After the last two busy days, we had a rest day today. We slept in a bit later and went down for breakfast. We had spoken to Nicole from the restaurant and had arranged to collect a couple of eggs and some cereal today in preparation for us to cook our own breakfast tomorrow as we are getting collected at 6:15am for our Kangaroo Island 2 day tour.
As soon as we walked into the restaurant, she greeted us and told us she was ready for us. She handed us a bowl with 2 eggs and a couple of takeaway boxes and paper bags ready for us to take whatever we wanted off the buffet for our breakfast tomorrow.
We decided we only needed the eggs as we have bread in the room and Mick has decided he is going to make a ham sandwich to eat on the bus for breakfast/morning tea.
After breakfast we explored the Rundle Mall area again. I had a brochure for the Adelaide Arcade that I wanted to look at.
The Adelaide Arcade is quite similar in architecture to the Brisbane Arcade. we spent a few minutes looking around.
Looking for lunch, we picked up some ham and went back to the room. We had an easy lunch of sandwiches, did a load of washing in the guest laundry and generally did “nothing” today.
We have packed our overnight bags and will have an early night ready for an early start in the morning.
As mentioned in yesterday’s post, we only have the hire car for 2 days and have planned each day to be quite busy. We will have a quiet day of “nothing” on Sunday.
After breakfast, we drove 40 minutes or so via the North Expressway to Gawler, where there is an information centre where I planned on seeing what attractions I may have missed in my research. We arived just before 9:00am only to find that the centre was not open until 10:00. :(. We decided not to hang around but continue the 30kms onto to Nuriootpa and visit Maggie Beer’s Farm for morning tea. We have been “Maggie fans” for ages and have watched her “The Cook and The Chef” show many times over, so it was fun seeing the place where it was filmed.
We had a lovely morning tea of tea/coffee, carrot cake and apple cake looking over the lake. Looking around the shop I like the look of aparticular jar of preserve. It is Spiced Tomato,Cornichon & Roasted Garlic. I spoke to the girl at the counter ( who I am pretty sure was Maggie Beer’s daughter Elli ) and asked if I was correct in thinking it would be good with cheese or on hot roast lamb or beef. She nodded and said she likes it on cheese and toasted :). I will wait until we get home to open it as I don’t want to risk it spilling all through my luggage.
After Maggie Beer’s, it was on to Seppeltsfield. We had been told to visit here by a number of friends and we were not disapointed.
Approaching the estate on Seppeltsfield Road, you are greeted by over 5kms of date palm lined trees. I could not find any mention at the estate as to the significance of them, but I did find this
The history ,architecture and landscaping of the place is amazing. Having been to Tuscany, I can honestly say that it is up there with the best.
There was of course lots of information about the wines but sadly not a huge amont about the estate iteslf. There were some photos in the gallery which did have some stories attached, but I was hoping for more, and was surprised that there was not a gift shop. . I would have loved a coffee table book of the estate.
We wandered around looking at the bulidings before moving onto Tanunda to visit the Barossa Information Centre and lunch. The main street of Tanundah was very busy and I eneded up having to park at the street behind the main street and walk through an arcade and across the road to the information centre.
At the information centre I noticed a flyer for the Carl Lindner Collection of Jaguars. I noticed it because I had seen a plaque at Seppeltsfield at the door to the Cellar Door in memeory of Carl Lindner thanking him for all he meant to Seppeltsfield. So I guessed he was of some importance.
We decided it was time for lunch and saw a bar and grill across the road from the information centre. Unfortunately we did not stay as the menu was all for big full meals ( Steak, Schnitzels etc) with no salads other than a garden side salad. Neither of us wanted a big lunch so we went back to the information centre for some recommendations. We were directed to a cafe a couple of doors down, but nothing grabbed our attention. It was a vegetarian restaraunt so lots of grains and tofu.
