(long) Adelaide Metro, is proposing an overhaul that will affect nearly every single commuter in Adelaide.
Over the next few weeks Labor and Liberals will undoubtedly have a lot to say about the plans, with Labor already going hard on, they're cutting bus routes and stops and Knoll saying whatever came out of his hollow personality today.
The following are a general overview about the new network: The network is still in planning! provide your feedback now to Adelaide Metro on their site and have your say. nothing is final, if you feel your bus has been unfairly changed go complain, don't do nothing.
Submissions end July 31st Bus lines in general will enjoy increased frequencies in peak and off peak times. most routes into town will have 10 minute frequencies and 15 minutes in the off peak, this is by far the most important aim of the overhaul. turn up to your stop and expect a bus, like you're on the O-bahn.
(follow link at bottom to see how your route is affected) The bus routes frequencies will expand. the Go-Zone will encompass most Adelaide commuters and most will be in range of one. For example my local route will be going from 20 minute frequencies in the peak to 10. New frequency is achieved by dragging buses off cancelled routes and putting them in service on these new routes.
Line removal. The biggest difference in the map will be a reduced number of bus lines. the aim is to simplify the map, provide more buses for other services and have less overlap. Dozens of routes axed across the city, and a walk of up to 800m to your nearest bus stop is possible.
Stop removal. to increase speed of the service, stops will be axed, your walk may be longer, however your experience of stopping very frequently should be reduced.
Using different methods. You may be required to change to tram and train to complete your journey of you only catch bus.
Bus numbers. Your bus will have a new number, know it and get used to it. Aim to simplify the confusing numbering system. routes with 10 minute frequency will have a 1-97 designation.
New buses, no new trains and trams. Although the task of trams and trains is expected to increase, no new rolling stock has been ordered as of yet, Gawler line new trains not included in this statement. Buses continue to roll out of the Adelaide based factory.
Rollout. Expected soon in late 2020.
Personal opinion. This part is what i think, do not take it for a fact. I am slightly concerned about the number and magnitude of the changes, especially the number of eliminated lines. Changes that could leave those who most need a good network having to walk longer.
However, the network has been in need of a shake up for a very long time, and I enjoy the plan that has been created. Personally these changes will be beneficial to me, which makes me biased when viewing the whole network. I not believe Labor's negative comments about the changes are fair and i believe we should AM a chance to prove what a bus network should look like in 2020. i do believe AM can make it work, but as always it remains to be seen
TLDR: Adelaide Metro is changing, service frequency in the place of options is the name of the game. This will affect you if you use buses, trams or trains. .
MORE: Feedback for AM: https://dpti.sa.gov.au/new_public_transport_network/have_your_say New network: https://dpti.sa.gov.au/new_public_transport_network/new_network See changes to your bus route: https://dpti.sa.gov.au/new_public_transport_network/routes_by_area Knoll's Twitter: https://twitter.com/stephanknoll Koutsantonis Twitter: https://twitter.com/TKoutsantonisMP A bit belated, but continuing on my Alkemia review-a-thon! Parts
One and
Two are linked.
Lost Highways edp: I loved this scent so much that when I got low on my sample, I sprang for an edp bottle. Alkemia's edp pricing is wildly reasonable (currently $35 for 1 oz, will go up to a still-very-reasonable $45 in August, putting it in the same range as heavy hitters like Hexennacht and Deconstructing Eden). And no complaints here! True to what I loved about the oil and with better lasting power. A nice, misty spray that diffuses the scent well. Sillage is improved cuz it's an alcohol spray, but certainly not monstrous-- I prefer scents to stay close anyways.
Some re-assessments: I initially dismissed
Tranquil Idyll as soapy but found I really liked it for the summer heat and ended up with a bottle before it was gone forever. (If you want a very similar alternative, read on!) Much like Regina George who matured over the course of the film,
Silken Tent has aged well and now only has the tiniest trace of the plasticky quality I loathed, but it's still very very similar to Al Rehab Golden Sands.
Haiku's jasmine has mellowed and is no longer aggressively soapy; it's a respectable tea-forward jasmine tea clean scent that my husband loves. (I like to layer it with Al-Rehab Full for a stronger jasmine effect.) And shout out to
u/-ALady for suggesting that I let
Vixen age, so it'd be come a "scene from a haunted masquerade ball." Magic happened in the last few months: the amber has gotten creamy and elegant, melding with the spices, like autumn candelabras. I really adore it now and yes, it feels like that masquerade ball! Seems like age is good to Alkemia white florals.
Now, onto the reviews-- Spring collection first!
