Jul 18 - Pengi Besuche Harndorf! Guest Blog!

  Hi Everyone!  It’s Pengi again with another big adventure.

  This little penguin was a little sad today because it was our last day at Victor Harbor.  I shall miss seeing my cousins and worry about them after learning about the dangers they face.  I hope that Joyce and the other people working at the penguin centre are able protect them and help the colony grow like my friends back home in Bicheno have.  I shall have to convince Jess and Mr Smart to return back here soon to check on their progress.
  We soon packed up our belongings and said goodbye to our home away from home away from home, as Mr Smart liked to call it.  As we packed the car, we noticed the big house on the hill in the distance again.

  We had noticed this house on the way into Victor Harbor, and during our journey had regularly spotted it, due to its prominent place on the hill.  Since we had a little time to kill, we decided to find it for a closer look.  Naturally it wasn’t too hard to find but it was surprising to learn that it was actually a private residence, not a hotel or reception centre.  They must have had a big family to require so much space!

Mt. Breckan

  The next activity for the day was a spot of whale watching.  Jess’s Mum had told us that there was quite a few spotted in the area and had supplied us with some binoculars to spot them.  I was still a little nervous about getting close to whales despite what Jess had told me about them only eating small fish.  Luckily we stayed on the land, not something you hear a penguin say too often!  It did make spotting them a tad hard though, even with the aid of the binoculars.  We did manage to find four of them playing in the sun and took many pictures of them.

Bashams Beach

  Mr Smart even took a video of it which makes them a little easier to see.



  Finally it was time to say goodbye to Victor Harbour and return home, with a stop or two along the way.  Looking back, we saw that Victor Harbor truly is the land the end of the rainbow!

  Our next stop was close to Adelaide, so we took a long leisurely drive through the countryside.  It was very picturesque though we noticed how windy it was, the car nearly being blown off the road a few times.  Well, not quite off the road, but it did swerve regularly.  It was even more apparent when we arrived in Handorf and had to leave the shelter of the car.  It was very windy, and Jess and Mr Smart had to huddle in their jackets while they walked along.  I for one was glad that I was snug in Mr Smart’s jacket also.  It was so nice when we finally found a place for lunch and were able to enjoy a traditional German weissbier in front of the fire.
  Mr Smart was quite adamant about enjoying the German experience of Harndorf and we ordered a Giant German Hotdog for lunch to share.  We had thought it would be nice light meal since we weren’t very hungry.  Imagine my surprise when it turned out to be bigger than me!

  After lunch, we strolled up and down the main street looking at the various souvenirs to take back with us.  Mr Smart has an in joke with his screen writing class from last year about babushka dolls, so naturally he had to take a photo of a whole wall of them! It was quite fortunate that he did though since they seemed to be the perfect gifts for Jess’s nieces that we were seeing in the evening.
  We finished our tour of Handorf and headed to the home of MinxB and BaconBones, Jess's brother and sister-in-law, for dinner.  It turned out to be a wonderful evening with Jess’s family.  Her nieces quite enjoyed their babushka presents and had great fun taking them apart and putting them back together.

  We were even lucky enough to get a visit from IronSmart!

  After a fun-filled afternoon playing with Jess's nieces, a delicious meal home-cooked for us by MinxB and a lovely evening all round, we finally returned to Adelaide, our home away from home and settled back in.  It was a wonderful trip down the coast and this little penguin looks forward to returning sometime soon.
  Love from Pengi