The city of Adelaide is proving to be much nicer than the unappealing suburban neighborhood we are staying in might have suggested. The central business district is fairly compact and completely surrounded by parklands. We walked all around the northern section of the CBD including where the Torrens River winds through the city. This is a beautiful area that, perhaps due to the proximity of the river or the prevalence of shade trees, is actually green rather than brown.
Australia as a whole has been suffering from a drought for several years now. This was evident back in Queensland even though we saw a fair bit of rain while we were staying there. The toilets are flushed not by a lever as we are used to but by one of two buttons on the top of the tank: the left button for “number one” (less water) or the right button for “number two” (more water). When shopping for new appliances you can base your purchasing decision not just on energy star ratings but also on water consumption ratings. Also, the government is offering rebates to owners of homes that install rainwater tanks. Greywater is recycled for some uses, and desalinization plants are now being constructed. At one time in Queensland they actually sent everyone a little hourglass-type timer so that you could more easily limit yourself to a 4 minute shower. Thankfully, such severe restrictions were not in place when we were there, or I would be one smelly bloke.
South Australia, the state for which Adelaide is the capital, is famously referred to as the driest state in the driest continent (actually Antarctica is drier but I guess it doesn’t count). We are told that this is a particularly bad year here, and severe watering restrictions are firmly in place; thus the brown lawns and wilted plants. And you can just forget about washing your car.
Pavilion in the fairgrounds (South Australia is "The Festival State"). The water fountain is one of the few actually operating around here given the drought conditions.
Sculpture well-suited to its building plaza location.
Another plaza featuring indiginous art.
View of the distant cathedral from the river parklands.
Pelicans, I believe.
The Torrens River with pedestrian/cycle paths on each side.