Day 6 - KI - The Marron Cafe, Island Pure and Seal Bay

Wednesday 20th March 2013

The weather forecast at Kingscote is apparently 30C and rain. The weather god’s weren’t listening then. I was hoping the low 20s they were forecasting a week ago would continue.  We’re awake by 4 am. There’s a tinkling of spoon against cup and soft pad of footsteps in the kitchen. The crisp rustle of a blister pack and medication being extracted. We insist on staying asleep, but the best we actually managing is some fitful dozing. By 6.20 am it’s becoming important for us to rise and prepare for departure.  Step-mum serves us up the last of our Barossa bacon on light sourdough rye toast. Hubby’s is accompanied by some eggs.

I’m somewhat anxiously watching the light levels outside. We can’t believe how late the sun rises here. I’m sure it’s not dark till after 7 at home….is it?  The natural light is needed to photograph a photo of Hubby's Dad with his mother. 

We say our goodbyes. We've had a wonderful visit and we’re determined not to leave it so long next time.  Soon enough, we are again enjoying the magical mystery tour to the airport, reassured that we are heading in the right direction by a series of recognized landmarks. 

Hubby prompts me to take some photos of the construction that I had been trying to get the other day.  At the airport it is a straight forward process to drop off the car and walk over to the departures terminal. Adelaide is a small airport and everything is in the same place.  No worries finding the Rex check in counter and we’re pleased to see there’s a scale nearby so we don’t have to hunt around to check our baggage is within the weight limits.  Yup, and we have a total of about 4 kgs to spare which will no doubt be very handy on the way home!

Bags dropped we walk the full extent of the airport to gate 10. I put down my carry on bag determined to make up for prior slackness and photograph the Welcome to Adelaide sign. 

I’m composing my photograph and a security guard emerges from total concealment behind the sign and ducks back in surprise to get out of my shot.  “You make a nice addition to the photograph” I say.  A little banter back and forth and he’s in my shot. “You’re looking for Tassie aren’t you?” “Oh no, I understand it has just left out Bass Straight”.. “.. he gives a smile and explains “It’s an origami map, so Tassie is folded up underneath.” “haha”.. It’s amazing what a lot of bother is experienced with stylized maps of this country.

It’s a walk out down the stairs (or a lift is available) into a small departure lounge where a large quarantine sign has been placed. I check it carefully then a walk out onto a marked pedestrian route around the back of our small plane.

The captain is on hand welcome each of us onto the service and we take our allocated seats in the double seat side of the plane, which is a Saab 340. Quite small.  I pay particular attention to our safety briefing, I've not flown on this sort of plane before. Our flight attendant has a long spiel to deliver and she clearly does this one a lot.  Maybe even mutters safety briefings in her sleep.

It’s a very quick 20 minutes of flying time across to Kangaroo Island.  I’m a bit chuffed to see an aerial view over Semaphore and Largs Bay and I can identify the passenger terminal at Port Adelaide. Excitement as the first glimpses of Kangaroo Island appear.  Approaching the airport the ground is pock marked and I assume it must be grazing country. The landscape overall is parched and that golden mild khaki colour typical of the Australian summer, with protection belts criss-crossing the fields in a darker richer green. In short, so far it looks much like the rest of the South Australian landscape we've been exploring this week.

I'm a tourist and not ashamed to demonstrate it by taking photos of welcome sign as we enter the terminal building. While we wait for our luggage we pop across a few strides to the Hertz rental desk for I can confidently say, the most competent and thorough walk through for car hire we’ve ever experienced. We are even shown a sample of the surface we are likely to experience on the dirt roads to emphasise the fact that it will be slippery, but we’ll be fine if we just moderate our speed. Was this lady perhaps a teacher? I didn't know such an excellent introduction and liability explanation was possible. Wow. I feel like I can trust this lady, but she doesn't expect us to.  I like that. I've far too many car hire threads on TripAdvisor to fail to examine our rental carefully and photograph any marks I find. We decide that just to be on the safe side I will go back and notify everything.  No worries, our friendly lady brings out the little card which defines fair wear and tear and explains that those things we've noted, she classes as such. None the less to make us feel comfortable, she notes them all on our car condition sheet. I feel really comfortable about our hire and what is expected of us as we drive away from the airport.  Our little Toyota Corolla Hatch fits our luggage snugly in the boot. I'm happy as a clam.

It’s probably not necessary, but we program Tommie to take us into Kingscote where we intend to pick up some supplies. I can’t resist following the signs to the sheep dairy when we come to them. Hmm. They’re not open until 12.00. Noted. I've enjoyed this little foray on the dirt anyhow.

We pull up in Kingscote to take a few photos of what we’re seeing. There’s a pleasant fenced kid’s playground and a couple of historic buildings with interpretative signage, but not a lot to detain us really and I'm keen to get into the priority sites. We find the supermarket and wander in to pick up a few supplies. We’re Aussie kids, so obviously we are therefore Weet Bix kids, the perfect brekky cereal for a good test of the local honey. I’m keen to see what those ligurian honey bees can do, so a pack of crumpets also makes it into the basket.  If memory serves it cost $5.85 for 350 grams and is generically labelled as “kangaroo island honey” rather than by floral type.

 Back on the road we've decided that we’ll head to the Marron Café for an early lunch. It’s over an hour away so the timing should be about right. Blacktop lined by dense vegetation… oh what a lucky island not to have any rabbits… then onto the dirt and I note it’s just like what Dominique at Hertz told us.

It’s pretty warm when we pull up at the Marron Café, I’m getting increasingly distressed at the level of my sun exposure, so I change into some un-glam but more sun appropriate attire.

We head on in and first of all make our way to the Marron viewing and wine tasting area. About 5 mins or so reading through the information panels about how the Marron breed and are raised and fed, then the man in attendance gets a net for us to take a closer look.  It looks delicious… haha.  That’s a family in-joke. My sister-in-law is Japanese and when she first came to Australia and my brother took her to Sydney Aquarium they were standing in front of the big aquarium with the schools of large fish swimming about.  Asked what she though of it she said in an enthusiastic tone… “they look delicious”. Not something that had ever occurred to the rest of us, but yeah… I guess they do. Especially if you’re into sashimi in a big way. Haha… but I digress.

Before we leave the viewing area we are encouraged to sample various dressings and sauces and we are given a brief run down on what to do. The lemon myrtle and aniseed myrtle is grown on the property. Mm. The Lemon Myrtle ones are really more-ish.  It’s heading on for about 12.30 and we decide we’ll head in for lunch, encouraged in that decision by our host who tells us they’re expecting a bus in a while from now so it is a good idea to get in early.  We need no further prompting. We choose a seat where the radiated heat from outside is less and make our choices.

The special is tempting but I decide I’ll take a double whammy approach in order to get as broad a sampling of the local products as possible. We will share a Warm Gourmet KI Haloumi Salad which consists of Grilled KI sheep’s Haloumi cheese, Island Kalamata olives, local mixed gourmet salad leaves, sundried tomatoes, chargrilled capsicum, cucumber, Spanish onion and Two Wheeler Aniseed salad dressing ($18).

