Monday, April 25, 2011

Adelaide Family Trip - Day 6 (Glenelg)

ANZAC day around most of Australia would mean closed shops, dawn services, parades, and a traditional (term used in its most contrived meaning)  football match between two teams I don't care about (Interesting wiki article about the history of this match, including criticism of the way this game has been commercialised to the detriment of the tradition of ANZAC Day).

There is a section of Adelaide where the shops are open on ANZAC Day, and where (it seems) a large percentage of the local population head to (especially on a perfect Autumn Day, like today was). That place is Glenelg.

10 kilometres from the city centre along the ANZAC Highway and you reach an area that reminds me of a cross between St Kilda, Prahran and Brighton, all rolled into one. The one and only tram line in Adelaide runs from Mosley Square in Glenelg and 25 minutes later you are in the centre of Adelaide. I have used Glenelg as an accommodation base in the past, when I have attended tax seminars and have preferred to take the tram from Glenelg rather than battle the peak hour traffic (such that it is - not a patch on Melbourne's peak hours snarls).

Our trip to Glenelg was centred on The Beach House. Realising that both Ben and Nick had been very patient and (reasonably) good whilst I was blowing on my baritone  Thursday - Saturday, they needed to have some decent fun. The Beach House provides a variety of activities from mini-golf to water slides to rides to arcade games, and they tried them all. Whilst not the cheapest form of entertainment around (the water slides were $3 per ride) they were very popular with the boys (and everyone else around us), and I don't begrudge the money spent.

With dozens of eateries within a short walking distance from The Beach House the biggest problem was trying to decide what to eat (we went for the simple option of hotdogs - courtesy of Ben and Nick). There are also more icecreameries per square kilometre here than in any other part of Australia, I reckon.

The beach area of Glenelg is pristine. I'm guessing that some serious money is spent by Holdfast Bay Council each year to keep the beach in tip-top condition. Back in 2007 (or was it 2008) when I last stayed at Glenelg (in winter) I recall seeing dozens of earthmoving equipment move an enormous amount of sand around the beach area. It appears to be money well spent.

We had a walk along the pier. According to the Glenelg website the pier is 215 metres in length and was rebuilt in 1969. There would have been a few hundred people on the pier this afternoon when we were therem but it didn't feel crowded.  Here are a few happy snaps taken at the end of the pier, looking back at the Glenelg foreshore.

The large building you can see there is the Pier Hotel (Stamford Grand). A very nice place to buy a couple of beers and sit and stare out at the water.

The Beach House (apologies for the grainy photo quality)

Many people were fishing from the pier. The water is crystal clear.
We have certainly enjoyed our stay in Adelaide, although our opportunties to experience all that it has to offer was limited due to the Champships in the previous few days. Definitely worth a return visit, I think.

Tonight is our last night in Adelaide. Tomorrow we leave for the beachside town on Moonta, a couple of hours north of Adelaide.

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