What's on Adelaide

As of 2006 Census, Adelaide had a metropolitan population of more than 1,105,839, making it Australia's fifth largest city. In the 2002-2003 period the population grew by 0.6%, while the national average was 1.2%. Some 70.3% of the population of South Australia are residents of the Adelaide metropolitan area, making South Australia one of the most centralised states. Major areas of population growth in recent years were in outer suburbs such as Mawson Lakes and Golden Grove. Adelaide's inhabitants occupy 341,227 houses, 54,826 semi-detached, row terrace or town houses and 49,327 flats, units or apartments.

Persons of high-income are concentrated on the coastal suburbs (such as Brighton and Glenelg), eastern suburbs (such as Wattle Park, Kensington Gardens and College Park) and inner south-eastern suburbs (such as Waterfall Gully and Unley). Almost a fifth (17.9%) of the population had university qualifications. The number of Adelaideans with vocational qualifications (such as tradespersons) fell from 62.1% of the labour force in the 1991 census to 52.4% in the 2001 census. Over half of the population identifies as Christian, with the largest denominations being Catholic (22.1%), Anglican (14.0%), Uniting Church (8.4%) and Eastern Orthodox (3.8%). Approximately 24% of the population expressed no religious affiliation, compared with the national average of 18.7%.

Overall, Adelaide is ageing more rapidly than other Australian capital cities. Just over a quarter (26.7%) of Adelaide's population is aged 55 years or older, in comparison to the national average of 24.3%. Adelaide has the lowest number of children (under-15 year olds), which composed 17.8% of the population, compared to the national average of 19.8.

Overseas-born Adelaideans composed 23.7% (262,367) of the total population. The north-western suburbs (such as Woodville and Athol Park) and suburbs close to the CBD have a higher ratio of overseas-born residents. The five largest groups of overseas-born were from England (7.3%), Italy (1.9%), Scotland (1.0%), Vietnam (0.9%), and Greece (0.9%). The most-spoken languages other than English were Italian (3.0%), Greek (2.2%), Vietnamese (1.2%), Mandarin (0.8%), and Cantonese (0.7%).

Culture 

While established as a British province, Adelaide attracted immigrants from many non-English speaking countries early-on, including German and other European non-conformists escaping religious persecution. The first German Lutherans arrived in 1838 bringing with them the vine cuttings that they used to found the acclaimed wineries of the Barossa Valley. After the Second World War, Italians, Greeks, Dutch, Poles and many other European nationalities came to make a new start. An influx of Asian immigrants following the Vietnam War, and more recently many African refugees, have added to Adelaide's multicultural mix. These new arrivals have blended with dominant Anglo-Saxon culture to form a rich and diverse cuisine and vibrant restaurant culture. 

Climate 

Adelaide has a hot Mediterranean climate (Koppen climate classification Csa), which generally means mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers. Of all the Australian capital cities, Adelaide is the driest. Rainfall is unreliable, light and infrequent throughout summer. The average in January and February is around 20 millimetres (0.8 inches) but completely rainless months are by no means uncommon and in 1893 sixty-nine days passed without measurable rainfall. In contrast, the winter has fairly reliable rainfall with June being the wettest month of the year, averaging around 80 mm.

In the summer, maxima average 29 °C (84 °F) but there is considerable variation and Adelaide can usually expect around 3 days a year when the daytime temperature is 40 °C or above. In January 1939, the temperature reached over 47 °C (116 °F) twice - a record for any Australian capital city. From the 3rd of March 2008, Adelaide has recorded 12 consecutive days of temperatures over 35 °C, again a record for an Australian capital. In winter from June to August, maximum average is 15-16 °C (59-61 °F) and minimum is usually around 8 °C (46 °F). Frosts are rare, with the most notable occurrences having occurred in July 1908 and July 1982. There is usually no appreciable snowfall in Adelaide, except on rare occasions at Mount Lofty and in some places in the Adelaide Hills.