Adelaide, you are so HOT!!

After a long day of driving we made it to Adelaide :) We were so lucky to be able to stay with our friends Kevin and Fleur. Kevin did an exchange to Red Deer four years ago and worked with Adam. They live right by the beach in Seacliff and after a few cold beers we walked down to the beach and ventured around. It is a truly beautiful neighbourhood; the beach strip is 70 kms long and loads of people live within walking distance. 

Day 1: Cleland Wilderness Park

In the morning we all ran on along the beach and then headed to Cleland Wilderness Park in hopes of hugging a Koala. When we arrived we found out it would be too hot to hug the Koalas so that will just have to stay on our Aussie Bucket list for now! Cleland was AWESOME! Many of the animals are in open spaces and you can pet and feed them. 

We fed: Grey Kangaroos, Red Kangaroos, Wallabies, Ducks, Swans (a black one!), Birds and a Wombat (well Sheila accidently fed him, and then Adam accidently petted him..oops!). We learned A TON about Australian Wildlife today; we have been seeing many signs of animals that might run on the road and did not really know all of them until today :) 

We still got to see the Koalas and they were amazing!! We didn't get many great shots as they keep them in the shade on days that are 32C or over because they cannot sweat. If they have to be handled at all on these days the handlers put on a wet jacket and hold them that way. Kevin, Adam and I still figure we could have hugged them as it wasn't near the heat maximum when we there... ahh well, next time! (And it is good they are so great about taking are of the Koalas!) 

Adam feeding a Wallabie!

We finally see a Wombat and understand
 the signs we have seen everywhere! They are dangerous
things that are quite fast and have vicious bites!

Adam worked super hard to get these baby ducks out of the pond and up to him. It took him a while but the Mom finally let them come :) 

Yay another Wallabie! They are so cute; there were loads of them
including a bunch of baby ones!

This was a really old, grey kangaroo. He just chilled in the shade 

and waited for people to come to him:) 

Poor Hot Koalas...

The Black Swan!

After the Wilderness Park we had a great lunch in a pub in Stirling. Stirling would be the most amazing place to live, it is close to Adelaide and the beach but is nestled in the mountainside and is a bit cooler with many great shops, pubs and cafes. From there we drove up to the highest point in Adelaide to view the city (Mt Lofty). 

To finish off our day we hit Hahndorf, a little German town close to Stirling. There used to be many German towns and settlements before the second world war and this is one of them that got its name back after the war. The mainstreet is full of German pubs, restaurants and other shops. 

Day 2: THE BAROSSA

Today we had an AMAZING tour guide, Kevin! He drove us around the Barossa Valley Wine Region and took us to a bunch of different wineries!

At the beginning of our day we drove through the city and saw many of the Churches the city is known for. They are massive, and beautiful and everywhere. We also stopped by Fleur's school campus. She teaches at a private school (St. Peter's) and it sounds so cheesy but it was totally like Harry Potter. There was a huge campus, with many different old English brick style buildings, a beautiful Church, and beautiful grounds. 

When we made it to the Barossa we visited 6 wineries! 

1. Jacobs Creek: This winery was HUGE! It is the main sponsor of the Australian Open and has a wide variety of wines. 

2. Grand Burge: We tried a couple good wines here and left with our first purchase of the day!

3. Rockford: This winery was in a bank of lovely old brick buildings. The ceilings were barely high enough for Adam to stand in and the wine here was great! 

4. Dorrien Chateau: This is a family owned winery and we were able to try our first Mead here. There were many different flavors and it was definitely interesting. 

5. Two Hands: This winery was our favorite of the day! They has a sit down tasting and the lady who helped us was extremely knowledgable and helpful. The bottles had great names, labels and marketing. 

6. Penfolds: This was an older winery next to a train station. They had many wines to try and were quite friendly. 

Our wine tour day maxed out at 42C. Adam and I went directly to the beach when we got there. The ocean there is warmer and very calm because of the nearby Kangaroo Island that protects the mainland from the surf.