Adelaide

About Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital of the state of South Australia. It lies on the eastern shores of Gulf St Vincent in the central, southern part of the Australian continent. Adelaide is Australia's fifth largest city, with a population of over 1.4 million in the greater Adelaide area. More than three quarters of South Australians live in the Adelaide metropolitan area. Adelaide is on a plain between the rolling Adelaide Hills and the Gulf and is bordered by many of Australia's famous wine regions. The Barossa Valley and Clare Valley regions lie to the north, the McLaren Vale and Langhorne Creek regions to the south and the cooler climate Adelaide Hills region to the east. Historically known as the City of Churches due to its new world origins as an incubator for religious freedom, much of the architecture in the inner city is retained from the colonial era. Heavily influenced by the prevailing styles popular in England at the time, the heritage architecture is similar to many European cities built in the 19th century. The city is built on a grid plan, featuring tree-lined city streets unusually wide and spacious for an Australian metropolis and six city squares bordered by parklands. Proximity to premium wine and food growing regions, as well as waves of immigration from Germany, Italy, Greece, Poland, Vietnam, Malaysia, China and India have created a unique multicultural gourmet food and cafe culture in the City and inner suburbs. This cafe culture is supported by Adelaide's global reputation for the arts and particularly the arts festivals held in March including the Adelaide Festival and the Adelaide Fringe Festival, which is second only to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in size. The city is the home of Adelaide Oval, famed as one of Test cricket's most picturesque grounds and has been redeveloped to host Australian rules football matches during the winter months, a sport which has a long history in the city. Adelaide and the surrounding wine regions also host the Tour Down Under, which is the largest cycling race in the Southern Hemisphere and the first stage of the UCI WorldTour. Adelaide is less bustling than any of the other major capital cities, and a relative lack of tall buildings means it more closely resembles a smaller city such as Hobart or Canberra. Due to its laid-back nature, it is often nicknamed "Australia's largest country town".

Wikivoyage: Adelaide · CC BY-SA 4.0

Wikivoyage / Wikimedia Commons