Isabella, being the outdoorsy type, had wanted to do some hiking in Australia. Unfortunately, our route hadn't allowed for much of it and this would be one of the few chances we would get. We selected a short route of only a few hours that we thought would give us the best overview of the flora and fauna of the park.
The park is in a surprisingly lush corner of South Australia. Most of the path was through fairly well-wooded areas and it was only in the slightly higher elevations that the trees thinned out. Along the way we dodged large spider webs of the kind we saw outside Alice Springs. However, on our track we did see a wild emu. We kept our distance as it crossed the path and just admired it as it walked down the mountain and then into the brush. As we rounded a bend following our emu encounter we were treated to a spectacular view of the Spencer Gulf. We then ran into a rare yellow-footed wallaby, a park native. All-in-all, not bad for a few hours walking.
From Mt. Remarkable we headed south towards Adelaide. Along the way we passed several small port towns until we finally hit the northern outskirts of Adelaide. Adelaide is a city that is squashed against the sea. The city of about 1 million is not very wide east to west but stretches an incredible distance north to south. It is a city of parks, being the only major city in the world whose central area is surrounded by one. Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, also takes pride in the fact that only free settlers, no convicts, arrived here though the founder of South Australia had a shady past. Adelaide is also a city in quiet decline. The 2 major industries of Adelaide were the defence and automotive sectors. While defence still generates considerable employment the automotive industry has declined considerably and now Adelaide is losing people. Despite this, Adelaide still has a certain undeniable charm.
Isabella had wanted to go swimming in the ocean while in Australia so I took her to probably my favourite location in Adelaide, Glenelg Beach. Glenelg, where the first European settlers landed, is a very upscale neighbourhood of Adelaide and is the city's ocean playground. This is here everyone goes on a hot summer's day. Certainly when we were there the beach was well populated although not to the extent I would have thought. The sun was shining and the water was perfect so Isabella and I took to swimming in the Great Southern Ocean.
After a good deal of frolicking in the warm water we drove to our hostel. It was in the center of the city and quite pleasant. Unfortunately our coushsurfing host was unavailable for our first day in Adelaide so we stayed in hostel. It wasn't too bad from what I remember.
After getting our stuff into the hostel, Isabella and I found out that there was a food festival in another part of the city. We drove down to check it out and had a wonderful time. There were jugglers, buskers, cooking demonstrations, overpriced Moroccan food stands, beer tents, a live band, thousands of people and, at the end, a fashion show. It showcased several types of clothes like sportswear and evening dresses. While many were quite satisfactory, Isabella and I agreed that some of the dresses were positively hideous. At the end, there was a procession of bridal wedding dresses. Having fed ourselves well at the festival stands, Isabella and I returned to our host's home for some well-deserved sleep. With the Outback now well behind us, we were left to explore this great city the next day and what an interesting experience that turned out to be.
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