We decided to keep going on to our next stop which was to be Penfolds. As we drove around the block to get back onto the main road, I saw a large pub, ( which actually turned out to be a Community Club with a rich history of its own) we thought surely they might have some lighter lunch options. They did 🙂 and we both got a lovely big salad. Mick had Caesar and I had a Mexican Chicken Salad. I could not finish all of mine it was so big!
I was in this dining room that we noticed an alcove with a table and a sign saying “Carl’s Corner”. Hmmm. wonder who on earth this “Carl” guy was??
After lunch the next stop was actually a small winery called Kellermeister Wines. Although we do not drink much at all now, I did want to buy a couple of bottles of their “Sable“
Sable is a delicous blend of Tanwy Port, Chocolate and Brandy. I used to have a friend who would bring bottles back on any trip to Adelaide and I had always loved it. As Kellermeister is a smaller winery, Sable is not available anywhere except at the winery or online. I asked for a taste to confirm it was as good as I remembered…It was!! So buying some while here it is a must.. I reckon 2 bottles will last me at least a year or so.
Back on the road again, and we headed back down the through the Adelaide Hills to Penfolds. Of course Penfolds is most famous for its “Grange” wine and at the cellar door they have a display of every Grange bottle since the early 1950’s.
The whole estate is impressive (not as impressive as Seppeltsfield) with buildings dating back to the mid 1800’s. The main Cellar Door building was redeveloped in the early 2000’s.
Again though I was disapointed that there was not a Gift Shop with souveniers.
From Penfolds when drove the car back to the airport to drop it off and then catch the bus back to the city. We had no issues dropping back the car and there was bus waiting at the bus stop when we got there. We asked the driver how long it was until he left and he said two minutes.
The airpot is a short bus trip back to the city. We got off at our stop at dropped into Coles and picked up some nice rissoles and a satchet of gravy to go with our leftover veges we had bought from the markets.
We relaxed and watched TV for a bit and were in bed early. We had a couple of jam packed busy days and will be thankful for a quiet day tomorrow.
Oh.. I also “googled” Carl Lindner and he was indeed a noteable Barossa citizen. Read more here…
We had breakfast early this morning as we caught a bus to the airport we we collected a hire car. We are only having the car for 2 days so we planned on packing a fair bit into these 2 days.
Today’s itiinerary is.. Collect Car Drive to Glenelg Drive to “Urban Desserts” Drive to Victor Harbor Drive to Maclaren Vale Drive to Hahndorf Drive back to the Mantra
The bus stop to the airport is just across the road from the hotel, we only had to wait a few minutes for the bus. It was a short 15 minute ride to the airport where we collected our hire car.
I put in Glenelg into the navigation and off we set. We stayed at Glenelg last time we were here in 2009 but only for a night or two. Mick was ill that trip so we did not get to “do” Adelaide that time. We parked the car and had a look around. It is a lovely stretch of beach and we would like to come back sometime.
After Glenelg we headed to Noarlunga Centre to visit a dessert bar I have been following on Facebook for a while. This was to be morning tea.
The guy that started Urban Desserts was a contestant on the 2o16 season of the Great Australian Bake Off. The desserts are gorgeous to look and and just as yummy to eat. We bought a selection of Lemon, Milo, Golden Gaytime and Strawberry flavours. I ate 1 and Mick ate the rest 🙂 We washed them down with a cup of tea and coffee.
After that we headed toward Victor Harbor. Travelling down the highway, I saw a sign that said there was a lookout point. I turned off and went up to the lookout. It was a lovely view over the valley to the ocean I walked over to the sign block thing to see what I was looking at. Hahaha.. The brass plaques were not there…so I have no idea what we were looking at. 🙂
From there we drove to Victor Harbor to ride the Horse Drawn Tramway Arriving into Victor Harbor it was VERY busy. I could see where we needed to be, but ended up having to park a few minutes away. The walked to the jettey and waited for the tram. It was fun to do the return journey.