Obviously I want to sample the marron also, so I supplement with an entrée sized Cold Natural Marron which is described as Freshly poached and chilled marron, laid on a bed of fresh fruit and salad and drizzled with our Two Wheeler Lemon Myrtle seafood sauce. ($22).

Hubby is more ambitious and chooses the Chilli and Lime Marron ($38), this is an oven baked marron with melted chilli and lime butter served with pickled vegetables and fluffy jasmine rice, washed down with a West End draught.

Evidently there is an opening on KI for a micro brewery…. Someone???? Ordered and paid for at the bar, hubby returns with a bottle of icy cold water. That’s a very good sign. Too many places in our trip have supplied water that was not particularly cold. Hubby is enjoying the views from the café and takes control of the camera to capture the elements he likes best.

Our meals were delicious and I’m pleased to note that all selections were provided with plentiful vegetable matter. We weren't going away hungry! I was particularly happy with my Cold Marron Salad. The mix of fruit and salad was a perfect compliment to the tasty marron tail.  The Two Wheeler sauce and dressing were delicious. The Haloumi salad was also very nice and I was glad we had that first. The haloumi had a lovely soft silken texture, though perhaps a little saltier than I prefer it. I’m keen to get a pack to do myself and give it a thorough testing. Hubby’s main sized marron was large and equipped with impressive claws. It was tasty, but I did prefer my own selection. Our lunch has been delightful. Definitely this is a KI must do! Finally our purchases. Our style is being massively cramped by luggage limits but we can’t resist some honey biscuits shaped like marron, one for grandson and one for us.

I've been reading through the KI book and have noted that the sheep milking starts at 2.30. Although it’s a massive backtrack, if we head back that way now, we’ll be in the right place at the right time, and we’ll have ticked off another thing up this way. I don’t want to have to come back over the next couple of days. I'm expecting the drive back to be pretty much the same as the way out, but at one point we suddenly emerge to a downhill slope and views across the landscape, testing how quick on the draw I can be for the camera.

We arrive just after two o’clock, but the milking is clearly getting underway with a quad bike herding the girls up to the milking shed. We pay $13 for tour and tasting and are directed into a dim room for a short video presentation, featured by a quirky sense of humour. We chuckle away. We always enjoy these unsophisticated presentations that clearly present the personalities of the people behind the show. Around the room leading you through the mainly self guided tour, there are hinged boards asking questions, you lift the flap to get the answer. Suitable for any age, this is a good tour for kids.  The lady who took our money is also one of the owners and she gives us a super speedy run down of much that is under the boards and tells us some charming stories of her pet sheep. They’re a special milk sheep breed and make great pets. I really loved this part of the tour. This lady is an animal lover that is clear.  The “ladies” are milked for over a decade and when they’re old they retire on the property. This our hostess tells us seems kinder as “the ladies know us and are comfortable with us”. We work our way up some stairs across a viewing window in the cheese making area where nothing much is happening at present, and down into the next room where we can watch the milking.  Our tour complete, all that remains is to make our purchases. Informed of a supplier in Sydney we are relieved of the need to manage cold souvenirs so we just get some Ravine des Casaors (the haloumi equivalent). The various cheeses are named for localities on the island. Haloumi and Manchego being names with geographical protected status. Fair enough.

Well, Island Pure didn't take very long. Less than an hour. What now? We decide to do a reccie down to Seal Bay. It’s more or less on our way and it seems we have time to get there in time to see it.  The car park is busy and there’s tour groups and a large AAT Kings bus. It’s 3.35 so we've just missed a tour. I've been really slack on the prep for this trip and I've not got a lot of detail with me about what to do or when. I'm experiencing life on the wild, spontaneous side!  We are taken in hand by a lovely lady behind the counter in the visitors centre. Totally unphased by our incompetent indecisiveness, by the time we’re done we have been slipped via silken expertise into the purchase of the Island pass for $68 and lo and behold we’re booked on the 4.15 pm guided tour, which is one of the things we can do on our pass.  We are very grateful to this lady, for reasons that will become apparent.

We've now got half an hour to kill until our tour, so Hubby goes and stows our new souvenirs and we wander slowly down to the lookout. Even when we walked into the visitors centre I was wondering what we’ll find, as everything we've seen on KI so far is much like the mainland. I walk out into the tickets only area and look out across the landscape, sheltered seats are visible.  Then I can’t resist walking along the path a little way while I wait for Hubby. Snap a photo or two. View is nice here.  

No this isn't the spectacular view... you want to visit Seal Bay yourself don't you?

I took another few steps and WOW! Look at that! Spectacular! The colours are sensational. The white sand. The beautiful water… what colour IS that? I don’t have a name for it. The lovely complement of grey vegetation against the white and water… the mosaic of sandy tracks among the vegetation.. and seemingly wilderness coast as far as the eye can see. Seal bay is truly lovely on a sunny day.  AHH!! So THIS is why you come to KI!  I can’t wait to explore further over the coming days!

We hang about at the lookout soaking up the scenery, watching the sea lions on the beach below and the large tour group down on the sand as they begin to make their way back up onto the viewing platform and make the climb back up the hill. It’s time we head back too. Hubby wants to wander down the board walk, and we go a little way just to sample… pointless really.  Waiting for our tour to start the helpful lady from the desk comes out to tell us we’re the only people on this tour. It’s been busy all day. The last group had 20 people… we on the hand with have our tour guide all to ourselves! 

We set off down the hill, still marvelling at the beauty around us and the sympathetic and high quality approach that has been taken to the infrastructure protecting this place. Our guide, Mel, meets us at the viewing platform. We’re focused on the sea lions on the sand, and then as we go to move down to the beach, Mel points out a mother and baby under the board walk beneath us. Oh wow!

Bubby

... Mum

Down on the sands we learn about the sea lions and ask questions. The sea lions suckle and snuggle, and young ones play fight. We hear about the life cycle and are given a description of the activity on and around this beach in the winter… we HAVE to come back in winter! Apparently these tours sometimes never get off the track and boardwalk area because so much is going on up in the dunes. Looking back up the hill you can see the little hidey holes where the sea lions hole up, and in the sand throughout the mosaic are the tracks the animals have left through their lolloping gait.

Suckling

As we are such a small group we have the luxury of a short mosey along the beach. One memorable fact is that locals don’t swim on the southern side of the island.  Hehe.  Yeah.  Seal and sea lion numbers are increasing rapidly. What eats seals?  That’s right. Great White Sharks.  

Cuddling

There’s a Great white breeding ground about 100km away.  So that’s incredibly close to here for a shark to pop over for a snack.  Not only that, but the water is treacherous with strong rips and so forth. It is a dangerous stretch of coast. Hanson Bay is a bit of an exception as the geography gives it a little protection, so people feel a bit more comfortable swimming there. However, swimming is mainly confined to the northern coast of the island. Seems sensible to me! Can’t say I'm keen to do more than paddle in the water anywhere along the southern coast of Australia. Too many years of having my Dad comment that you’d have to be mad! 

