Adelaide - towns, vineyards, day-trips and lots of fun

On 3 January, I caught the two hour flight to Adelaide. It was so great catching up with Shelley and Russell again since it had been nearly three years since they left Ireland and the UK and headed back home to Australia.

We headed back to their new house in Eden Hills where I met Russell's parents, Geoff and Audrey and was also introduced to Mitzi and Molly (the dogs) ... who had more energy running around than was imaginable.

So five days in Adelaide awaited and what a fantastic time. Having your very own chauffeur (thanks Geoff) was brilliant since we all headed out to lovely places around Adelaide. We started by heading down the coast seeing the beaches, then through the Fleurieu Penninsula passing the McLaren Vale wine region (with compulsory sampling stops of wine and cheese) and onto the lovely Victor Harbor and Granite Island.

Day 2 was the trip which made me jealous of Shelley and Russell - the Barossa Valley and the vineyards. What a magnificent place on their doorstop. Of course the vineyards were fantastic, as were the tasting and purchases but the overall scenery was so much better than I expected. The day was packed with new places and things to do from feeding the kangaroos to sampling the wines to winding through the Alpine like hills to seeing Adelaide by night from Mount Lofty - great.

The following days were around Adelaide and around home at Shelley/Russell's ... downtown Adelaide is lovely - so relaxed and it has a great feel. From the Central Market to the Torrens, from the University to the tram ride from Glenelg ... really great.

And what a fantastic way to finish off the short trip but my first champagne breakfast - I got to meet Shelley's parents too and aunt along with Geoff, Audrey, Shelley, Russell, Molly and Mitzi ... an outdoor BBQ-ed champagne breakfast on the patio - fantastic!