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Adelaide Fringe Festival 2011 was a spectacular affair and was well worth the visit into Adelaide to see it. We went in while the Adelaide Street Theatre Festival was running and spent most of our time watching these side events. The Garden Of Extraordinary Delights was the main centre and focus of the festival and with so many shows happening here and in theatres around Adelaide it was hard to pick just one show to watch. Most of the evening shows were priced at a reasonable $20-$30 and from the reviews flying around town you would be hard pushed to find a bad one!
On our walk down to the Garden of Extraordinary Delights from the train station we went through the main shopping precinct of Adelaide and there were lots of acts advertising their shows and individuals doing
street theatre. As we arrived at the main part of the festival we went into the Street Theatre, set up as a showcase to make available theatre to everyone.
The first act we caught were Popeyed, set up as a Russian lifesaving comedy duo, these slapstick comedians not only put on a genuinely funny act but also performed some incredibly impressive gymnastics.
The only act we decided to see twice was up next and after a quick tour around the Garden of Extraordinary Delights we settled down to watch the
Space Cowboy. We weren’t settled in our seats for long, billed as having no less than seven Guinness World Records and with a picture of him breaking the world record for the most amount of swords swallowed at the same time (19 swords!) we were soon squirming in our seats as the Space Cowboy pulled the tools of his trade out of his case and introduced them to us with relish. With a sword, a knife, a chainsaw, axe, meat cleaver, bull whips and a 3 meter unicycle the Space Cowboy put on a 40 minute show I will never forget. Fear, awe, disbelief, laughter and with more thrills than a roller coaster without the moving seat.
The other acts displayed in the Adelaide Street Theatre that day were amazing as-well and our entire day was brilliant. The acts put on at the Street Theatre relied on donations from the crowd at the end of their performances with many of the acts declaring that for them although it was their livelihood they also wanted to make their acts accessible to everyone, declaring their shows a gift to their audience who could not afford a donation.
In the evening we were dazzled by the incredible football juggling of Victor Rubiter, Victor also stars in the
Guiness Book Of World Records for his football jugging. Victors act is so much more than just his juggling talent, his humour had the whole audience laughing, clapping, cheering and mexican waving throughout.
Mar 14, 2011 | Categories: General, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: Adelaide, Adelaide Fringe Festival, Art, Fringe, Performing Arts, Space Cowboy, Theatre, Venues | Comments Off on Adelaide Fringe Festival – Street Theatre Festival
Based out on the Fleur Peninsula and winner of the Fleurieu Peninsula Tourism Award is the Alexandrina Cheese Company. From their 80 Jersey cows they produce their own range of delicious cheeses. They make all their cheeses onsite which means the best days to visit are Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays as you can see through the cafe’s clear glass window to where the workers are making the cheese while you tuck into some delicious tastings with the friendly staff.
We were particularly partial to their Mount Jagged Mature Cheddar although their vintage cheddar was equally as good!
Mar 09, 2011 | Categories: General, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: alexandrina, alexandrinacheese, Business and Economy, Cheddar cheese, Cheese, Dairy, Fleurieu Peninsula, Food, Fridays, Jersey cattle, Shopping | Comments Off on Tasty Cheese from Alexandrina Cheese Company
Being in South Australia and especially since we are currently staying up above McLaren Valley we thought we should embark on a few tastings. With over 200 Cellar Doors in this region of South Australia, everywhere you go there are vineyards. With the current crop about to be picked there is a big buzz in this region about wines at this time of year.
On our route around the Fleurieu Peninsular we came across the Ballast Stone
cellar door in Goolwa. Ballast Stone Estate’s is one of the largest owners of vineyards in McLaren Vale and
Currency Creek. Having seen this
vinery‘s wines exported back to the UK and with good views out to
Hindmarsh Island and Sir Richard Peninsular we were excited to try some of their wines and find out more about the different tastes and types of wine.
As it was our first visit to a cellar door we were quite nervous, our knowledge of wine, just revolving around the few wine makers that we know the name, what we like, what we usually buy and not much else. It was with nervous anticipation that we entered the cellar door.