..and having fun

As our time nears its end Mel offers to take our photograph on the beach, taking various angles for us. We head on back. Slowly. We discuss the intelligence of the sea lions and other creatures sharing stories illustrating this. We've had a totally brilliant time. We are SO grateful to the lady who encouraged us to sign up now while we’re here today, and Mel who has been a wonderful, knowledgeable guide.  We have loved Seal Bay. 

By now of course, it’s 5 o'clock  Time to be getting to our accommodation. We take our time, not driving overly quick. I'm beginning to get concerned about the approaching dusk period, but we think it’s probably a bit early yet and the weather is warm. We've been advised that the cooler the weather the higher the chance that the nocturnal animals will be about early, so we’re averaging about 80 kph as we approach Vivonne Bay where we stop and fill up the car. No petrol where we’re heading according to our map.

We ease up on the speed as the sun sinks and we head further into the bushland areas. 60 kph is more than quick enough in any national park or animal infested area. 50 kph is the max advised on the dirt.  We didn't come to KI to kill the wildlife and we've passed a lot of road kill today, so the odds are clearly not in our favour if we take a chance on the speed.

We arrive at the Hanson Bay Koala walk and visitors centre just after 6 o'clock  We've already seen kangaroos in a nearby paddock and a wallaby by the road. I'm keen as mustard for the wildlife viewing and enquire about availability on the nocturnal tour tonight. We’re booked in for tomorrow. Hubby looks alarmed. Oh. Yeah. I guess we've had a long day.. but he’s more concerned about dinner…. I say what?  You want to get dinner somewhere? Really?  Aren't you still pretty full from lunch? I do as instructed and our assistant goes off to book us in for dinner at the Wilderness Retreat down the road a bit for 7.30.  We buy some local milk. Phew. Local milk. At the petrol station at Vivonne Bay it was a yucky import that includes permeate… eeewwwh.

The view from our Cabin

So, now we have a commitment. I was looking forward to just chilling with the views at the cabin as the sun set.. oh well.  Creeping along at 40 kph or 50 max, it takes us a while to get to cabin, unpack, change shirt and shoes and get back on the road. Glad we took the extra kms on our rental for $20 a day to get unlimited.  We’re doing about 50 – 60 kph when a wallaby leaps out onto the road. STOP!!! I scream. Brakes applied. (never swerve) we stop just in time. Thank god we weren't going any faster! Our cute, and rare little friend hops away to join a friend who is just under cover off the road. That was a close one. We creep on to the Wilderness retreat, going even slower now – 40 kph is enough surely. We settle in to dinner.  I photograph but forget to write down the descriptions. I’m pretty tired. However I have pork belly with scallops and pomegranate something or other for entrée 

Followed by King George whiting with kumara and scallops.. 

Hubby had grilled asparagus with Pure (haloumi) and mushrooms 

Followed by linguine with seafood.  

Several of the options on the menu were not available as “the truck” had not arrived.  We skipped on dessert. Our total meal including a Cooper’s for Hubby was about $113. As we dined a wallaby or two hopped around in the central courtyard area which is large and bushy and replete with picnic tables.  Guests staying in the surrounding units stalked the wallabies with long lensed cameras.

Our food was nice. Right style for the price but execution was a little lacking. My pork belly was the winner for me, that was very good. Unfortunately my whiting was overcooked, and a couple of the pieces of my kumara where undercooked. Hubby’s linguine was a little too oily at the end. Not enough to ruin our meal, but enough to have me feel it was expensive for what we got. Predictable in a remote location and I guess not unreasonable.

We creep slowly back to our cabin, averaging about 40 kph. Wallabies and brush tailed possums around and a lizard caught in the headlights scurries quickly away into the scrub. On the road into the cabin I was obliged to hop out and try to photograph a wallaby before it got the message and moved off the track.  

We head inside to the cabin as a brushie (brush tailed possum) stalks across the verandah. It’s after the watermelon the family next door have left out for it.  Not much moon tonight, a few stars through scattered cloud. Orion is overhead.  We head more or less straight to bed. Shower considered. Rainwater situation considered. Shower reconsidered. We’ll skip it. Off to sleep about 9.30.

What a fantastic day!  

Day 5 - Barossa Valley

Ah.. I sleep in.  How pleasant. I’m irrevocably awake by 6.30ish so get busy with doing a few reviews on Tripadvisor quietly as Hubby snores. I have a strict policy for this trip that I will not wake him up. If he’s sleeping that’s first order of business.  By after 8 oclock I’m making a lot less effort to be quiet.  We’re supposed to be heading out to the Barossa Valley with Step-mum today.  Awake at last Hubby gave her a call to check she’s feeling well enough. We clean up and pack up and hit the road. Just cereal for brekky and a slice of toast. The bacon and sausages, eggs and tomatoes remain in the fridge untouched.  It’s just how it worked out.

It is lovely weather today. Cool and clear and a slight breeze. I’m beginning to feel a bit smug about the choice of late March for this trip.  Fingers crossed the cool weather continues.  Not having been in a hurry it’s about 9.40 before we’re away.  As we near the Heysen Tunnel I realize I should have had the camera out ready.. we’ll see if I’m quick enough on the draw to get a picture of Adelaide’s only tunnels.

Not long after we’re coming down a hill and find a large and attractive water feature at a major intersection. It appears to have been constructed to beautify an otherwise unsightly sound protection wall around a housing (?) development.  Nice one.

There’s so much to enjoy along the hour long drive out to Paralowie. Fullarton Road presents us with long avenues of beautiful mature native trees.  These beautiful trees are the first glory of Adelaide. Everywhere we go there are flowering eucalypts of various sorts, and the birds appreciate it. Flowering mallee, mugga ironbark with their beautiful pink blossoms.  Pretty soon we are remarking our appreciation of the wonderful heritage grand stand at Victoria Park.  We missed the entrance to the ample parking on the eastern side of the ground and on the western side there’s absolutely nowhere to park, so I have to settle for memories rather than illustrations, but what a treasure.  Oh well I guess we’re in a bit of a hurry now anyway. 

The Heritage beauties continue along East Terrace.  The abundance of heritage buildings is the other glory of Adelaide.  I guess it’s a mixed blessing but in one sense Adelaide is lucky not to have grown in the way that Sydney and Melbourne have done. Once upon a time these cities too would have had buildings of this sort, but they've been removed in favour of high rise development, creating cities of quite a different character.

With our wits about us we identify the impressive building we photographed the other day – it is the National Wine Centre. The russet ribs and modern design look perfect with the native trees around. It’s a building that looks comfortable in its landscape.  Why is it that buildings related to the wine industry are so well done 99% of the time. Is it the money in the industry as a whole? I guess so, but there’s a spirit about them. Perhaps a connectedness to the land and the landscape.  At any rate we pass by full of admiration for a beautiful modern structure.

Closer on to our interim destination we pull up at the lights and Hubby points out the playground in Jarvis Ford. That’s a thoughtful touch. A good idea on a big road like this. You wouldn't want to get distracted and have the kids run out onto the road.  Hey… look at that.  There’s a tiny little car in the most prominent position on the lot. It’s a very ordinary looking car.. and I mean that in the Aussie sense, meaning not real great. Perhaps it’s even 2^nd hand by the style of it. Across the windscreen it has a huge banner. $29,888. That’s a lot of money for a tiny, and dare I say dull looking, car. We can’t quite see the maker’s badge on the bonnet.  What on earth can it be? We toy with digging out the binoculars but the lights change and we’re off.. I tell you what that car would need to go like the clappers to be worth that sort of money.

