Normally, during our travels, we rent furnished apartments as close to the city center as possible (for that is usually where most of the tourist attractions are). Once in a while, this does not always work out. West Lakes is a suburb approximately eight miles outside of Adelaide. During the early 1970’s, it was built on a tidal swamp from reclaimed land. Our two bed-room apartment ( much bigger than we normally get) is directly across the street from the Westfield Shopping Mall, which conveniently includes two major grocery stores and the bus terminal into the city (as well as numerous other stores). West Lakes is also the home to the AAMI stadium for Australian Rules Football. Next door to the apartment complex was an interesting feature new to us: a drive-through (literally) liquor store, called “A Bottle Store (although family members have said they have seen some in the U.S.). Two amazing events occurred while we were staying here; on New Year’s Eve, we were able to watch ten different fireworks displays on the horizon from our balcony; and a few days later, the West Lakes Triathelon took place on the street below us (many of you know that I volunteered as an amateur radio operator at a number of triathelons and the Boston Marathon back in Massachusetts for many years). So, while we were not exactly within Adelaide’s Central business district, we were able to get in and out of the city quite easily, plus we had a variety of activities at our fingertips. It all worked out.
Looking more like a river than a lake, West Lakes is a very nice bed-room community just outside of Adelaide. The Westfield Shopping Mall was literally just across the street from our apartment. Under the “Cafe Bravo” sign on the left side of this photo is the bus terminal into Adelaide and Port Adelaide. We don’t normally get apartments this large, but the price was OK (besides, we need to pamper ourselves once in a while). There are “Drive-In Theaters”, “Drive-up Windows”, but this was a first for us: a “Drive-Through Liquor Store.” Folks could order their liquor order on-line, drive into the express lane, and the staff would just load your order into the trunk... ...or pull into the “Browse Lane”, Park, and pick out what you want. One morning we awoke to the sounds of the West Lakes Triathelon taking place on the street below our apartment... ...this event certainly brought back some memories for me... ...to the point that I began looking for my radios to get status reports...lol. On the other side of the Westfield Shopping Mall was the AAMI Australian Rules Football Stadium. Being able to watch ten different fireworks displays on New Year’s Eve from our balcony was a highlight of our stay here.
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Carl and Lorraine Aveni are two retirees planning on traveling through Europe for at least one year.
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