Golden Bough (recurring limited reserve): A potent and long-lasting scent that smells like woods and smoke and dusty spices and dried rose petals. It reminds me a bit of Al Rehab Al Sharquiah. I do get the saffron which is pretty unique for a fragrance. This is well-blended and smells like a vintage woodsy oriental, I especially like the woods coming out on drydown. However it's not something I see myself wearing often. I often find myself not loving Alkemia's limited reserves like Ydalir-- they're a little
too natural and intense for me.
Perfect for: A Near Eastern spice cabinet.
The Libertine: Licorice and that fuzzy ambroxan note in a lot of "cashmere" mainstream perfumes, bridged and richened by beautiful, fragrant incense! The licorice isn't very candied (nothing like Trick or Treat) and reminds me more of anise itself. This is a fascinating one that smells so frickin niche. It has so many dimensions and flickers beautifully and also has great longevity. It's expensive and ambitious and smart, and not actually that naughty or indulgent.
Perfect for: Rachel Weisz's character in
The Favourite. Pleasure in the Flowers: Hmm I'm a floral lover but these florals have no teeth. They're not green, or woodsy, or white, or narcotic, they're just kind of fresh and pretty and there. Like if you took Blue Ridge Skyline's chypre qualities out and just made a bouquet of the flowers. Competent flowers, but flowers that don't inspire much feeling in me. The only real meh in this spring collection, in my opinion!
Perfect for: Thumbelina sleeping in a fresh spring bouquet.
In the Shade of Wisteria Blooms: I adore this. First of all, wisteria and tea is already such a killer combo, and this nails it with a long, singing wisteria note that doesn't abate (lookin at you, TSS Antebellum). Then the green! I get actual cilantro and fresh crisp celery which complements the wisteria and tea beautifully. This is such a beautiful, unique take on a green floral. Actually very good staying power on me for a green floral but I'll probably still go with an Ultime.
Perfect for: Sei Shonagon
Cassis de la Foret: Another one that is so unexpectedly lovely. The jamminess of the berries blends beautifully with the jamminess of the fir. This is definitely a heavier, sweet (but natural sweet, not gourmand sweet) scent for colder spring days. It's too similar to Bacchante, and not as long lasting, so I'm going to skip a full size, but this is really nice.
Perfect for: A bear tumbling out of hibernation to gorge itself on berry bushes. And then scratches its back on a spruce tree.
Shinrin Yoku: A deep green citrus scent. The bitter orange peel melts into fresh evergreens. Really well-blended but doesn't last very long and I'm not a fan of citrus to begin with. (I will say, though, that this is a unique, well-done citrus that smells authentically bitter.) I don't know if it's just the metaphor of "forest bathing" making my imagination go wild but this magically reminds me of an onsen in the woods. I swear I can actually detect warm mineralistic water-- maybe the forest loam? I will see if this develops further through sitting.
Perfect for: This incredibly soothing gif of a capybara chillin' in a mandarin-filled onsen.
Earth Alive With Gods: This scent is so gloriously happy! I primarily get melon and greenish hay, with the sweetness of the melon echoed and made complex by the sweetness of hay. Damn I love Alkemia's hard-on for hay. Already finished my sample, so it's another eventual full size purchase. Good longevity but still going with an Ultime.
Perfect for: Andrew Marvell, "stumbling on melons as I pass/ Ensnar'd with flow'rs, I fall on grass"
Hexennacht (seasonal): Resins and deep foresty green. Reminds me a lot of the discontinued Wildwood, one of my absolute favorites of Alkemia days of yore, but lighter and sharper and missing that distinctive loaminess. Wildwood was lighter and sharper when I first got it, but has aged beautifully over 5 years, so I predict Hexennacht will also age beautifully. I am glad to have an alternative for Wildwood if my bottle ever runs out!
Perfect for: Putting on a long vintage nightgown, letting your hair fall like a matted halo around you, running into the nearest forest, flailing erratically, and fondling ferns in the style of Florence Welch in the Hunger mv.
Spiritus Fumosus: Wow, this is so unique, like salty metal and amber that kind of sparkles. However, the drydown reminds me of the synthetic factory smell Aliexpress purchases can have, straight out of the mail. It's kind of cool, like I am a factory-made droid who develops a personality far more intelligent and sparkling than my creators could have anticipated. I don't think a full size is in the cards but I'll enjoy my sample and pretend to be a robot nymph.
Perfect for: Ava in
Ex Machina. Apsara: Fragrant hyacinths and deep black tea. Ugh you're killing me Alkemia I friggin adore this. It's so demure but fresh and rich and youthful, unexpected and not stuffy. It is similar to In the Shade of Wisteria with the purple florals and tea, like its indoor and more domesticated counterpart, and I think in the beginning it suffered in comparison because Wisteria's additional green notes are so unique, and wisteria > hyacinth in my book. But now that I wear Apsara more I appreciate its elegant beauty more and more. This would be so dapper and Wildean on a dude.