The Main North Road has a treat in store. A special pressie for me.  Oh how I love those mallees with the shiny brown bark. Every time I venture into areas where these trees grow I never stop marvelling at their glossy beauty.  I don’t really get why you don’t see more of them in people’s gardens. They are just gorgeous. They can never replace the Sydney Red Gum in my heart, but by golly they come close.

We pull up at Step-mum’s and she’s all ready to go. Coming out to get in the car before we’re even out of the car.  We’ve been looking forward to this day.  First stop Nuriootpa, just a quick spin and we head across to Angaston to see where Step-mum grew up. Her childhood home is currently for sale, and has been operating as the accommodation cottage, Precious Memories.  

We circle in a rather shark like fashion prowling for photo opportunities. We’d always meant to stay there one day, but it looks like the opportunity has passed.  Like Warrawong Sanctuary. We mucked around too long on that one too and missed it by just a few weeks. Oh well. You can’t do everything. It’s our plan to eat in Angaston but it’s early still so we just wander about fairly aimlessly, noting the schools and hearing stories about family and friends. Or the time that Step-mum ran into a bull on the way to school. Gawler Park Road was dirt in those days. Back in Angaston the interesting blue heritage plaques on the buildings provide helpful memory joggers for Step-mum as she tells us about her youth and first places of employment. 

So where shall we eat? A large venue across the road is making some extravagant claims. Best Pizza in Australia no less.  Step-mum backs them up… that’s true, they won competitions and everything.  Really?  This seems like something we should look at more closely.  It looks busy too. That’s a good sign. We decide to head on over.  It’s quite exxy by the looks. Ah, what the heck. We’ll make this the main meal today.  A young woman who just oozes efficiency and wears a label informing us that she is a “responsible person”, shows us to our table and explains the ordering system. We go and order at the counter when we've made our choice.  Hubby, who has been craving schnitzel of some sort for days now, goes for the Chicken Breast Schnitzel served with chips and topped with 40’s Deluxe grilled topping: tomato concasse, bacon, avocado, sun dried tomato, grilled cheese, herbs and cracked pepper $25.  This is to be washed down by a chocolate thick shake $5.50. 

I’ve been drawn in by the award winning pizza so I decide to go for the most awarded one on the menu. The Smokey. 9” for $24 It consists of thin based pizza with tomato sauce, cheese, mettwurst, Lachsschinken (don’t ask me what that is!), shallots, smoked feta, Schultz Butcher (a local icon) Mallee Gum Smoked Pork Belly and smoked chicken. This pizza won best gourmet smallgoods pizza in South Australia in 2008 & 2009 also Winner of best pizza in Australia in 2008 & 2009. I decide to reward them for including Spiders on the menu by ordering a raspberry one -$6.50.  

Step-mum goes for the Salt and Pepper Squid served on a light rocket and parmesan salad drizzled with garlic aioli.

Our drinks and meals arrive in a reasonable time and they look sensational. Smell sensational too. Both delicious. The pizza, as you can imagine given the description, is quite rich and strongly flavoured. It needs a nice salad or something to refresh the palette so I am glad we decided to share things.  The Chicken schnitzel is lovely and the chips are great.  You’d think that chips should be something that’s easy to get right, but they really aren't.  These ones at the Roaring 40s Café are really rather superior. All in all it’s a very satisfying meal, though not cheap. I can’t see us needing too much for dinner tonight.  I am slightly puzzled by the blue lights under the floor as we leave. What are they for?  Just decor?  Hmm. That's different.

We do a little more moseying up the street and walk back down past the Sunrise Bakery. 

We wander in to see what’s on offer, though I don’t recall being overly impressed with this lot last time I was here.  Hubby opts for another Kitchener bun along with a vanilla slice.  Pink icing on the vanilla slice. Hmmm. Why is it I feel that this is not a good sign?  We are off and head a little further along the road. Oh, that’s right D & M’s Café Bakery claims that they have the BEST vanilla slice in the Barossa Valley.  That’s too good a challenge for Hubby to pass on by. In we go. He claims a sample while I head outside to take care of provenance. 

We wander back to the car and stow our treasures in the chilled compartment of the car. These new Camry’s have the centre console chilled by the air conditioning, a feature I can only imagine will become highly sought after… though the automatic locking us into the car all the time is giving us the shits in a fairly major way…. But I digress.

Where to now? We do some more fairly aimless wandering. Over to Greenock, through Seppeltsfield, down dirt roads, round in circles, this way and that admiring the scenery and not really doing it justice on the photograph front, but then we’re not really trying very hard today.

Eventually as the driver starts to show symptons of needing a stop revive survive, we pass the sign for the turn off to Maggie Beer’s Farm Shop and I suddenly think with my best Homer Simpson subconscious voice…. Mmmm Rosemary and verjuice biscuits… mmmm  I snap out of this trancelike meditation quickly in order to instruct my driver to turn around. To Maggie Beer’s it is.

We wander down Pheasant Farm Lane and park. It’s not very busy and I excitedly wander in. The carpark gives no indication of the lovely setting out on the verandah overlooking what I must call the turtle lake.  I wander through the sample room tryng this and that resisting temptation for multiple purchases due to luggage weight.  Gosh it’s a pain in the bottom not having our own car here so we can just drive our trophies home. Everywhere we go its not “how much does it cost” but “how much does it weigh?” Never mind. Hubby is busily ordering a coffee and I opt for a freshly pressed pear and apple juice.  Hubby pranks me from my Raspberry and Pomegranite jam reverie when our beverages arrive. I have to tell you honestly that sitting in the cool shade overlooking the green lake as a gentle breeze caresses is far from unpleasant. 

Hubby pronounces his coffee is “lovely” and my juice is not bad. Not quite as delicious as the similar item I had at the Appleseed Café in Strath though.

The turtles in the lake are an inspiration. Hubby and Step-mum contemplate the superior aspects of a turtle’s existence here and find that it really seems to have some advantages over the human approach. Generally speaking they move through the water in a rather chilled out way. Never mind using two feet to paddle, surely the occasional swipe with one leg is ample to get you going, and really, where is there to go? All that’s necessary is to loiter here with your friends awaiting the inevitable generosity of the humans above. expectant noses protruding above the water.  Clearly, romance is an active part of a turtle’s life. Plenty of partners to choose from here and the numbers in this colony and range of sizes seem to confirm that the circle of life is not confined to Disney movies.

