We had left Melbourne and the Bass Strait behind us and were now at the mercy of open water, no longer under the protection of Tazmania. A cross swell drummed on our port side and steady winds carried cold air up from Antarctica. It is said that Melbourne is closer to Antarctica than it is to Darwin and I have no doubt that it is.

But when we began to head north, running with the deep swells and ducking behind Kangaroo island and into the St. Vincent Gulf, the waters calmed. As the sun began to bulge beyond the horizon, we entered the port of Adelaide and the longest seawall we had ever seen.

There were several excursions in Adelaide but one day is not nearly enough time, so we spun the wheel and chose to go to the town of Hahndorf, which sounds nothing like an Australian town. We are a small group heading up into the hills (1,500 ft) with our local guide for a 1.5 hour bus ride, leaving the port and getting to see parts of Adelaide proper as we pass through it.

I don’t mind these bus rides because the insight and knowledge one receives is the best audio tour one can get as we head to our destination. My favorite building is know as the Cheese Grater, known as SAHMRI (South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute).

Adelaide is a park of greenery with a city inside this loosely constructed figure eight. It seems like a person can hike through this vast park system, circumnavigating the entire city without touching concrete; quite fascinating. As with other big cities in Australia, Adelaide is gaining tourist attention for it’s coffee, dining, indigenous art, museums and living. Before we reached Hahndorf, we made a pit stop at an observation center–it was freezing up there! But looking down at Adelaide and the open water beyond without a cloud in the sky was spectactular.

When we arrived in Hahndorf, it was not what we were expecting. Here is this quaint little town with a Main Street. We were instructed by our guide to walk up one side and down the other. All of us were scratching our heads wondering what we were going to do here for two hours?

Well… two days is not enough time to duck into every little gift shop, eatery, beer hall, clothing store, etc.

On the weekends, the local vineyards and out-of-town tourists pour in and this place must be an Octoberfest every weekend of the year.

Along this strip, we (I) bought some sausage from a shop called The German Pantry, where some of the varieties of sausage were named: Kangaroni, Hot Pepperoni, Bum Burner, and X-Rated Bum Burner. I really wanted the X-Rated Bum Burner but with a 1.5 hr ride back to the ship I opted for the Hot Pepperoni (delicious).

After walking one side of the street (1 hr) we headed to the Hahndorf Inn for beer and the best pretzels ever! Yes, that is Meredith with a beer.. well a hard cider (5.5 ABV), that was incredible and we hope to find it in the States (Barossa Cider Co. – Cloudy Cider).

Continuing along the other side of the street, we were lured into Coco Marie by the fine scents of hand made soaps and creams. We browsed several dress shops (Colour Door & The Clothing Palette), where we met Shelly, who gave us some destination pointers along our continued route.

I’m not sure what these dolls are about, but if you have some misbehaved grandchildren then I highly recommend one of these dolls to keep them at bay. As for their later years… well… anyone can brag they have a doctor, lawyer or banker as a grandchild…. but a grandchild who has one of these dolls on a shelf with the moonlight reflecting from their eyes will surely make the headlines! Any takers?