While we were crossing the Nullarbor into South Australia the weather in Adelaide was dangerously hot - around 45 degrees Celsius. "Goody!" Katy said; "Uh-oh" I thought. By the time we arrived, however, the heatwave had passed. It was quite cool with a mixture of sunshine and clouds… and gale-force winds. Not good if you're in a flimsy tent!

Our second night there was the worst. Luckily there were trees all around and we could hear the worst gusts hitting the branches and leaves. We stayed up late, holding onto the poles to give them some support when we heard the warning sounds from outside.

A German couple we had met in Port Hedland were also staying there. Given that they had the worst tent we have yet come across - I think we described it as a bin-bag draped over two broken poles - they were wise to sleep in their car that night.

Adelaide itself is quite a nice sort of city, with many of the houses built attractively from stone. We headed into the centre on the bus and spent a while wandering around the main shopping area looking for a new rucksack as the one we have had for about eight years had finally disintegrated.

That mission successful, we then went to the South Australia Museum. As well as the usual stuff, there was a large room with an impressive collection of artefacts from islands in the South Pacific such as Fiji. They must have been a pretty brutal lot at the time, given the size of the war clubs and spears, not to mention the depictions of cannibalism.

There was also a very interesting display featuring Sir Douglas Mawson who was famous for his Antarctic expeditions. It showed the old wooden sled he used on one of his treks - he had sawed it in half to make it easier to pull after his two companions had died.

Given the amount of mining in the state, the museum also featured a good mineral collection and some fascinating information about the sheer volume of riches hidden beneath the ground.

Katy was still a bit weak from her throat infection and didn't have a lot of energy the following day. We therefore headed off to the Botanic gardens with the intention of just having a stroll around. As we walked along the paths, however, we came across a building housing a tropical rainforest.. Normally you have to pay to enter, but because it was some kind of anniversary they were offering free tours.

It was slightly odd being in an artificial environment and being told about the rainforest, given that we have wandered around the real thing in the north of Australia. The only thing we saw that was really new was a tree with flowers growing on its trunk rather than from its branches or twigs.

Katy's stamina gave out after that and we left the gardens. As we did, we passed through a park where hundreds of people were having barbecues and parties. They must be a hardy bunch in South Australia because it was cold, windy and drizzling - not for us, thank you very much!

Richard