As the music swells, I leave my companions to their green eyed contemplation and head on in to acquire said Rosemary and Verjuice biscuits.  Hubby catches up and has an agenda of his own. Maggie Beer ice cream anyone?  I resist. We still have the indulgences in the car to get through yet.  Well… I resist for a few moments. Hubby has selected Vanilla Bean and Elderflower and the Strawberries and Cream.  The sight of the pack lets loose a demon I thought I had caged some time ago…. The voice takes control…. Mmmmm Burnt Fig, Honeycomb and Caramel ice cream…..mmmm..  Meanwhile, Step-mum has succumbed to some pate which the staff are helpfully wrapping in ice for the journey. .. Not to be distracted I call for directions. … “Hubby? Where did you get the ice cream?” Sure enough there is twice as much space allocated in the freezer to the burnt fig variety… oh how does that not surprise me. That stuff should come with a warning. Sigh. Thank god the portions are quite small.

After a brief session of turning this way and that Step-mum directs us home via lovely Tanunda, and as if today has not been gratifying enough we pass once more the beautiful mallee trees. It’s just as well we are leaving Adelaide in the morning. Much longer and I am in serious danger of becoming a mallee bark bore.

Home once more, and yes, past avenues of pink flowering Mugga Ironbark with their black fissured trunks and grey leaves, the trilling screeches of lorikeets abroad on the air, my unpacking of the luggage is delayed by my admiration of some musk lorikeets feeding on the blossoms above our heads. 

I decide to strike decisively and get the chores out of the way, repacking my gear to put the dessert set in my hand luggage. That done I join Hubby and Step-mum outside where it is clear that sampling of Kitchener bun has commenced. My portion is waiting unloved on the table. I can see from the dissection that this is not to the standard of Otto’s in Hahndorf, but it is OK.  Now, I extract a vanilla slice and cut it in three.  Stop. Not that one. Instructs hubby. Do the other one first.  You’ve cut the “BEST” one.  I repeat my surgical skills on the pink iced article. I bravely go first. … chew… chew… oooh yuck. This is NOT good. Where can I dispose of this monstrosity? I wander down to the ant colony down the pack. Pressie fellas! I return.  Never buy a vanilla slice with pink icing.  This I somehow knew.  So. How about this next one. To be honest I already have a pretty good idea that the claims of its creators are not ill-founded. On slicing, the pastry was tender and the custard light and fluffy.  Mmm. Yep. May I suggest to all that if you’re after a truly superior vanilla slice, you will go a long way before you get a better one than those they peddle at D & M Café in Angaston… or Otto’s in Hahndorf.  They are almost identical actually.

I round off my health conscious dinner with some left over grapes.  Which brings me to my grumpy old woman issue.  Why are sultana grapes so hard to find in Sydney but virtually every stall at the Adelaide Central Markets seems to know they are twice as good as any other grape??? Huh?? Huh?? What’s going on with that? I can only hope and pray that my local greengrocer never gets taken over by someone who does not understand this essential grape fact.

With that we settle down to a quiet evening of what must be my favourite TV show. Who Do You Think You Are? Journalling is also an essential task this evening as we have an early start tomorrow. 

Day 4 - Lazy. Hahndorf, Mount Lofty Summit and Handbag Trauma

Monday 18th March

I journal and we laze around in the cosy bed until nearly 9.30. We decide to skip the cooked brekkie this morning and have it for dinner perhaps, when a lot of things aren’t open in Hahndorf.  It is delightful sitting snuggled up in bed journalling and enjoying the morning light through the trees outside. 

Amble at Hahndorf is so cosy and the attention to detail is truly impressive. Among the plentiful pillows are a variety of different sorts, big fluffy soft (good for cuddling), narrower firmer ones (good for resting the notebook on my lap!) and an extra one in between (good for leaning on sitting in bed).  

It’s a struggle but I drag myself away from the blogging and head off to complete my ablutions now that Hubby has finished his coffee and shower.  Another luxury a good shower head.  I dry myself and rub the towel vigorously over my head emerging severely tousled to dress ready for an exploration of the town. So, brush…. Um… where is my handbag?  Uh oh. Oh no! I’ve left my handbag in The White House when we left last night and they are closed for the next two days. …and I can’t even go out anywhere as I don’t have a brush and my hair is beyond fingertip repair.  My knight in shining armour brings his steed to a hasty stop.  He searches the car. Nope.  Not there. I knew it.  He leaves a message for the restaurant and heads down to Hahndorf to hunt for a way to contact the restaurateurs and failing all else, to buy me a brush!  I am 100% confident we will get the handbag bag and all contents intact. What really worries me is whether that will be possible before we fly out to Kangaroo Island. Well, nothing for this forgetful medusa to do but settle back in and wait and take the opportunity for some blogging.  It’s an ill wind….

Hubby eventually arrives back with a brush, and the demon is tamed.  I’m well obsessed with inserting photographs by this stage and being a morning person, I get a bit entrenched in to the pattern of a day by the activities of the morning. None the less having inserted the last of the photos for the day I press publish and determine that I must cease obsessing about the darn bag and get out and do something.

We walk down into Hahndorf and do a circuit of the main street. Ah, there is the White House.

A stop to look at some clocks and Hubby is carefully checking out menus as we pass. He’s keen to have a German meal at some stage, but neither of us is hungry at the moment.  Having walked up and down and enjoyed the first beginnings of autumn colour on the trees, we decide that nothing will make the phone ring more quickly than leaving Hahndorf and heading somewhere else. Preferably somewhere with no phone reception, people are sure to ring then.  We decide we’ll head up to Mt Lofty.  First of all darling Tommie takes us the lower entrance to the Botanic Gardens. The signage warns of steep slopes and dangers for walkers. It’s 3pm by now. The gates close at 4pm. I check out the map provided.  Hmm. I think Mount Lofty summit is really what we require.  Back on the road, past the roadwork that is now packing up for the day. It’s not long before we are passing Mt Lofty House with it’s views over the countryside and pulling up in a nice parking spot at the summit.

We toy with maybe seeing if dinner is a possibility up here, but they have a function tonight so that is that one sorted. As I wait for Hubby and photograph the visitor centre, I hear my phone ring. It's in the manbag.  Hubby misses it, but delivers it. Yes. Sure enough the friendly young woman from The White House has my handbag and when we get back to Hahndorf just give them a call and we’ll meet up. Phew. Phew and double triple phew!!

We take our time enjoying the views which read beyond a curving river mouth and right along the coast. Such a broad panorama can't be done justice in a still photograph so I take what will no doubt be yet another appalling video taken by yours truly. As I reach the end of the view, a beautiful young jenny wren poses for a photograph. 

As I watch her flit back across the garden a flash of black and white flies past. I assume it’s something like a New Holland Honeyeater, but wait. No. It’s a male robin. He poses patiently on a branch, turning this way and that while I fiddle about with zoom in the hope of getting a good clear shot.  Awesome. You don’t see robins like that every day.

Into the gift shop for a bit of a look before we head back to be reunited with my beloved handbag.  It really is beloved. I bought it to go to Europe and it has lots of pickpocket resistant features, stacks of compartments, zips inside zips, and best of all it has an outside pocket that is the perfect size for either my phone or a notebook. I love that bag so much I bought two spares to keep in the cupboard for when this one wears out!! None the less, I cannot spare this bag or my purse and credit cards etc that are held within.

