Visit Jut en Jul

Mum and me
Originally uploaded by Petra Bos.

Only a few months after my mum and dad returned home from their Christmas holiday here in SA, mum came to visit again for my birthday! This time she came with her friend Sandra from Beijing, together aka "Jut en Jul".
During their visit we did the obligatory -but still very enjoyable- trips to the Adelaide Hills, wildlife parks, the city, the beach and of course to the Barossa for some wine tasting!
We also went to Womadelaide, which is an international music and culture festival in the Parklands. What an amazing atmosphere!

Northern Lights

Sunny conservatorium
Originally uploaded by Petra Bos.

In March this year Adelaide hosted the Northern Lights festival. Several historic buildings on North Terrace were transformed into paintings made out of light. The display changed every few minutes. It was amazing!

Kangaroo Island

Hello there
Originally uploaded by Petra Bos.

Before my parents left Australia again we made a trip to Kangaroo Island. Years ago, Sylvia and I had visited this island just South of Adelaide and I remembered it as one of the highlights of our Australia travels. It didn't disappoint this time either!

Unfortunately just weeks before our trip to K.I., there had been some massive bushfires and large parts of the island had gone up in flames. It was astonishing to see how big the area of the fires actually was and how much of the national parks was burned down. Bushfires are however, essential for the Australian forest to survive. Seeds of some plants actually need the heat of a fire to be able to support new growth! And it was indeed amazing to see how quickly new growth was already picking up again on the island.

The amount of wildlife on Kangaroo Island is amazing. Kangaroos, possums, wallabies, seal and sea lions a plenty. Koalas are even eating themselves out of habitat! It is an amazing place to get to see some of the Australian wildlife up close and personal. We definitely won't forget New Year's Eve 2007: on the beach surrounded by sea lions and 47 degrees Celsius!

I haven't even mentioned the scenery of KI yet; have a look at the photos to see for yourself...

Christmas in shorts

Dad and roo having a good chat
Originally uploaded by Petra Bos.

On the day my parents arrived here in Adelaide for the Christmas holidays we went to an event called Carols by Candlelight. It is an event with an amazing atmosphere! Thousands of people all carrying candles and singing songs at a beautiful spot in the middle of Adelaide. It is quite different celebrating Christmas here compared to Europe. People in church wearing shorts and sun glasses! But the Carol-singing definitely helped bringing on the real Christmas feeling.
I also uploaded some photos of the mandatory visit to Cleland, my favourite wildlife park around Adelaide where we had some private times with the roos and emus. And of course, we visited the Barossa; you have to enjoy the good life!
Finally there are a few photos of our visit to the Coorong. The Coorong is a national park a few hours South of Adelaide. It is the place where the mighty river Murray meets the see. There are some lagoons and lots of sand dunes around there and it's a home for many birds. Later this year I went back to the Coorong for a camping weekend, photos of this will follow... eventually.