Day 3: The Adelaide Hills

Our tour of southern Australia continued. We left McLaren Vale on Sunday morning stopping for breakfast in an edgy looking converted barn. The bagels and coffee were as expected, delicious!

At McLaren Vale we had been an hour south of Adelaide, we were now going back towards the city but a little further inland to the wine region of the Adelaide Hills. The drive was through pretty rolling farmland and vineyards.

The journey was made particularly special when we saw some Kangaroos. They were sat happily resting under the shade of some eucalyptus trees. 

The Monthly Market at Stirling

Our first stop was Stirling, a delightful town only 15km from Adelaide from which many people commute to the city. Once a month it hosts a market, and of course today was market day, just for me!

There was much to tempt me, although given our travels, little I could purchase, but nonetheless it was still fun to look.

Adam explained pies are a big favorite locally, these were hard to resist!

These brightly colored pots caught my eye,

as did the ladies’ dancing!

And then because of Australia’s links to England, several stalls were selling beautifully packaged Christmas puddings, in preparation for the coming season!

Mount Lofty

We then climbed the hill to the vista point at Mount Lofty.  At 710 meters, it is the highest point in Adelaides’ southern Mount Lofty range, set within The Cleland National Park in the Adelaide Hills.

The views were spectacular! There are some beautiful hiking trails and a botanical garden which, time permitting, we would loved to have explored, but another town was waiting for us.

Hahndorf

The picturesque town of Hahndorf, 9km south east of Stirling, dates from 1838. It was one of the first settlements in the region, and as its name suggests, was founded by Lutheran refugees from Prussia.

Hahndorf was initially a farming community where living conditions and life were difficult. Animal transport was scarce and most food had to be imported and was therefore expensive. But the Hahndorf woman, having traveled so far from home, were intrepid and enterprising. Determined to make a success of their new lives they realized that here was a market for their locally grown produce in Adelaide. It was no easy task to get their produce there, in those days a 35km walk across difficult terrain. The women would leave at 4.30am carrying all their wares to arrive in Adelaide in time for the market. It was far from easy but there were mouths were to be fed. The grit and determination of these women is still revered and considered to be a critical reason to why the community thrived and grew.

The Hahndorf Inn

This inn and eating house remains as popular today as it was over a hundred years ago.

We were visiting during Oktoberfest, so of course the brewing company beckoned!

We sat and relaxed to the accompaniment of local German style musicians.

A magical night stop

When we left Hahndorf we thought we were returning for our final night to Adelaide. Adam, however had made other plans. Instead, for a surprise, he’d booked a gorgeous, story book cottage, circa 1870, The Orchard,  sat in the hills above Lenwood overlooking fruit trees and the vines. He told in his words that he wanted to ensure “that our time, in this beautiful place I’ve called home for the last few years was extra memorable and special”.  ‘Special’ didn’t do justice to just how touched we were and how Adam made us feel, what a treasure! I hope these photos convey just how truly wonderful a place this was to stay. It’s available on airbnb and highly recommended.

One of many beautiful views across the pretty lavender filled garden. 

The entire house had been really beautifully and thoughtfully restored, peppered with special touches everywhere.

The living room

 

The bathroom

The farmhouse kitchen

complete with an Aga, just for me!

A basket of apples was provided complete with a recipe

The topping ingredients and dishes were all displayed on the old pine dresser, I loved it!

Outside, overlooking the garden there was a vintage bath tub.

surrounded by the lavender and roses,

where I, of course, had to indulge myself.

We had a wonderful evening playing board games by the log fire and enjoying more wine.

The story of The Orchard

I loved this lovely stone house so much that I contacted the owners, Romany and Tom, as I wanted to know more about its history and how they found it. Romany is an artist from Melbourne and Tom is from Adelaide. They bought their stone cottage in 2017 when the were living in Sydney, dreaming of an escape to the country. Tom had previous farming experience and wanted some land, and when they saw the cottage it was love at first sight. Sitting on 16 acres it was in dire need of renovation, so much so that the real estate agent thought they’d knock down – but Romany and Tom could envision its potential. They spent a year of frantic weekends flying back from Sydney working on the house, and in 2018 when a friend suggested they could list it on Airbnb their country escape took on a new meaning. With considerable love, sweat and tears they restored the property to the beautiful place we so enjoyed staying in, quite unrecognisable from what it was. They added the kitchen and an Aga, renovated the bathroom (the toilet used to be outside in the laundry), added the wood fire in the lounge and fire pit outside, the outdoor bath, the deck and pergola, the front and back lawns and planted much of the garden, clearing it so that the stunning view became visible. Amongst the long list of renovations, the house was repointed and painted inside and out and Tom fenced the entire 16 acres himself, planting the deciduous trees along the road. Having stayed there, it really is a work of art, full of love and charm, a warm and welcoming retreat to escape to. I really hope we can return. Thank you Romany and Tom, and thank you dear Adam for finding The Ode and taking us there! 

Day 4: The Sunshine Coast

Gazing at the view from the kitchen window early the next morning we chatted about the fabulous weekend we’d had and what a wonderful nephew we have. It was really hard to leave.

But we had a flight to Brisbane to catch, and more of Australia to explore! The lavender infused theme was about to continue, we were going to visit dear Australian friends, our neighbors, where we’d met, in Lourmarin!

Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast

A 2 hour flight took us to Brisbane where we were whisked off to our friend’s home in Maroochydore. 100km to the north of Brisbane, on Australia’s sun-drenched, aptly named, Sunshine Coast we were soon admiring their different, but equally stunning view across the Maroochy River.

It felt like we’d arrived in tropical resort

It felt so special to be together in our friends home, so far from and so different from Provence, although the wine was just as good! The next day we were told we needed to leave early, a spectacular adventure awaited…………