Eureka!! The gift shop sells Lothlorien possum merino gloves and beanies. I lost one of my possum gloves at Villers Bretonneux. I must replace the pair and buy a beanie before heading to NZ in winter.  Hubby will need gloves and a beanie too.  Here is as good a place as any.  I can’t resist a nice little pair of gloves for grandson. Then I just need to scheme some nice cold day trips to take him on!

We pause briefly to fossick up some change for the conservation money spinner. Beautifully decorated.

Purchases completed we head back for a rendezvous to claim the bag and by now, having become hungry, we make a stop at Otto’s Bakery. It’s popular on TripAdvisor so I decide to check it out.  I’ll try a Kitchener bun. Having initially hesitated Hubby goes bezerk. A chunky beef and potato pie, vanilla slice and a custard tart.  Well. I don’t like our chances of being hungry at dinner time after a “snack” like that after 4pm!

We retire to Wren Cottage and indulge.  Mmmm Kitchener bun is like a cross between a jam donut and a cream bun. Fresh cream. Mmm. It’s huge, ample to share between us. Glad we’re eating here where we have a nice sharp knife for the task.  That was yum. I carefully cut the vanilla slice in half. Ooh that’s a good vanilla slice too.  “Award winning” says hubby. “That’s why I got it.”  “Nice work there dear.”

So, says Hubby, do you want some custard tart?  “I’ll wait and check it out after you bit it. It’s looking pretty industrial at the moment.”  Hubby takes a bite.. Yeah.. It is.  I give it a miss. I’m especially fussy with custard tarts. It’s just not good enough if it’s not baked egg custard filling.

So, the new stuff out of the way, time to polish off some market morsels.  We have a little bit of skordalia left and of course the baba ganoush, as well as some hard and unappetizing stale Turkish bread. Hmm. Never mind we’ll try toasting it.  That does the trick and we get a good way through our dips and polish off the remaining debrecziner.  A glass of local orange juice. Excellent. Hubby decides maybe a German meal isn’t so necessary after all.  Our hosts have recommended we drive over to Verdun pub for dinner tonight. Hubby wasn’t keen, but I’m quite curious, not withstanding the bacon, eggs, tomatoes and sausages and left overs we have in the fridge. 

Fatigue wins out and Hubby naps. We have a chilled evening and "scrape" for dinner. That is we eat the various bits and pieces we have hanging around. A good night wander on the roof by a local ring tailed possum, or so our info book tells us and we are off to the land of nod.

Day 3 - The Cedars and Strathalbyn, Dinner at the White House Hahndorf

Sunday 17th March 

I woke at about 6 am. I’ve got a headache. Is it too much sun or sinus or fatigue? Step-mum supplies Panadol and comments that allergies are notorious in Adelaide and she never suffered until she moved back here.  I journal until almost 8am feeling the pressure of the need to hit to the road. Bacon for brekky today. Better make a move.

Despite our protests that she has been ill and can’t even have any, Step-mum cooks our breakfast of bacon and rye toast for me and bacon and eggs and rye toast for Hubby.  While Step-mum is busy I pack up our gear. Glad I showered last night. That will save time this morning. We eat outside under the covered area as Step-mum tells us about the time when she set her grill on fire cooking pork crackling. The smoke alarm going bezerk all the while. Hence she now pan cooks the bacon although usually she would have grilled it.  That grill is just off limits. A tasty brekky out of the way, Hubby directs me to get the tripod and we take some group shots before we hit the road. First grouped around the table and then we move across to a position where we will capture some of Step-mums bird ornaments as part of the group.

While it would be nice to hang around, we’re also quite keen to get today’s business out of the way. High on our list of things to do is a visit to The Cedars. We head for the hills as I investigate our options. Internet access on the phone is invaluable.  Sure enough, I find that I have scheduled The Cedars today for a reason – it is not open tomorrow! Departing Paralowie at about 9:15 it’s not long before we’re passing through Walkerville and admiring the beautiful stone buildings. I particularly like the ones made of dark stone with white iron lace. Beautiful.  One of these days I must hunt down the route we took by taxi the first time I came to Adelaide for work. We drove past beautiful rows of stone cottages where the street plantings were lovely low growing mallee trees underplanted with native grasses. Unique and so special.  Somewhere along our route we pass a striking modern building. Stopped at the lights briefly Hubby snaps a super quick photo out the driver’s window.

We make a turn to the east and drive down streets mainly planted with Jacarandas that must make a lovely show when they are in flower.

As we begin our climb into the Hills we hit a long section where the left hand lane is closed and the speed is limited to 40 km per hour due to a bike event in progress today. Hubby is surprised at the name of the Heysen Tunnel. I guess it seems a little incongruous to name such a modern piece of engineering after an artist so famous for his appreciation of the natural landscape, but such is Heysen's standing here.

It feels like no time before we are being welcomed to Hahndorf and come to a sign directing us to the Cedars. I kill the Tom Tom and we find the property without any difficulty.  Just a couple of cars already in the car park at 10.15. The air is cool and crisp and I hunt out my jacket. It’s quite nippy today. Only forecast as 22C even in Adelaide.  There’s a lovely fresh bushland scent in the air.

We make our way slowly into the gift shop,  We pay our $10 each for an unlimited visit to a charismatic elderly lady on the sales desk and as we have 40 minutes to kill until the first tour of the day we head out to explore some of the walks around the property momentarily delayed by a beautiful patch of flowering bulbs.

The walks feature green pedestals that you open to see a painting that Heysen painted from that spot along with some related information. There’s 12 around the property. We skip the first we come to as we’ve been told the tour will stop at that one.

The Cedars plays host to a biennial Sculpture Symposium and installations from the 2012 event remain around the property and add interest to the landscape (The next is in April 2014).  A contemplative figure complements the Studio. 

Hubby seems particularly interested in them and gives each one a close examination.  The standard composition out of the way I try to capture some images that will give me different options for placement in the book.. move a little so that the studio has a bigger gap in the image from the sculpture.. maybe a two page spread for this shot? Who knows.  

I head on to the Shady Pool where Heysen painted cattle drinking surrounded by stands of Candlebark gums. I try to identify any remaining trees but it seems that those here now are different from those a century ago.  This detracts nothing from the grandeur of the gums. 

A couple of sculptures remain. After a long hot summer the pool is almost dry. The ground is heavily mulched with a large amount of shed bark which I presume must burn quite well!  There is abundant bird song at this spot. We head on down a flattened track where it seems plenty of others have gone before although it is narrow and not terribly official looking.  The route becomes narrower and we become less and less inclined to follow it. Turning we find a lovely angle on a stand of Candlebarks. Glorious white trunks and gnarley twisted branches. What magnificent trees, no wonder Heysen loved trees. I am sure that there is nowhere on earth with more characterful trees than Australia.  I can so understand how indigenous peoples came to believe that the spirits of their Ancestors live on in the landscape and local flora and fauna. It seems such a natural assumption.

