We enjoyed the matinee performance of Pirates. We are very familiar with this opera as Stephen was in a production in Perth last year. Although this was a professional cast I think both versions were very good. It was interesting to see Her Majesties Theatre, somewhat modest in comparison to His Majesties Theatre in Perth, but with a very good auditorium with good line of sight from all of the seats, unlike in Perth.

Afterwards we walked to one of the nearby squares, then went back towards Chinatown to find a restaurant for an evening meal. We quickly realised that our mistake last time was thinking that the mall of Chinatown was the place to look for restaurants. In fact, it is a street or two south, and we had a great choice of places. We chose the one offering Hot Pot and were given a menue to make our choices of base dish and ingredients and chilli level. This is a very good system and ensures they know exactly what you want.

We were able to sit outside due to it being a lovely mild evening. After the main course we wandered further along and were seduced by an icecream shop where we had little tubs and sat at a sort of bar outside the cafe.

And then home again.

On Sunday morning we went to the local Farmers’ Market held every week here in the Showgrounds. We bought some apples, but also had coffee, soup and bread, and some Honeycake.

After a rest and chat with Matt we headed back to the city for the Evensong at St Peter’s Cathedral. Although we enjoyed the service we felt that most of Arthur Sullivan’s sacred music is ‘meh’. They have a wonderful choir and the music was well performed, but apart from Onward Christian Soldiers, rarely sung these days due to it’s war like messages the rest of the music was forgetable. Sadly, as there is a lot of really beautiful music in the operas.

We were able to catch a tram nearby after about a half hour wait. We are finding the tram travel very convenient compared with buses.

Today, for our visit to Mount Barker our only choice was a bus. It’s about an hour from the city centre and our outward journey was enlivened by a long conversation with a local resident who lives near Hahndorf. He and Stephen discovered many connections and similarities in their backgrounds and he was also able to give us quite a lot of the history of Adelaide. We were delighted enough that Stephen asked for his phone number to keep in touch.

We met with Glenys, an old friend, who has moved to Mount Barker in the last few months. She is very happy with her move. She has a small villa and her husband, who has become less independent, has gained a place in a nursing home about 20 minutes walk away. She found the locals know when someone is new and she was invited to join a women’s informal club within a few days. She also attends the local church.

As well as having a large shopping centre in the town she has a lovely village style street with little shops and cafes. She took us to her favourite, and we were able to get a table outside, with the manager putting up a blind and moving furniture around to make us comfortable. We had tasty food and a kind waitress took our photo.

We spent hours talking and catching up. Glenys has children, grandchildren and a great grandchild. She is also an interesting person to talk with. She is a little older than Stephen and has given up driving, but her new location allows for her to walk or catch local transport to cover all of her needs. As well, one of her daughters lives close by.

We feel very happy that this has worked out so well for her. She has never lived in the city and find the Adelaide Hills is her ‘home’ even though it can get very cold and damp in winter.

We were able to catch an express bus back to the city. It took the steep highway/freeway down and I was very glad to not be driving. It was a different route to the morning.

We’ve settled for a quiet night at home, with a supper of eggs and toast planned.