mini buddha statues set in cases round all the walls. The temple is 6 floors high with a beautiful roof garden . There were monks in their saffron robes & people in deep meditation sitting in the lotus position......all just mind blowing in its splendour on one hand & serenity on the other. We were shown our Zodiac Buddhas....mine's the year of the horse & Rob's  is the snake.
We felt the need for refreshment & headed back to Raffles for a wonderful icecream - couldn't leave Singapore without this treat. It was mixed on an iced worksurface for us - yummy!
We also went & had a sneaky look in the ballroom - just gorgeous!
Refreshed, we headed for the Sri Krishnan Hindu Temple. People were making offerings of lotus flowers & incense. Not more than 100yards away was another Buddhist temple, much older this time & again thronging with people & incense. In the surrounding street, many people having their fortunes told with the use of an abacus & more incense......quite a heady experience.
We moved on to the Arab Quarter, passing the Sultan Mosque, but the public weren't allowed in as it was prayer time. We wandered up the streets, through the little stalls selling beautiful fabrics/silk, carpets, wicker ware & lacquer ware. Well, we've covered most of the world's religions today!!

We are now at Changi airport having a coffee & awaiting our onward flight to Adelaide.

Singapore - City views, Raffles & Little India

Another sultry day in the amazing city of Singapore - we seem to be coping with the heat & humidity better than anticipated. We headed off on the MRT to the Marina area. Coming up from the trains, through another huge Mall (there are so many of them, we have lost count) & into an impressive new theatre & concert complex. Outside, the marina with views across to the skyscrapers & the incredible Marina Bay Sands Hotel & Sky Park (see below).
We walked across the helix bridge to the ArtScience Museum a white masterpiece of architecture. Onward to the Skypark, passing through the integral hotel Mall (yes another one!) so huge it contained a river with rowing boats on it! The Sands complex not only has this Mall filled with designer shops but also a Casino, Ice skatin ring, Spa, 50 dining choices, its own theatre showcasing Wicked &The Lion King & a mere 2500 rooms & suites. Atop the three 200 metre towers is the world's largest infinity pool, a viewing deck & tropical gardens,complete with palm trees. We paid to go upto the viewing deck  & had the most spectacular views of the city.
Feeling that not much could top that experience (literally), we headed down to Raffles, the iconic colonial hotel,. We strolled through the courtyard & integral shops & stopped for a snack in the coffee shop. We'd hoped to partake of an icecream at the Creamery, where they apparently prepare it  Teppanyaki style, but it is closed on a Monday. 
We got talking to a wonderful old chap who was there with his son & daughter in law for his 90th birthday. He told us he was returning to Raffles after 67 years having served with the RAF in WWII as part of the liberation force in Singapore . He had been involved in the ousting of the Japanese officers who were living in Raffles.
To end the day we moved on to Little India, which we found a little disappointing after Chinatown yesterday, but the main market area was closed for cleaning today, so maybe that was why not much was happening. We did go into an interesting temple & saw a ceremony taking place & people making offerings to the statues of the goddess.
Tomorrow we leave for Adelaide, but not till 23.30 - so plenty of time to go for that icecream at Raffles!

Singapore - Botanical Gardens & Chinatown

Having woken up refreshed from a good night's sleep we had a great buffet breakfast in the hotel. It was rather strange to see rice, noodles & stir fried meat & veg being eaten by some oriental guests. Needless to say we stuck to the scrambled eggs & toast. 
We walked to the nearest MRT (mass rapid transit) station & bought a 3 day tourist ticket that allows you unlimited use of the trains & buses $8per day each (£4). The MRT is like the London underground, but clean & spacious. We took the train to the Botanical Gardens, there were a lot of  runners on their way home from completing the Singapore Marathon which took place early this morning.
The gardens were amazing, again beautifully laid out & so well maintained. Lining the paths was a whole series of decorated Christmas trees in pots, each done by a different community group, schools, businesses, embassies etc.
The highlight was the National Orchid Garden - awesome in its beauty.
We were also lucky enough to see a Malay Muslim wedding taking place in the grounds, complete with traditional musicians. So interesting  -  the clothes were very traditional, most of the local lady guests were wearing green. The groom was Italian, so there was a real mix of cultures.
We decided  to  go on to Chinatown for the end of the afternoon & evening. Quite a feast for the senses - busy street markets & shops, with " food street "area crowded with locals eating the freshly prepared wares. Market stalls filled with strange looking fruits mangosteen & durian - a huge prickly item which seems to be a local delicacy. The thorny husk is discarded to reveal a pulpy flesh.
Down Pagoda Street to the Sri Mariamman Temple - a colourful Hindu shrine & then onto a Thai restaurant that used to be an opium den until it was outlawed in 1946.

Singapore

After a long but good flight, here we are in Singapore. A pleasant 80 degrees  with a few clouds  & one heavy shower.
It's been one of the best flights we've experienced - plenty of leg room, courteous & attentive service & good food served by the most stunning stewardesses!

Our hotel room wasn't ready, as it was only 9am local time when we arrived, so we left  the cases & went to explore the city.Amazing high rise buildings. Everywhere is spotless & the roadside verges & central reservations are planted with exotic palms & colourful tropical shrubbery. There is a great sense of calm & order & yet the city is bustling with Christmas shoppers.
To get our bearings we thought we'd stroll to Orchard Road where there are shopping Malls aplenty.There must be at least 10 multi storey malls each equivalent to Meadowhall containing a range of shops from top end designers to Marks & Spencers & individual stores.. Much to Rob's delight he's found a Singapore $2 shop (= £1 ) ! The Christmas decor is spectacular.

Nothing too taxing as we have been up for 32 hours, with virtually no shut eye. It was hard to sleep on the plane because our body clocks were still on daytime mode. Anyway it's better to try to slot in with the new time zone & keep going.......I've just looked over at Rob & he's fast asleep!! Time I joined him, but not before I post these photos of what we  didn't  have for our first meal in Singapore !!




HON KEE PORRIDGE ......seemed to have frog as it's main ingredient!

This was a pudding choice -  we had no problem resisting !!

We're (nearly) on our way !

The cases are packed & under weight,  the house plants have gone to their "foster mum's ", we've washed, ironed & cleaned everything in sight & half the neighborhood have got a key, a contact list & know every last detail of our stop cocks & boiler settings...... so time to relax, have an early night & get into travel mode for our flight to Singapore tomorrow.

Thanks for all your good wishes for our adventure - we are looking forward to sharing it with you.