We’ve spent quite a lot of our available time already. Hubby decides to head back for the tour and a preparatory use of the facilities. Agreeing to meet at the gift shop I am left to continue exploring. However I am delayed by the birds. There are so many.  Fairy wrens. I assume they must be Superb Fairy Wrens given some of the signage around the area. Thornbills are piping quietly in the shrubs. I test the camera’s zoom. I am quite encouraged in having a go at getting birds since I managed to get a great photograph of a Linnet in England with our old camera.  I’m busily trying to take a portrait of the tiny thornbills when a great flash of yellow captures my attention. ?? What is that? A robin or something? Black and white on the throat. A mature male golden whistler! Awesome. He perches in clear view, but he’s moving regularly making photography difficult.  He’s not calling. He would be easier to photograph when trying to attract a mate. No luck with the whistler.  Next a grey fantail makes an appearance. Fantails rarely sit still and this one is busily hunting capturing insects on the wing. Alighting briefly on an old weathered trunk of a fallen tree. The tiny thornbills are moving around me and I go back on the hunt.  A sweet little face peeks out from among a dense cluster of leaves. It’s hard to see in the screen it’s so tiny but I press the shutter quickly before the bird moves on.  

Time is really getting short now so I drag myself away. As I turn back towards the gift shop, I notice Hubby heading in the opposite direction over the crest of the hill in the distance.  “Where are you going? Hubby?”  “To find you!” Just as well I spotted him, he wasn’t going to find me down there. I head on and he turns back and when we catch up I explain that I never made it away from the Shady Pool as I was enjoying the birds. J

We browse the gift shop while we wait for our tour to commence. Our guide is Ron and we are starting as a group of twelve.  Questions are welcome. We hear about Heyson’s early life and that a group of Adelaide business men recognized his talent and gave him 400 pounds to go to Europe to study.  He was away 4 years and as he studied he painted obviously and he sent paintings back to his sponsors to sell. They recouped their investment many times over. Careful financial management enabled Heysen to stay away studying for 4 years. Moving from country to country over that period. Meanwhile his name was becoming known at home. He returned and lived in Hahndorf, A successful exhibition in Melbourne in 1912 made him 1500 pounds and he bought The Cedars along with 36 acres outright.  Over the years he bought up more land and the property grew to the current 150 acres.  The property is owned by 4 of Heysen’s grandchildren.

Outside the studio we learn that Heysen had the studio built by a local builder, bluestone base (now disguised by an ample layer of local dust) and the lighter stone above, roof tiles from Marseille brought as ballast in ships and not the luxury item one may have assumed.

In the studio there is a huge window providing the diffused light that minimizes shadow.  The building is clearly very well constructed. In a display case over to the side Heysen’s artist equipment is on display.  We admire the various art works on display including many images of the local farmer Collins who was paid a bob a day for posing. He’s a bit of a “where’s wally” in Heysen’s paintings. 
Heysen made friends in the art world, which was mainly based in Sydney and Melbourne. One friend was Lionel Lindsay brother of Norman Lindsay who is credited with having viewed a painting done in 1907 which is still in the studio and commented to Heysen that he painted like a European. He was, of course, referring the light and the colour pallet.  The following year, example another large oil on display, see the difference in Heysen’s representation of the landscape.

A portfolio is then accessed and a collection of prints is used to illustrate a talk about the artist and his work. Although well known for his landscapes, Heysen was also a master at the still life. Several examples are shown and they are magnificent.  Heysen was prolific, and produced about 10,000 art works! He was capable of churning out a magnificent still life in three days. Looking at the glorious work, it’s hard to believe. Three days!

A note chimes. This is a hurry up from the lady up in the gift shop. Ron is a fount of information and clearly passionate about the subject matter.  He’s a great guide.  We tear ourselves away and head for the house.  We enter through a lovely verandah area which although it looks like it could have been furnished just yesterday in terms of style, has been presented as it would have been at the time this extension to the house was built.  Wicker chairs and pot plants. We head inside and move from room to room admiring the original art works and hearing stories of Heysen’s life. Visits from celebrities, Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, Anna Pavlova for example. Pavlova famously wanted to buy the picture above the fireplace. A magnificent still life of zinnias and grapes.  Heysen was steadfast and would not sell this family piece despite being offered a blank cheque. He did agree to paint her another and sent it to her in London, but she did not think it as good as the one she really wanted and she sent it back. Heysen returned her cheque and the painting was sold elsewhere. It turned up when some people on a tour of the Cedars said they had bought that painting at Auction and photographs of Nora Heysen viewing it in Sydney are passed around. Some of us agree that it is not as good as the one hanging above the fireplace. The composition is not as good.

We admire various portraits of Sallie Heysen. LOL most of them she didn’t like, and they have been brought out after her death.  One of the stand out glories of the house, although it currently on display in Canberra for an exhibition of work painted in 1913 is of Sallie sewing at the window.  The place where this scene was created is in the area which became Nora Heysen’s studio in later years and the sewing machine and chair are still there by the window.  No indoor photography allowed!

One of the portraits Sallie didn’t like, but Hans did was done by E Phillips Fox. It is unsigned.  Sallie sat for the portrait around the time of the successful exhibition in Melbourne.

Perhaps the most famous of Heysen’s paintings, Droving into the Light was originally rejected when he took it and other major works to Melbourne for sale. That was during the first world war and a German ancestry wasn’t going to do a person any good, no matter how long their residence in Australia or their commitment to this country. He was devastated and puzzled by this sudden exclusion. However it turned out for the best in the end, because he later added an additional huge redgum to the landscape and sold it, like many another major work, to a West Australian magnate.

It is with great reluctance that Ron draws the tour to a close and we bid farewell, we are well over time and apparently there is room we have missed, but that means we will just need to come again.  On our way out we pause to view the original “pumpkins and onions” hanging in the kitchen. Wonderful. I didn’t realize Hans Heysen, winner of no less than 9 Wynne Prizes was such a master of the still life!

We say our thanks and farewells to Ron and head up to the gift shop and Nora’s Studio. Nora was the first woman to win the Archibald Prize and the first female official war artist. On display are some beautiful drawings of various military images. Lots of nurses, one of surgery in progress and another of a fellow with a bulldozer who cleared a path for the troops while under fire from the Japanese.  They are awesome and I would love prints of some of them, but they are not available. Apparently the Australian War Memorial has a huge collection, but it seems unlikely they have prints either as you would think that if prints were available at all, they’d have some for sale here at the Cedars.  Nora Heysen lived and worked in Hunters Hill in Sydney for decades. There’s an agreement between The Cedars and Hunters Hill council to promote this fact. I wonder if her residence is a museum. The value of property in Hunters Hill by the time of her death seems to make that rather unlikely methinks.

One truly shocking thing we learned. Although Hans Heysen was such a well known and successful artist there were some who seemed to resent him in the local area. As we walk to the car, having spent a lengthy time in the gift shop browsing, Hubby tells me a sad story he read in the book by one of Heysen’s daughters.  Heysen had a favourite red gum he loved to paint. He painted it over and over again. One local worthy got sick of the sight of Heysen sitting painting that tree and arranged to have it cut down. What an act of total bastardry. It’s almost unfathomable.

We still have plenty to see at The Cedars (named for the large Himalayan Cedars planted about 40 years before Heysen purchased the property) but we will save it for another day. It’s after 12.30 now and we need lunch and to get over to Strathalbyn for our next priority for the day.