Perfect for: Lucy Honeychurch before she goes to Florence.
Bacchante: Blueberries and moss and greenness like fresh cut rose stems! A very good non-gourmand blueberry note, super fresh and not candied and almost a little...floaty, like the blueberry is somewhat ozonic? I really love this. It has shockingly good lasting power too for a green fruit scent.
Perfect for: Summer in Stardew Valley, when I grew a ton of blueberries and made them into jams and fed them to Elliott to get him to love me.
Center of the Universe: This smells like I'm dying or had a stroke. Tart raspberries ping into metallic cold ozone, with reverberating echoes as the metal sings. This is terrifying and I would never wear it. But I'll keep the sample to sniff while reading scifi or to remind myself of my own mortality or something.
Perfect for: When Frieza got sliced in half by his own bright magenta Destructo Disk but still managed to survive in the cold void of space.
Sorciere Rouge: A very nice dragon's blood scent. Dragon's blood to me smells steamy and soapy, with a tiny element of...foodie earthiness like bread and tortilla chips. Not much to say about this one, I'm not a huge dragon's blood lover but this is a good dragon's blood incense!
Perfect for: Goth shops.
Les Courtisanes: This smells very close to Tranquil Idyll to me, which makes sense because the notes (pear, white florals, lychee, nutmeg, white amber) are very close. Les Courtisanes, however, is heavier on the amber and florals, and less refreshing and reminiscent of soap than Tranquil Idyll. So far, Tranquil Idyll has an edge on sillage and longevity, and Les Courtisanes on warmth and sweetness. Les Courtisanes' name and asstastic frilly underthing painting are misleading-- this is a very proper, safe scent, perfectly work appropriate.
Perfect for: Jo Malone lovers.
Les Mysteres: I had a sample of this 5 years ago but forgot how it smelled. Well, I obtained another sample in a swap and smelled it and immediately was like "ahhh yes Les Mysteres my old friend!" It's such a unique and beautiful scent for summer. Simultaneously green and sweet and milky in that near-coconut way that figs are, but deep, velvety, feminine, a little witchy thanks to the frankincense and tea, and also clean and fragrant-perfumey at the same time. Back in the day, Alkemia was most known for getting a shout-out from Salma Hayek in a magazine and one of the scents she named as a favorite was Les Mysteres. I always think of Salma Hayek when I smell this, so...
perfect for: Salma Hayek, who definitely looks like she should smell clean and expensive yet also distinctive and mysterious and a little witchy.
Smoke and Mirrors: Yessss delicious perfect smoke with that perfect fuzziness, slight vanilla grounding it but far less sweetness than Hex's All Soul's Night. Everyone needs to try this, to layer or wear alone.
Perfect for: Melisandre's smokebabymaker.
The Yellow Book: Mmmm a delicious boozy amber. The dry amber in it reminds me the most of Vixen's amber -- kind of floaty and candlewaxy, distinct from the sweeter, melonic, nuttier -fires/ Luminae white ambers, but it's rounded by sweet rum, tobacco, and caramel instead of jasmine and spices. This is Vixen's masculine counterpart.
Perfect for: Stede Bonnet, gentleman pirate.
Gaea: Started off disappointingly soapy but after a rest it ends up transforming into authentically damp caves. If it were up to me I'd ask Sharra pretty please for a leeetle more moss or something camphorous to add a cooling blast, as it's not quite got the cold stone component of SS Cellar, my favorite damp note. Unfortunately Gaea is quite short lived so I'd advise going with the ultime.
Perfect for: a Smeagol to Gollum evolution.
Mona Lisa Drive: An uncomplicated, pert, glossy violet chypre. Not powdery, very pretty and fresh. Soapy when I first got it but now the soapiness has dissipated. There's something really elegant and simple and wet about it that I really love, like a vintage Guerlain.
Perfect for: Anne of Avonlea stumbling across a small forgotten knoll of spring violets.
Koi no Yokan: This smells like an old fashioned and gentled seventies woodsy floral to me. I smell mainly plum blossoms and sweet fruit with an missish underlying powdery tissue paper quality which is likely the cedar and musk. This is definitely one of the most traditional/ mainstream Alkemia scents I've smelled, it could be classic Estee Lauder. Very ladylike, and well-made, I just don't like the fancy tissue paper notes. It's abating with rest, though, and I have been successfully layering it over Alkemia's Enigma, which softens and reduces the tissue paperiness. This has really low throw unfortunately!