Ballast Stone’s cellar door incorporates a cafe and several display stands. We browsed close to the wine tasting area looking at the wine bottles and showing an interest in the wines. Despite the presence of several staff at the tasting section none of them paid us much attention or felt inclined to engage us in anyway despite the fact there was only a couple of other people there.
Thoroughly discouraged by this we left got in our camper and left. A frustrating start to our exploration of South Australian wines. The next day we visited
Tintara,
Hardys wine’s cellar door and were welcomed and enjoyed chatting to their staff about our tastes in wine.
Mar 09, 2011 | Categories: General, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: Australia, cellar door, Food, Glossary of wine terms, McLaren, Mclaren Vale, Recreation, South Australia, travel, vinyards, Wine, winery | Comments Off on South Australia’s Wine – Ballast Stone Estate – Cellar Door
On the Fleurieu Way, Victor Harbor is a must on the places to stop and enjoy this part of South Australia. Encounter Bay is home to Granite Island which is connected to Victor Harbor by a 600 meter causeway.
A Clydesdale-drawn tram has gone between the mainland and the island, ferrying many tourists who don’t feel like the walk across to see the Penguins that can be seen on Granite Island.
We visited the island in the middle of the day and walked up and over the top of granite island, saying hello to the horses who were working that day pulling the tram and watching it trundle across the causeway.
In addition to Granite Island, although sadly absent for our visit, you can also see whales in Encounter Bay from May through to October. The SA Whale centre has recently been renovated and is a great place to learn more about the whales and other marine life in the area. The whales of Encounter Bay are slow moving and often come within 30m of the shoreline making them easily viewed.
Mar 09, 2011 | Categories: Uncategorized | Tags: 2011, Adelaide, Australia, Clydesdale (horse), Clydesdale-drawn, Encounter Bay, Fleur Peninsula, Fleurieu Way, Granite Island, Horse, Island, Mainland, Penguins, SA, SA Whale Centre, scenery, South Australia, tour, tram, travel, Victor Harbor, Victor Harbor South Australia, view, Whale, Whales | Comments Off on Victor Harbor & The Granite Island
Winding along the South Australia coastline just south of Adelaide is the the Fleurieu Way. The Fleurieu Peninsula has many highlights including the wineries and seaside towns. Emily and I took a couple of days to drive through this scenic countryside and visit some of the attractions along the way.
We stopped overnight at Waitpinga Beach next to Dennis Hut in the Newland Head Conservation Park. We stopped in the camping ground there, where your able to self register to stay for $11 which goes to the conservation park’s trust.
We followed the Fleurieu Way to just up above Cape Jarvis where we could get the best view of
Kangaroo Island before heading back north. We enjoyed our couple of days driving round the Fleurieu Peninsula despite the weather being uninspiring!
Mar 09, 2011 | Categories: General, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: Adelaide, Australia, Backpacking, Barossa Valley, Cape Jarvis, Fleur Peninsula, Fleurieu Peninsula, Fleurieu Way, Gulf St Vincent, Kangaroo Island, Lookout, Oceania, Panorama, Photo, SA, scenery, South Australia, tourism, travel | Comments Off on Fleurieu Peninsula & Fleurieu Way
While finishing odd the
Great Ocean Road we visited the Waworong Lookout up on the rim, looking down on The
Blue Lake, just outside of
Mount Gambier. Waworong Lookout gets its name from the aboriginal Booandik Tribe’s word for ‘Blue Lake’. The Blue Lake supplies water for the
City of Mount Gambier and gets its name quite simply from the bright blue colour of the water. In a couple of days each November the water turns a vivid blue, then after summer, usually in late March it gradually fades until the water is grey during the winter.