Where to lunch? We take a spin into Hahndorf and, not surprisingly, find it is very busy. It’s only half an hour to Strathalbyn or Strath as it is known locally, so we decide to take our chances there.  The main street is full, so we park around the corner, still only a very short walk.  As we did a run down the main drag I noticed a café that seemed busy, so I lead the way there. It is the Appleseed Café.

We wander in and are provided with menus, pointed in the direction of a free table, being bang on lunch time there isn’t many and we feel lucky there is one available. We make our choices and Michael heads up to the counter to order. 

He goes for the Crab and Prawn Linguine $13.50, so I choose the Twice baked cheese soufflé with pear, walnut and rocket salad$9.50.  Drinks: Michael chocolate thickshake $6; Me: fresh apple and pear juice $6.50.  We chat as we wait, and enjoy our drinks when they arrive. Both very good. Mm. The food arrives and it too is excellent. I had noted on the way in that they have a tripadvisor sticker on the door.  I found that reassuring. TA has not yet let me down.  This is a brilliant café. Great value. The food was delicious. The service was fast and friendly.

Lunch out of the way we cheerfully agree on a systematic examination of the various antique shops around the village. We find heaps of great stuff, selectively photographing with my phone and emailing images to Daughter2 who is on standby.

London House, my favourite here in Strath, has a great selection of flying birds among other things, or there’s some great anodized kitchen canisters, a lovely (hornless gramophone)… up the street there’s a great turtle shaped cheese grater, but D2 thinks it’s head looks distressingly penis like so we’ll skip that.
They have heaps of Jelly moulds too. Glass, copper, ceramic. One ceramic one has a, no doubt British, Lion on the top. I am sorely tempted but kept in check by our luggage restrictions for the upcoming flights.  We succumb to the temptation of a beautiful green glass dessert setting. I reckon I can get that into my carry on luggage.

While we wait for that to be packed up for us Hubby goes to move the car closer while I message Daughter2. On his return he leads me round the corner to a modest looking shop.  We enquire from the man whether we has any gramophones.. with an expression that seems to say … well yeah, of COURSE! He commences a tour around his, quite cluttered, shop to the various gramophones he has at the moment. This man is clearly quite passionate about gramophones. In dialogue with Daughter2 and having played her a gramophone over the phone, we end up deciding that those currently available aren’t quite what she and her Fiance are after, so we leave our contact details with the man, Hubby finishing that while I duck back to collect the dessert set and pay at London House. We’ve had a very interesting though tiring afternoon hunting through an enormous volume of interesting bits and pieces here in Strath.  Unfortunately most things are in a moderate price range. Perhaps a result of the GFC, we don’t find anything really in the line of what we are hoping for a wedding present.  The hunt continues.

It’s after 5 oclock by the time we are on the road to check into our Hahndorf accommodation at Amble at Hahndorf. Our cottage is cosy and lots of local delicacies have been supplied. Chocolates, biscuits, orange juice, all the suppliers are identified in the information book.  Front and back there are bird feeders and I’m a bit alarmed to find a couple of sulphur crested cockatoos that look like they might have beak and feather frequenting the feeding station. This is a rampantly contagious bird disease and I am very concerned that the bird feeding may cause it to spread.  I spend quite a while photographing the birds.
Sulphur Crested Cockatoos, Galahs, Collared Lorikeets and Corellas all making an appearance.  The smallest of them all, the lorikeets play bully boy. Lorikeets are really nasty aggressive birds. Though pretty I can’t say I like their personality much. 

Sulphur Crested Cockatoos

Collared Lorikeet 

Corella

Galah and lorikeets

 On his way in with the luggage, Hubby has chatted with our host who has recommended we eat at the White House for dinner. I check on Tripadvisor and find that fellow travelers agree. The White House it is.  We ring and book a table. The sooner the better I’m tired and keen to just chill out here after dinner.

We pull up and are greeted with great friendliness our hostess hangs around to chat with us for a while before leaving us to our menu selection. Ultimately the White House is aiming to be open 7 days, but they are feeling their way as to the style and price of what they are offering across the week. Perhaps confine the fine dining approach to Friday and Saturday nights, and adopt a shared plate, tapas sort of thing on the quieter nights. Keep an eye on Facebook and Twitter to see what's happening. We are glad they are open tonight! It’s pretty quiet though.  We make our selections I find the Pan seared diver scallops, sweet corn cream, truffle oil aioli and crispy sage leaves irresistable and decide to follow that with Twice cooked crispy skinned pork belly, pan seared SA prawn cutlets with roasted pear segments, toasted walnuts and sage aioli.  Hubby lines up with Warm free range duck sausage, confit garlic croutons, Port caramelised onion jam and baby cornichons to start followed by the Spiced slow braised MSA lamb shoulder, confit garlic puree, pan fried zucchini flower and rosemary jus.

Over the course of our meal Hubby enthusiastically samples the various local brews.. Prancing Pony Pale Ale, local Pear Cider from the Hills Cider Company, and finally the Goodieson Maibock.  He enjoys them all, takes some minutes of deliberation before he nominates the pear cider as his favourite because “its different”.

Our meals are truly delicious. My pork is delectably crisp top and bottom and meat very tender. The accompanying prawn is the tastiest I’ve had in a very long time and the walnuts and pear that complement the meats are delicious. Hubby's Lamb Should is large, again the outside is deliciously crispy, the jus has a hint of heat. Sides of a huge bowl of broccoli is cooked to the perfect degree, nuts on greens is always a winning combination.  The shoestring fries with lemon aioli is on the house because the rosemary potatoes we ordered are not available.  It’s a real struggle to fit it all in (I tease Hubby and tell him I’m going to tell Son-in-law he couldn’t finish his delicious main!) but we decide we will share the Summer mango cheesecake with passionfruit jelly and sweet cream chantilly.  They must be confident about their desserts because while the main is very competitively priced, they want a lot for the desserts.  This one is $17.50

The dessert is good, we enjoy it, but I don’t think the price is justified. For that price in Sydney you’d get an even higher standard. I could have made this one myself. Perhaps a lot of people share dessert, those mains and sides were bigger than average. You certainly wouldn’t be going away hungry. Not to worry. All up including drinks our bill comes to $150 odd. Good for the quality of the food and service we think. Hubby and I agree he won the entree course and I won the main.

Back “home” sitting enjoying some down time we agree that it feels like we’ve been away for ages and yet it is only a couple of days. We vege out in front of the tele watching Midsomer Murders, observing that these days the detectives don’t do much other than swan around murder scenes. They do precious little detecting. Eventually pretty much everyone but the killer is eliminated by death.  Easy policing that. I think the writers have become unacceptably lazy, though I do enjoy seeing the actress who played Eleanor in Sense and Sensibility (the good version) in another role amply adorned by a fabulous head of golden hair which is surely a wig!

We collapse into a delightfully cosy bed. It’s cool tonight and we are glad of blankets, snuggly doona and electric blanket and plentiful pillows. This was a good choice of accommodation. I like a venue where the bedding keeps you warm and you don’t have to heat the room overnight.