Life Down Under (Part 6): Hahndorf, Glenelg, and the Rest of Adelaide CBD

- August 13-15, 2022, Saturday to Monday.

- After 2 days in Adelaide, I knew I had not seen it all. I was actually particularly excited about Saturday, not only because I was scheduled to meet my long-time friends Erika and Abi and Abi's boyfriend Leon, but because we were going to a town called Hahndorf.

- Hahndorf was named after Captain Dirk Hahn, who sailed a ship called Zebra from Prussia all the way to Australia in 1838. Aboard the ship were Prussians who migrated to Australia. As Prussia was an old German kingdom, this makes Hahndorf a German town. It is also the oldest surviving German town in Australia.

- My friends and I arrived in Hahndorf just in time for lunch, with thanks to Leon for driving us four to the town. The obvious choice was of course German food! we had sausages, sauerkraut, and the pork knuckles (very sinful, yet very delicious!) I also got to try their spiced cider, which is something I could probably experiment once I go back to Manila.

Food!

Crispy pork knuckle. (Don't worry, we all shared this piece.)

- After lunch we had a stroll around the town. It's easy to navigate your way in the main tourist area as it is only one street. We passed by the old mill, and the old tavern. Actually, come to think of it, most of the establishments along the street were houses built in the 1800s and were repurposed as shops eventually.

The man who started it all.

Not sure why this is here.

The old mill.

I tried to dress German too. Haha. I miss Germany, come to think of it.

Are we in the US?! HAHA.

This garden was built to celebrate 100 years of Hahndorf settlement in 1939.

Hahndorf Inn, where we had lunch.

At the old tavern. It's now a store with a nice....sitting area?

I tried an authentic Hahndorf fudge. It was chewy and a bit too sweet, but I like it.

I got al of us fudge! There were a lot of flavors by the way.

- We also passed by the Angel of Hahndorf sculpture, made by sculptor Craig Medson in 2012. Beside the sculpture is the Hahndorf Museum. The museum had two parts: one that showed life in the 1800s, and another section for contemporary art. The artworks in the contemporary gallery were also for sale.

The angel of Hahndorf. Oh, and to the left is a sculpture, also called the "Angel of Hahndorf."

Yay to friendship!

Inside the museum, we found these desks for little children nostalgic. They reminded us of our grade school tables in our alma mater. Totally loving the background too, like the animal poster/board.

Cheating is bad. HAHA.

Other everyday things of the 1800s.

- Another shop that I looked forward to was the German handicrafts shop. They specialize in wood carvings, mostly Christmas-themed. However, they are mostly known for their cuckoo clocks! I'm quite glad that the store welcomes photography with their intricately-made wooden cuckoo clocks.

There were also random....artworks (??) on the street.

One of my favorite finds. (No it's not a real sheep.)

A caravan.

Lavender.

It's Christmas all year round!

Cuckoo!

They're quite expensive, but the moment you see every detail you'll understand why!

- Once we finished all the shops, we dropped by Mount Lofty to see the view of Adelaide from the top. As it was a foggy late afternoon, we really couldn't see anything. We just took photos at Flinders column. The column was built in 1902 after British navigator Matthew Flinders, who named Mount Lofty a hundred years prior.

Flinders Column.

Had dinner at the CBD after our visit to Mount Lofty!

- The next morning I had a quick morning trip to Glenelg (tram to Port Moseley Square stop.) Glenelg is a coastal suburbs that traces its history back to the early 1800s. Its most iconic structure is its town hall, right outside the tram stop. Today, it serves as the council meeting place, and a museum for visitors. 

Glenelg Town Hall. Also, never thought I'd manage to pull off this makeshift vintage look.

Inside the museum.

I love these cartoonish old-style houses.

Ladies' swimming costumes in the past.

- Apart from the Town Hall, I also visited the Glenelg jetty, and 1929 Bay Train displayed in Wigley Reserve not to far from the town hall. Today, it is known as Tram Side Kiosk as the old tram has a coffee stall beside it.

Glenelg jetty.

Bay tram from 1929. By the way, Adelaide had an extensive tram network before losing its popularity around the 1950s. Today, the tram from the CBD to Glenelg remains while the other tram networks were replaced by buses.

Milkshake anyone?

Pretending that I'm riding the tram in the 1920s.

- After my visit to Glenelg I rode the tram back to the CBD, and joined the Indians in celebrating their Independence Day in the University of Adelaide's Scott Theatre. The program was surprisingly short, but lively. The usual suspects such as the Bharatanatyam dance and bhangra were there, as well as heartfelt renditions of patriotic songs.

Jai Hind!

Invocation to Lord Ganesh.

Flag hoisting.

Bhangra.

It was by coincidence that I wore the colors of the Tiranga (the flag of India.)

Thank you for the yummy Indian snack! (It was also my lunch for the day hahahaha.)

- Since the Indian program didn't take my whole afternoon, I decided to visit the Adelaide zoo. I visited a bit late so I didn't have time to see all the animals, but at least I saw the must-sees! Apart from Australian animals, the Adelaide Zoo is known for their fluffy pandas on loan from China. They're the only pandas in the Southern Hemisphere too!

Little penguins OMG!!

With one of the two pandas!

It's so fluffy!!!!

NANTSSSSSINGONYAMAAAAAABAGITHIBABA!!

Kangaroos and wallabies.

A cassowary.

Sleeping tiger. (Interestingly, Indonesia - where this tiger was from - was known as the "sleeping tiger of Asia.")

Quokkas!

Zoo facade. It's inside the Botanical Gardens by the way.

Passed by the Adelaide Oval.

- On my last morning in Adelaide, I had a relaxing walk around the city, trying to look at shops along Rundle Street and appreciating its colonial-style buildings from the street. It was nice visiting some of the thrift shops along the way too.

Ayers House, used by Sir Henry Ayers in the latter half o the 1800s. He was the five-time premier of South Australia. 

The house used to be a museum but is now used as an events place.

A very very very veryyyyyyyyyyyy tall pine tree in the middle of the city. I never knew they grew this big!??!

Adelaide Town Hall (left) and the post office (right).

Town Hall.

St. Francis Xavier's Catholic Cathedral.

- I finally flew back to Melbourne that early evening after a short but packed 5 days in Adelaide. It was nice to see another part of Australia that had an opposite vibe from bustling Melbourne. More importantly, it was nice to catch up with my friends whom I haven't seen for years. Maybe they'd have time to come to Melbourne to visit me? Who knows!