Margaret River and more

Down here in the far South corner of Western Australia, where surfers rub shoulders with winemakers. Lots of wineries have restaurants with menus designed to match and showcase their wines. And great wines they are. The cabernets are especially tasty, with nicely balanced cab fruit and oak, with these very distinctive earthy, flinty, chalky qualities. The wine country is not all grapes as Napa and Sonoma have become, but rolling country with mixed ag, including sheep, cattle, even deer, with the odd kangaroo mob spotted from time to time. And the Indian Ocean surf crashes in the background.

And now for a few words on food. It's surprisingly good! The days when Australian ethnic food meant spaghetti from a can are, thankfully, over. On our flight from the States, our tickets said "Refreshments." Not sure what that meant, we brought sandwiches and See's candy, only to be served a complete dinner and breakfast. Can't remember when actual meals were last served on US airlines. Even better, there was a snack bar, open 24 hrs (good thing, cause that's about how long the flight lasts), with fresh fruit, health bars, juices, chocolate, etc. In Sydney we found a deli with 100s of great Australian wines - none we had ever heard of - and Tasmanian cheeses, which are excellent. Sydney and Perth are multi-cultural cities with endless food choices, and coffee is not hard to find. You just need to know the lingo - will that be a flat white or a tall black? Here in Margaret River we have just had one of those over-the-top dining experiences - a "winemaker dinner" with many courses and paired wines at one of the top wineries of the region. All of this wonderful food is not inexpensive. In fact, Aussies seem to pay much more for food than we do - approx. double it seems, although the calculations require higher math to factor in kgs vs. lbs, etc. But it is much more expensive. And that seems strange in a country that produces everything it needs right here. Eating local is not a problem. Most products are labeled Grown in Australia. Macadamia nuts? Avocados? Seafood? Lamb? Beef? No problem. It's all grown right here. Right now we are going on a scone hunt to have with our (locally produced) Harvey's thickened (think Devonshire downunder) cream! Pants still fit but who knows for how long.