A friend comes to stay

It's always a delight when Margaret, my Tasmanian friend, comes to visit. Of course, now we have moved to the Fleurieu Peninsula, it's that much easier for her, as her mother lives in Adelaide.

So it was that, on the Friday following Easter, Margaret drove triumphantly into Jeffery Drive. First things first, we had to compare our toes. Yup, that's right. It seems that M was very proud of her recently professionally manicured toes and wanted to show them off.

 That's hers on the left in vivid magenta, and mine (amateurishly completed with a lot of stretching and hasty removal of blobs of polish) on the right in a vampish red.






And then it was time for lunch. I had whipped up some zucchini and feta fritters and salad.
[An aside: I looked up the recipe on the internet. Following the ingredients and method, there was an advertisement from Coles explaining how much the items cost from their store. The site then said:

Your nearest Coles store is ......

Well, I was expecting it to say Victor Harbor which is a mere 5 minutes from home, but no. Apparently, my nearest Coles store is Alice Springs, a two-day drive from here. Hmmm.....]

We then left for the Bluff, a huge granite outcrop lording itself over Encounter Bay. Unfortunately, there was little sun and the whole sky was cloaked in clouds. There was also a brisk sea wind  swirling and gusting and challenging us to stay upright.

But we made it to the top and a kind man took our photo.

I had been telling Margaret of our recent trip to Myanmar and the reclining Buddhas we had seen, so she was keen to replicate this in her own inimitable fashion.

We then did a bit of the Heritage Trail, a lovely coastal walk I am rather fond of.

A celebratory meal at the Anchorage Hotel where it was Tapas Night, completed an exhausting day.

Day Two saw us heading towards Langhorne Creek, a premium grape growing region 45 minutes north-east of home. It's only a small region and much less flashy and commercial than McLaren Vale to the immediate north. We found it peaceful and picturesque.

We visited about five wineries - all different - which was what made the day so enjoyable. The people at the extensive Angas Plains Wines were most welcoming;  Bleasdale Winery has been making wine since 1850 and the small red-brick buildings give the sense of a small English village; the cellar door at Bremerton Wines was an 1866 stone barn; Lake Breeze Wines had stunning views across the vines; Fabal Wines has only been open for three weeks and is a fascinating mix of wines and olive oil soaps and cosmetics.

We did a lot of walking.

And as you can see by the next photo, we were having lots of fun.

We lunched at the charming old Bridge Hotel where we did indeed receive 'a warm country welcome'  as the brochure promised. After two more winery visits and purchases, it was homeward bound.

It is de rigueur for our guests to do the Encounter Lakes Wetlands walk, a 20-minute meandering path a couple of minutes from our front door. And so on Day Three off we went. I always love watching the glossy black moor hens, the curved-beaked ghost-like ibis that burst into flight at the slightest movement on our part, the ducks that come swooping in to land on the water, and the ever-circling seagulls.

It was such a lovely few days.  I always feel inspired after a Margaret visit. I love her joie de vivre and unfailing optimism about life in general.  Our never-ending chats embraced family, gardening, literature, food, home, travels, history and much more. Yes, friendship is a truly wonderful gift that should never be taken for granted.

Thanks Margaret.
Until next time.......