Saturday August 14
An uneventful flight over I read the newspaper most of the flight. I think it is the first time in months that I have read a paper, I could almost convince myself that I am up to date on current affairs. Did you know that there is an election coming up? Well I do now, but there only seems to be two candidates worth talking about, both of whom want to be PM. Which seems a bit odd as surely we need more politicians than that to run a Government?
Anyway I digress. I landed in Adelaide in cold wet windy conditions. The skies were grey and overcast with low scudding cloud. It looked bleak, cold, wet, windy and wintry. It was bleak, cold, wet, windy and wintry in a way that only Adelaide seems to be able to produce. Despite it's low annual average rainfall on days like this Adelaide can really turn it on. Fortunately the airport at Adelaide has been vastly improved and boasts a modern Terminal with modern aero bridges and one no longer has to walk down stairs and across the windswept tarmac to the terminal.
As a matter of fact the terminal is very modern and well laid out. It has one unique feature that places it way above many other airport terminals that I have been in. It has a Coopers Brewery Bar. At that time of day however it was not appropriate to reacquaint myself with one of the worlds greatest beers. In fact I have blogged about Coopers before so I would be going over old ground, so I won't mention it further.
I picked up my hire care, a Toyota Yaris. A car before it's time. A car of the future. A car with an engine powerful enough to spin a cotton reel on a sewing machine. One day if we still have cars we will drive such low power economical beasts. In the meantime I am happy with a 2.5 Litre engine that will do 160 KM/H on a long straight (and no Constabulary to stop me).
Pointing the Yaris in the right direction I headed into Adelaide City. My destination was the Central Market. For many Adelaidians this place is an institution. It is a fresh produce Market located practically in the heart of the City. It is little changed in the almost 40 years that I have been going to it. I cleary remember, when I was a child, going there with my parents. It was a lively place with rows of stalls bearing fresh fruit and vegetables, shops selling nuts which always seem fresh as they are served warm ready to eat. The vendors would call out their prices and towards the end of the day the prices would go down and the bargains appear as they tried to clear their stock. On the edges of the market facing the main road were shops selling fresh seafood and meat. Cappo's was another institution one of the Seafood shops across the road from the markets. In my memory this was always very crowded and the aisle ways narrow and difficult to navigate. But it had a pulse and vibrancy.
Today was not too dissimilar. The Market still has a pulse and vibrancy. The crowds were down, one vendor explained that it was quiet as the crowds had stayed away due to the rain. The aisle ways seemed wider, maybe that was my memory, maybe more room has been created. There were still plenty of fruit and vegetable stalls. However I saw a difference in the make up. There were many stalls selling preserved meats, salamis, fritz, smoked sausage, prosciutto and variants. Many cheese stalls also. These featured many locally produced varieties from the nearby Adelaide Hills. And the cheeses were lovely based on the samples and the purchases that I made. Many of the remembered stalls were still there in the same position. However the Market now also features coffee shops and the ability to buy light meals, predominantly of the open or closed sandwich variety, I don't remember if that was so in the past.
Overall it is still a wonderful place to shop for the fresh produce including fruit, vegetables, cheese, meats, seafood and more. If i lived in Adelaide and was catering for a dinner party or cocktail party, this place would be essential to visit the morning of the event to pick up all of the ingredients beforehand.
The Bludger is a fan of the Adelaide Central Market
I continued on my way to Callington and my parents residence. Seeing my Mother was a shock. Skeletal was the first word that came to mind. She is wasted away. She is old, very old. Maybe I shouldn't describe this. Oddly enough she seems more mentally competent now than she was 9 months ago.
No that is enough, no more on this subject
An uneventful flight over I read the newspaper most of the flight. I think it is the first time in months that I have read a paper, I could almost convince myself that I am up to date on current affairs. Did you know that there is an election coming up? Well I do now, but there only seems to be two candidates worth talking about, both of whom want to be PM. Which seems a bit odd as surely we need more politicians than that to run a Government?
Anyway I digress. I landed in Adelaide in cold wet windy conditions. The skies were grey and overcast with low scudding cloud. It looked bleak, cold, wet, windy and wintry. It was bleak, cold, wet, windy and wintry in a way that only Adelaide seems to be able to produce. Despite it's low annual average rainfall on days like this Adelaide can really turn it on. Fortunately the airport at Adelaide has been vastly improved and boasts a modern Terminal with modern aero bridges and one no longer has to walk down stairs and across the windswept tarmac to the terminal.
As a matter of fact the terminal is very modern and well laid out. It has one unique feature that places it way above many other airport terminals that I have been in. It has a Coopers Brewery Bar. At that time of day however it was not appropriate to reacquaint myself with one of the worlds greatest beers. In fact I have blogged about Coopers before so I would be going over old ground, so I won't mention it further.
I picked up my hire care, a Toyota Yaris. A car before it's time. A car of the future. A car with an engine powerful enough to spin a cotton reel on a sewing machine. One day if we still have cars we will drive such low power economical beasts. In the meantime I am happy with a 2.5 Litre engine that will do 160 KM/H on a long straight (and no Constabulary to stop me).
Pointing the Yaris in the right direction I headed into Adelaide City. My destination was the Central Market. For many Adelaidians this place is an institution. It is a fresh produce Market located practically in the heart of the City. It is little changed in the almost 40 years that I have been going to it. I cleary remember, when I was a child, going there with my parents. It was a lively place with rows of stalls bearing fresh fruit and vegetables, shops selling nuts which always seem fresh as they are served warm ready to eat. The vendors would call out their prices and towards the end of the day the prices would go down and the bargains appear as they tried to clear their stock. On the edges of the market facing the main road were shops selling fresh seafood and meat. Cappo's was another institution one of the Seafood shops across the road from the markets. In my memory this was always very crowded and the aisle ways narrow and difficult to navigate. But it had a pulse and vibrancy.
Today was not too dissimilar. The Market still has a pulse and vibrancy. The crowds were down, one vendor explained that it was quiet as the crowds had stayed away due to the rain. The aisle ways seemed wider, maybe that was my memory, maybe more room has been created. There were still plenty of fruit and vegetable stalls. However I saw a difference in the make up. There were many stalls selling preserved meats, salamis, fritz, smoked sausage, prosciutto and variants. Many cheese stalls also. These featured many locally produced varieties from the nearby Adelaide Hills. And the cheeses were lovely based on the samples and the purchases that I made. Many of the remembered stalls were still there in the same position. However the Market now also features coffee shops and the ability to buy light meals, predominantly of the open or closed sandwich variety, I don't remember if that was so in the past.
I continued on my way to Callington and my parents residence. Seeing my Mother was a shock. Skeletal was the first word that came to mind. She is wasted away. She is old, very old. Maybe I shouldn't describe this. Oddly enough she seems more mentally competent now than she was 9 months ago.
No that is enough, no more on this subject
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