Feb 27, 2011 | Categories: General, New Uploads, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: Australia, Blue Lake, Blue Lake (South Australia), City Of, City of Mount Gambier, Great Ocean Road, Lookout, Mount Gambier, Mount Gambier South Australia, Victoria, Volcano, Water, Water Supply, Waworong | Comments Off on The Great Ocean Road – The Blue Lake – Mount Gambier
London Bridge … has fallen down! The collapse of London Bridge was only a matter of time. One evening in January 1990 the main arch of the London Bridge collapsed, breaking it away from the mainland. Fotunately noone was injured and the only drama was a couple of people who were marooned on the newly formed island until rescue from helicopter.
London Bridge is still a fascinating feature and the size of it is hard to comprehend. It is located near the Twelve Apostles National Park it is further down in the
Port Campbell National Park.
Feb 27, 2011 | Categories: General, New Uploads, The Great Ocean Road, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: 12, 2011 Attraction, Afternoon, Apostle (Christian), Apostles, Australia, beauty, Great Ocean Road, London, London Arch, London Bridge, Marine, National Parks, Places to visit, Port Campbell National Park, scenes, Sea, Technology, The Twelve Apostles, tourism, Twelve, Victoria | Comments Off on The Great Ocean Road – London Bridge – Port Campbell National Park
With the rest of the day after a morning at the Twelve Apostles we had plenty of time to enjoy Lock Ard Gorge, the Ship Wreak Coast and the rest of the Twelve Apostles National Park.
All the coasts features are amazing along this stretch and we explored this area with excitement, going down to the caves at the bottom of the cliffs and looking at ‘the razorback’ and other features from above. Reading about this coastline was fantastic too the erosion to the rock not only from the waves but the spray and wind too which harden some parts of the rock while the soft parts then crumble away. Realising how fast parts of the coastline was receding and how much was disappearing to the sea I wondered how much would be left in 10 years time.
Feb 26, 2011 | Categories: General, New Uploads, The Great Ocean Road, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: Apostle, Australia, Coast, Great Ocean Road, Melbourne, Port Campbell Victoria, Travel and Tourism, United States | Comments Off on The Great Ocean Road – Lock Ard Gorge – Twelve Apostles National Park
Another feature of the Twelve Apostles National Park was this archway, lesser known between Lock Ard Gorge and London Bridge. It is marked on tour guides and maps just as The Arch and we were grateful to have some time here away from the crowds that flock to the more well known features.
The Grotto in the Port Campbell National Park is another of the lesser visited attraction often bypassed by the coach tours from Melbourne. The pool of water underneath the archway looked incredibly inviting but unfortunately there is no access underneath the archway.
Feb 26, 2011 | Categories: General, Photo Shoot, The Great Ocean Road, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: 12, 2011 Attraction, Afternoon, Apostle, Apostles, Australia, beauty, Great Ocean Road, London Arch, London Bridge, Marine, Melbourne, National Parks, Places to visit, Port Campbell National Park, scenes, Sea, The Grotto, The Twelve Apostles, tourism, Travel and Tourism, Twelve, Victoria | Comments Off on The Great Ocean Road – The Arch & Grotto – Twelve Apostles National Park
Just before you arrive at the infamous Twelve Apostles there is Gibsons Steps (heading west). These steps allow you to negotiate down the sheer limestone cliffs to the beach below. Standing below these cliffs you can really get a perspective of the sheer size of the cliffs along this stretch of the Great Ocean Road and therefore the size of the Apostles that stand proudly round the corner.
The steps allowed us to get down and close to the famed treacherous sea that is the Bass Strait. Standing on the sands watching this crashing surf I felt for the sailors of past who navigated this coastline, many having almost completed their passage all the way from Europe, only to come to grief upon the rocks that lurked like sharks in the water.
It was definitely worth the walk down even though the steps were hard work on the way back up again!
Feb 25, 2011 | Categories: General, New Uploads, Photo Shoot, The Great Ocean Road, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: 12, 2011 Attraction, Afternoon, Apostle (Christian), Apostles, Australia, Bass Strait, beauty, Cliff, Gibson Steps, Great Ocean Road, Marine, Melbourne, National Parks, Places to visit, scenes, Sea, The Twelve Apostles, Torquay, tourism, Twelve, Victoria | Comments Off on The Great Ocean Road – Gibsons Steps
