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South Australia (Barossa Valley) |
| Bethany | |
| This is the valley's oldest German settlement, founded in 1842 by a group of Lutheran families - the settlements biblical name an indication of their devotion. They mapped out their village along prussian lines. The cottages facing the road replicate those the settlers lived in before coming to Australia. Several have been restored and are open to the public in the form of craft shops and art galleries. The village reserve is a great spot for a picnic, even down to the idyllic creek flowing through it. It has a strong resemblance to villages in northern Germany and Poland. | |
| The land is still laid out in the eighteenth-century Hufendorf style, with long, narrow farming strips stretching out behind the cottages, and the creek running through each property. Pretty gardens set off the old stone cottages, which remain well cared for. At dusk each Saturday the bell tolls at Herberge Christi Church, keeping up a tradition to mark the working-week’s end, and Bethany – without even a pub or shop – retains its peaceful, rural village feel. The common where cattle grazed is now the Bethany Reserve, with a picnic spot by the creek. | |
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