Day 13: Down to Adelaide

It was the last morning on The Ghan, so I made my way down to the lounge car after showering for breakfast. I ended up sitting with a couple from Gippsland in eastern Victoria, and the husband had spent his entire career working on the railroads. We talked about trains and he mentioned that one of the drivers was a former trainee of his, so he got to go up and visit the cab during a stop. I wish I had been able to do that!

The landscape changed as we made our way south, passing the towns of Port Augusta and Port Pirie. South Australia is a world leader in renewable energy generation, and the hills were filled with wind turbines. As of 2020, wind power accounted for a whopping 42% of the state’s electricity production.

Just before lunch, we were making our way through the northern suburbs of Adelaide. We had to stop to let the northbound Indian Pacific pass on its way out. That’s another train trip I’d like to do!

We rolled into the Adelaide Parklands Terminal, and with that, my journey on The Ghan came to an end. It was a fantastic experience that somehow managed to surpass my high expectations.

The staff were friendly, helpful and always willing to go the extra mile. The room was cozy and I had some excellent sleeps onboard. The food was top notch and the drinks plentiful. The off-train excursions provided amazing insights into the landscape, culture and life in the outback, and I learned lots about this unique part of the world.

Bodie, the guy I had met the day before, offered to pay for an Uber ride into town, so we shared a ride into the CBD, where my hotel was. I picked the Franklin Hotel for its location to the bus terminal where I’d be leaving from. We decided to meet up later in the afternoon at the South Australian Museum, and I made my way to check in.

My room wasn’t quite ready, so I decided to drop off my bags and go for a walk to the railway station. The Adelaide Railway Station serves the suburban train network and is located in the northern part of the CBD on North Terrace. Most of the building is now a casino, and the trains are located underground.

I was really impressed with my walk through the city. It was lunchtime and workers from the downtown offices made their way to the street-side cafes. There were a number of pedestrian-only streets which were quite pleasant.

My mission at the station was to pick up a Metrocard, Adelaide’s transit card. As of this year, you can use your credit card or Apple Pay to pay for transit, which is such a boon for making transit accessible to everyone, particularly tourists. Of course, I needed to get the card to add to my collection, but being able to use Apple Pay is incredibly convenient.

Afterwards, I made my way back to the hotel and had a local IPA at the bar before heading up to my room. The Franklin Hotel is located in a two-storey heritage building, and the rooms had been recently renovated.

The first floor (second floor for North Americans) had all the rooms and a balcony, while the bar was on the ground floor.It was a nice day so I FaceTimed with a friend from back home on the balcony before heading out again.

The South Australian Museum was a short walk from the hotel, and just down North Terrace from the railway station. I walked through Rundle Mall to get there, and got flashbacks of my last visit to Adelaide.

The last time I was there, it was about 45 outside, and we had decided to visit the museum for some free air conditioning. It’s really a shame because this encounter stuck with me and painted a negative view of the city in my head, which is why I only decided to stay two nights. In fact, Adelaide turned out to be a great place, and I’ll have to come back to visit again.

I met up with Bodie at the museum and we wandered through the galleries for a couple of hours. I was particularly interested in the indigenous culture exhibit, and again was quite struck with the ingenuity of Aboriginal peoples’ of Australia.

Their ability to live off the harsh landscape of the outback is incredible and allowed them to survive for the tens of thousands of years before European colonization. I was quite interested in seeing the different types of boomerangs used, and how they served different purposes.

The museum closed at 17:00, so we made our way to find a place for some drinks. After wandering around, we settled on a bar on one of the pedestrian streets. I was quite content to sit outside and watch people wander by.

We were getting a bit hungry, so we walked around to find a restaurant. A Japanese place looked interesting so we made our way there for some more beers and potstickers. I tried to pay but Bodie wouldn’t let me; Aussies are just way too friendly!

After that, we said our goodbyes and I made my way back to the hotel. It had been a wonderful day, but I was looking forward to catching up with some people from our year in Australia the next day.

Today by the numbers

Steps taken: 12,100

Free drinks: 3

Times I tried to pay: 2