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A drive thro' Adelaide in the evening


Bob

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I've been on a trip with a few mates to the South East of this State (South Australia) over the weekend with blokes from my church. We get away three or four times a year and it started from a "Bloke's" group that sprang up a few years ago, but has degenerated into a bloke's weekend in the bush of Australia.

I love 'em.

I invited a Pom whom I've got to know over the past year or so since he's been in Adelaide, and he said on the long drive back that on first landing in Adelaide his first impressions were . . . . "My goodness! What the hell have we got ourselves into here??"

Adelaide seemed so backward and 1950's.

It has grown on him since and he's looked beneath the surface and seen that Adelaide has something that other cities in Australia just don't have . . . . a serenity and gracefulness about it, much like a wise traveller would become in time.

Some people hang out for the "fast life" to see how much they can squeeze in.

Adelaide isn't so much about "quantity" rather than taking life as it comes, qualitatively.

On Wednesday last week, I took my Sony camera to work and shot a few images of Adelaide as I came back into the city in the dying minutes before the sun went down.

I drove into the city thro' the beautiful parklands that are deep and surround the city centre:

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As I drove into the city, I passed the National Wine Centre. This building even looks like a wine barrel!! South Australia is Australia's leading exporter of fine wines and ships over $1,000,000,000 (R4,800,000,000) worth of wine yearly.

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Coming into the city, I drove along East Terrace bordering the parklands

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Many people were enjoying socialising in the balmy climate that is Adelaide in late summer . . . . enjoying a coffee or glass of wine at one of the many cafes and restaurants lining the streets of the city centre. This is one of the dozen or so restaurants in Rundle Street, a favourite spot for many Adelaidians

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. . . . not even the upstairs of a pub is safe!

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driving along Rundle Street for about half a kilometre, you see literally hundreds of people out enjoying the evening with friends and having a coffee

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the top of Adelaide city's pedestrian shopping mall. The shops mid-week close at 6pm and these are just window shoppers just strolling along but not buying this evening. This shopping Mall is about a kilometre long, full of department stores and shops, until it reaches King William Street.

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Adelaide is Australia's only "planned" and "designed' city, so it has five Squares in all throughout the city itself for the convenience of its inhabitants. I drove past Hindmarsh Square with its beautiful array of flowers and trees

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A drive thro the commercial heart of the city along Pirie Street

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Eventually, you end up in the very heart of Adelaide . . . not the commercial or shopping "heart" of Adelaide which lie to the north of the city. This is Victoria Square with its monument to the old queen Victoria from 1895.

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Adelaide's trams are being replaced by shiny new C21st German trams with all the mod cons such as airconditioning, etc. Many are already in service, but there are a few of the old "Red Rattlers" still going since first introduced into service in 1929. They have been faithfully serving the people of Adelaide for 77 years and many want to keep them in service. An open window is the only air conditioning for people riding to the seaside at Glenelg on this old tram!

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Turning into Gouger Street, heading west through the city, I dorve past even more folk out for the evening. This particular street has many cafes and restaurants also lining its pavements

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All good things come to an end. There is no rush in Adelaide . . . no mad panic thro' thick traffic . . no stress and insecurity . . . people here are safe and just relax and enjoy their lives.

A drive thro' the parklands on the western side of the city

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Edited by Bob
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Bob, if you would like to let us see the pics without having to click the links, then just copy the (img) url below the pics on photobucket and not the normal links.

Thanks for sharing.

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Dedrei!

Thanks for the tip. After an hour of mucking around, I got it right at last. I didn't know anyone could download photos onto the forum . . . . you learn something new every day.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks Bob,

I have to agree, Adelaide is a great place. We have never been happier since settling here in 2005. I travel interstate often and must say I look forward to coming home to Adelaide everytime. All the lovely parks, easier pace of life and friendly people has really contributed to our settling in and becoming part of society much easier. ONe gets a feeling of a family orientated lifestyle. Miles of sandy beaches, the hills and wine routes all contribute to make Adelaide a excellent choice. Financially it is more affordable to live here and I have heard it was voted the best city to bring up children. Sure is, my daugther is very happy in her school and with the quality of life in general.

So, why the bloody hell not settle here..... :lol:

Sorry for the POMs that read that..... :)

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Marius!

why indeed not settle in Adelaide??

I have to admit, I could settle in any number of places in Australia . . . Perth, Brisbane, Alice Springs, Hobart . . . . but Sydney and Melbourne have never had great appeal to me, personally. I travelled in my early twenties across Europe and Asia with a mate from Parramatta (Sydney) who I later went to stay with for a while. Bill, my mate, had travelled all over Europe and Israel as well as North Africa and stated to me back in the mid 70's at the time, that Sydney was a great place to stay in for a while . . . anything up to six months . . . but then get out because it would be too fast and stressful a lifestyle to live there. There were more easier-going places in Australia to live in. He later travelled the 5,000 kms across to Perth to start married life off with his English bride he'd met on his travels.

I also admit to being nearly enticed to living up in the Northern Territory when I was first married in 1980. 25 years ago, it was still a frontier territory with the Australian gov't literally throwing money at people to live up there and start families . . .$2,000 a year at that stage which is the equivalent nowadays to about $7,000 or $8,000 a year with lower income tax and an extra two weeks' leave on full pay to boot + a fully paid airline ticket for all the family to Adelaide or Singapore (which you could put towards a flight to London or Los Angeles)! . . . . pretty tempting stuff from the Australian gov't.

Anyhow . . . at the end of the day, Adelaide grows on you the more you stick around . . . its relaxed lifestyle and accessability to Sydney, Melbourne or the Great Barrier Reef with its 3,200 kms of coral reef for holidays.

Horses for courses though, at the end of the day.

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