HAHNDORF RALLY REPORT: 16th – 19th June 2016
Reporter: Beverley
The short drive from home to Hahndorf was through misty low cloud with the sun a subdued ball of
light trying to break through the surface of the clouds. The forecast for the weekend is for rain so
fingers crossed not too much arrives.
We have all unpacked and set up so it’s time to take a moment to check our surroundings. We are in a lovely park with grassed sites and magnificent gum trees. The sites are spacious and each is clearly
defined by a retaining wall and garden. The ambiance is of gently rolling hills in a peaceful rural
setting. Many birds are present here from galahs, corellas, crows (shouldn’t mention them) minor birds and lots of warbling magpies.
It has rained a lot through the week so some sites are a bit wet but most have drained well. All the
roads within the park are named for German cities. Coincidently we are in Hamburg Street and we
have a long ago resident of Hamburg next door to us. Do you feel at home Karl?
We meet Ruth and Chris, potential new members, who may or may not be allowed to join as they are
doubling up on existing members names. It’s really too much but Marilyn and John have been cruising
the world with them and seem to like them, so maybe they’re OK. Occasionally we struggle to remember dates, places and names but not too many of us arrive at these functions the week before we should! We did miss Chris and Keith at Port Vincent but were not aware that they had been there the week prior. Nice to see you both this time chaps!
We had long been thinking that we should visit a group of food/eating shops in Mt. Barker that we had
seen an article about. This rally was a perfect time to explore. We mentioned we were going and if
others would like to join us they were welcome.
Off to the “Prancing Pony” a group of us went for lunch. It’s a boutique brewery with a large eating
area of rustic benches and chandeliers within the brewery. The décor is enhanced by several wooden rocking horses placed strategically about. They serve food platters, very suitable for sharing along with other foods. They also have racks of six different beers to taste. Many partook of these. Next door is the “Busy Bee” shop with lots of honey products, some teamed with “Udder Delights” cheeses and delicious honey ice cream. If I had a grandchild I may have been tempted to a buy a very cute honey bee travel trolley on wheels. Next was the “Skara” smallgoods shop where all the meats are made on the premises. On the way home from this excursion we dropped into “Beerenberg”
jams and sauces. A great day of flavours and tastes was had by all.
Christopher was cooking dinner one night and we had a surprise visitor who proceeded to advise
him on how to cook it and what to add to it! Many thanks Darcy. Karl and Philippa presented us with a traditional German dinner consisting of tasty sausages and meats accompanied with sauerkraut, mashed potatoes, mustard and sauce washed down with drinks of choice. What a great way to warm the body on a cold winter’s evening! Thank you to you both. Later some persons partook of a drink known as a cowboy and became quite relaxed!
This park has a new camp kitchen with modern facilities and an outside balcony overlooking the area
which will be lovely in finer weather. Sadly, like most modern facilities, they have no fabrics to absorb
the noise so are indeed that - Noisy. We shared happy hours here each afternoon. Some played mini golf. This was won by Joseph and Tony. We also had a ‘bring your own questions’ quiz game. This invited some complaints on the difficulties or not of the questions. Visitors Ruth and Chris
won this.
We had several visits on Saturday from members unable to attend the full rally. It’s good to know Don
is recovering from his surgery. We wish him continued improvement and Donna and Leon a quick
recovery from their lurgy.
Sheila and Pierre left from Hahndorf to head north for the winter. Safe journey to you, and all the
others who head off soon. Look forward to seeing everyone in the mid north for “Murder Mystery” in
Peterborough in August.