Perfect for: Betty Draper going to Benihana's.
Feuillemort: Wet (notably the same misty note Alkemia uses in Mist Becoming Rain and The Prophet and the Wanderer that smells a bit like green smoothie) muddy grass and leaves, with a lemony background, maybe even lemongrass? I do think I get the fungal quality. This is not bad but it doesn't smell much like autumn to me, as it lacks smoke or anything that evokes coziness. More like rainy spring, or at most late summer.
Perfect for: lemongrass green smoothie?
Lunar New Year: Gingery fruit loops. Similar to Hygge, but less biscuity and more citrusy. Too shrill and citrus-heavy for me, plus I already have Hygge.
Perfect for: Toucan Sam.
Ensorcelant: I got a sample of this caramel fruitcholi knowing well that I hate caramel fruitcholis and welp - surprised Pikachu face- I hate it. This smells like heavy patch and melon and caramel and incense. No idea where I'm getting melon, as it's supposed to be raspberries, but it's heavy and unpleasant to me. One of my rare strong dislikes for Alkemia.
Perfect for: Mugler's Angel gone headshoppy-- my nightmare.
Ambre d'Automne: A little like Feuillemort, but more apple cider astringent and boozy. It's sour and a bit unpleasant. I don't really get any of the notes listed (amber, birch tar, woodsmoke - a little of the maple), only sharp sour fermenting cider. I'm pretty sure this needs aging but right now it's a no.
Perfect for: Winky the elf getting sadly drunk on cider instead of Firewhiskey.
(the following are potentially discontinued scents) Promises by Candlelight: Starts off a one-note, boring almond, but as it dries down the vanilla and tiare flowers and slight sweet citrus comes in and makes the whole thing so beautiful and delicious. This reminds me of the almondy-creamy-citrus base of Sixteen92 Southern Gothic, but made gentler and more subtly narcotic. It's so good. I already bought a full size.
Perfect for: Christmas in Hawaii.
Turquoise Trail: A fizzy citrus and tea cologne-y scent that, weirdly, does remind me of turquoise and desert stones-- like I can almost feel something hard and polished between my teeth. Pretty, unisex, and refreshing but not blowing my pants off. I honestly have such a hard time with reviewing aquatics. I like them all the same noncommittal way and can't say much about them. (Note: just sampled Traveler and the Moon and it smells a lot like Turquoise Trail + Arabesque sandalwood base, if anyone wants an available option.)
Perfect for: Latrice Royale, Lady
Turqwahahahaha.
The Decadents: I'm getting to that point with Alkemia where I've sampled enough to get a sense of the DNA of some of their scents. This, in its honeyed opium-haze rum, is clearly an ancestor to Caveau des Innocents, but whereas Caveau des Innocents doubles down on its disgusting rotting pear narcoticism, the Decadents lacks backbone and wimps out into soap. The current incarnation is superior.
Perfect for: A pampered fop pretending to be a bohemian.
Black Magic Woman: I love Alkemia's dark gourmands so I blind-bought this. It's nice if you like boozy chocolate and amber scents with a touch of rose petal. There is something a little...waxy about it to me, maybe the amber. Like the whole scent was somehow nuked into a crayon and now smells milder and less intense than it wants to be. I will give it some time to age and see if different layers come out. (Update: I really like this in warmer spring weather. The complex layers come out. It weirdly reminds me of Solstice Scents Blossom Jam Tea Cakes with chocolate.)
Perfect for: Wine mom playing with crayons has evolved to brandy.
Bohemiens en Voyage: Wow I'm sorry to say this discontinued puppy is gorgeous. Creamy hay and sweet tobacco and suede, all blending and continuous into one lovely boho sweet musky suede-y smell. I'm a total sucker for how Alkemia uses hay and leather supporting notes and this is one scent that showcases both beautifully. Hoping that Alkemia's summer offerings have something to replace this! (Update: just sampled A Roll in the Hay which is very similar, but sweeter with a strong vanilla and slightly floral opening that is a bit reminiscent of Promises by Candlelight. Bohemiens is better, unfortunately, but A Roll is quite close, and you could get it even closer by layering it with a leather note.)
Perfect for: A Free People catalog model.
At this point I'm getting to know Alkemia's catalog really well, so I found a lot of similarities to older scents, but it wasn't enough redundancy to really irritate me. They're good at editing their offerings and I generally agreed with their choices to discontinue, with only a few exceptions (RIP Bohemiens). It just goes to show that there's not much point in getting FOMO with limited editions-- you may temporarily miss an amazing scent but the perfumer's craft will only continue to grow and develop into bigger and better things!
