Day 82/83: 9th and 10th of September. Back in Danland. Mildura.

The drive from Adelaide to Mildura was pretty ordinary, and started in heavy rain and heavy traffic. Nevertheless, we made good time and arrived at Tess’s parents place middle of the afternoon. Showers, late lunch and an ability to get changed in our own room without lying down was warmly received by us. Beers by the fire, take away pizza indoors and being able to visit the bathroom at night without going outside were also gratefully received luxuries.

The hospitality was generous and were shouted lunch in town with some of Tess’s extended family, which was nice. Wearing jeans and a collared shirt was novel, but did allow me to use some clothing that I had been carrying for 3 months for the first time. Being a Saturday, Mildura itself was quite dead but we were no longer in sightseeing mode anyway.

Saturday night saw the Pies prelim which was keenly watched after the best lamb fettucine dinner I have ever had. This night could have been a lot more tense if the dogs had knocked off Fremantle the week before, as there would have been some vigorous barracking for both sides and I may have needed to do one more night in the van. As it was, it was a relatively easy win for the hosts. A toast to a nice couple of nights with a Baileys night cap, capped off the night nicely.