After our tram ride, we headed toward Maclaren Vale to see “The Cube” at D’arenberg winery. It is certainly a sight to see, towering 5 stories over the vineyard. Sadly it cost $20 each to enter which included tasting, but as we do not drink, and we decided not to go in, but keep going on to Hahndorf for a late lunch.
The drive to Hahdorf was a pleasant 40 minute country drive through many vineyards and farms. Arriving into Hahndorf, it was VERY busy and we did not think we would get a park at all, even though it was now nearly 3:00pm. We finally found a spot to park and walked a short distance to the German Arms Hotel for lunch. It was busy, but were served quite quickly. I had a Roast Pork dinner and Mick had steak, chips and salad.
After lunch, we walked up and down the steet looking into the shops and looking at the buildings. Many of the shops date back to the 1800’s and have be restored well. Again we said it would be good to come back with some more time to explore more.
Back to the car and we made the short 20 minute trip back to the Mantra. No need for dinner :). A bit of TV and bed, ready for tomorrow’s trip up to the Barossa Valley.
We both slept really well, sleeping in until 6:00am.Our room comes with a full buffet breakfast included so we wandered down to the restaurant at 7:00 and enjoyed bacon, sausages and eggs.
The chef was very friendly and asked us where we were from and how long we were here for.As the plan today was to visit the Adelaide Central Market to buy something nice for dinner, I asked him what his favourite stalls were at the market.He mentioned a good butcher and baker and said any of the green grocers were good.
After breakfast, we walked around the corner to the bus stop to the Market.The market was very busy, but were able to see everything.There were not many tables free anywhere, so we decided not to get anything to eat or drink.
After doing a full lap of the market and knowing what we wanted for dinner, we caught a free city loop bus that took us for a tip around Adelaide.The loop takes around an hour.
We completed the loop back at the markets and went back in and found a cafe we have seen and had lunch.Mick had a pumpkin and tomato quiche and I had a morrocan chicken baguette.Both were served warm and were very yummy.
Then we bought some veges, a loaf of lovely rye sourdough bread and the most amazing piece of dry aged ribeye steak and some Maggie Beer mushroom sauce/gravy. Our entire shop cost just under $50
It was a short bus trip back to the hotel.We put a load of washing on in the guest laundry and settled in for the night.
I was going to use butter to cook our steak in but when I looked at it and we realised that we would have to cut it off the bone to fit it in the pan, I decided to cut a piece of fat off it and rendered it s-l-o-w-l-y.I got about a tablespoon of lovely oil to cook the steak in.
We enjoyed our dinner and had a quiet night watching TV.Tomorrow we collect a hire car and do some further out exploring.
I semi packed our bags last night ready to have the last bits and pieces packed.
We used up the last of our bacon, eggs and milk for breakfast, had our showers and packed away everything and we checked out just after 9:30am.
As our flight to Adelaide does not leave until 4:40pm, the plan today is to go back to the Newcastle foreshore and ride the tram and the ferry to Stockton, have a decent lunch and then head to the airport.
We parked the car in the foreshore carpark I had found when we came in on Christmas Day and bought a parking ticket for the allowed 4hours. The Light Rail stop was across the road and we had a tram pull up as soon as we arrived. They run backwards and forwards over the 6 stops every 8 minutes. We rode the length of the track and got off where we started. This was Queens Wharf and is also the closest stop to the ferry over the river to Stockton. We just went for the ride and did not get off at Stockton, but it is always nice getting out on the water.
We did manage to have a chat to the deck hand guy and we asked him about the tugs and big ships. Where we come from , the Mooloolaba Port Authority has a pilot service that helps the big ships into the Port of Brisbane. Here in Newcastle the pilot goes a few kilometers offshore in a helicopter and is dropped onto the ships to bring them in. I found this video showing a Newcastle Pilot landing on a ship. https://youtu.be/rz0q4DUTY6w
Back on dry land, we went to the Queens Wharf Hotel and discovered we were too early for lunch. We decided to go for a short walk up the road to the old Newcastle Station. This area has been redeveloped into a nice family friendly area.
Back to the pub and we ordered our meals, Flash Fried Squid salad for Mick and Lamb Cutlets for me. They were both very nice.
After lunch we walked back to the car and as we were leaving the carpark, I noticed a man reading how to pay for parking. I stopped and opened the window and asked him if he wanted the remainder of our parking ticket. It had just over an hour left on it, and all he had to do was put it on his dash to have free parking. He was very appreciative. I have done my randon act of kindness for the day 🙂
From the carpark we drove along the waterfront and on to the airport. We were too early to check in so we had to wait in the airport before being allowed into the departures lounge.
Finally, we were boarded onto our flight and heading to Adelaide. As we were not arriving into Adelaide until 6:30pm, we had decided to get a taxi to the Mantra Hindmarsh Square that is to be our base for the next 9 days.
By the time we landed, got our bags, found a taxi and made the drive to the city and checked in, it was just after 8:00pm. The restaurant in the hotel closed at 8:00pm, so we took a short walk to Rundle Mall and hot KFC for dinner.
It was not long and we were in bed ready for the next part of our holiday.
Today we decided on a “country road trip” I did not particularly want to go to the Hunter Valley wine areas as we explored there a couple of years ago. (link to those posts) but rather have a look a the towns between Newcastle and the Hunter Valley – Cessnock, Kurri Kurri and Maitland were on the list.
We had briefly considered buying here when had made the decision to sell the block of land in Hobart. It would have been close to the kids and I thought it would be nice…BUT…then I found out that the Hunter Valley does not get cold !!!
I spoke to a friend of mine who lives in Scone and he said that the Hunter Valley wine region is mediterranean climate rather than the cool climate wine regions I am familiar with in Stanthorpe and Tasmania. So…that was a big NO to the Hunter Valley 😀😀😀
I did, however, find the information centre on the outskirts of the Hunter Valley that I decided to look at to see what I could find for the towns we wanted. link to info centre
Sadly, I did not find anywhere extra to go that I had already found, so off we went to Cessnock. I am not sure what I expected, but let’s just say we were glad we decided to stay with the idea of buying in Hobart
We were hoping to have a “Pub Lunch” but nothing was open. We looked a two pubs only to be told that the kitchens were closed the lunch. So that was Cessnock …. On to Kurri Kurri and again the town was underwhelming.
Surely Maitland would prove different… Nope.. everything closed. We did comment that it seemed unusual for a county town to have a narrow main street. Usually we have seen towns have very wide streets and have always wondered why founding fathers built huge wide streets in country areas and tight roads in the captial cities.
We decided to head back to Lake Macquarie where we knew places were open, being a bit more of a tourist area.
It worked…we had a lovely lunch at Pippi’s at Speers Point which is the next suburb around the lake from Warners Bay where we are staying. We were given a choice of where to sit, with one of the choices being a very flash round booth up on a pedestal. Mick said it was the penthouse of dining. I said it looked like a “Fat Tony” mob boss table.
Mick had a very nice Caesar Salad and I have roast Lamb loin and veges.
After lunch we drove along the lake toward our motel. As it was quieter and not much traffic, I was hoping I would get a carpark so we could investigate the many cafes and shops. There were not many, but turning left we found a large carpark behind all the shops. We wandered along and checked out a few menus for the next time we are here.
Back at the car, I noticed the Warners Bay Hotel. I had seen ads for it but had not seen where it was. We went in and found the dining room upstairs. It is really lovely, and we be certainly have a meal here at some stage.
We saw that the hotel had accommodation, so we asked if we were able to see a room. We could! We were shown two rooms, a family room and a standard Queen room. They were nowhere near as nice as the Esplanade Motel, but it is always good to look at options.
We popped into Coles and got McCain microwave dinners for tea, went back to the motel and had a quiet night before we checkout tomorrow.
