The Blogger is Resting!

At last I get a chance to be the blogger.(Ann)   We arrived back at the Gold Coast Friday evening after spending 13 days in Tasmania.  Tasmania was above and beyond our expectations.   It is filled with mountains, lakes, rivers, seas, National Forests, good food, good wine and spirits, great service, friendly people and certainly an A+ rating.  We tried to see and do it all and I am sure we came close.  The one thing that still amazes Mike and me is the most unlikely looking restaurants are by far the best for eating.   We are still trying to deal with the coffee.   Also you order at the counter and they bring you your food.   Best of all – there is NO tipping.

 Probably the only negative was the very narrow winding roads through the mountains.  Brad was the chauffeur.  He drove the whole way.   The left side of the road and the drop offs cause a bit of concern but Brad was the best.  Mike and Barb truly planned a wonderful adventure.  I do not think we missed anything and we had some awesome accommodations.  Sometimes the best experiences are the ones unplanned and we had some of those.  We had many laughs and great times with Barb and Brad.  Our adventures are just beginning here on the Gold Coast so keep tuned in; the best is yet to come.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Barb and Brad at "The Gorge".

Lunch at the winery.

Still at the winery.

Richardson Beach

Barb and Brad.at a different winery.

Waterfall in the rain-forest..

Day 12: On to Burnie (Tasmania)

From the Southwest to the North...we headed to Burnie for our last night in Tasmania.  We had a wonderful cottage to stay in that was full of antiques.  We had lunch at a distillery and dinner on the beach.

At dusk we headed to a penguin observation center.  When it started to get dark, the penguins waddled ashore and barked like a small dog.  The baby penguins were waiting for mom and dad and they were hungry.  These are "Fairy Penguins"who are the smallest of all penguins.  They are found along the Southern Australian coastline.  You have to "wait for them" because they only return to their burrows about one hour before dark,  It was exciting waiting for them to appear and watching the little ones anticipate "dinner time".

Dinner on the beach.

Fairy Penguin

Waiting for dinner.

Overnight at "The Duck House"

Day 11: River Cruise in a World Heritage Area

Today we drove to Straham, Tasmania for a 6 hour cruise that was definitely a highlight of our trip to Australia.  This was a World Heritage Area and is "protected at all time for all people".  The terrain was really rugged but absolutely beautiful.

1. We explored one of the first convict settlements in Australia.
2. The entrance to the harbor from the Southern Ocean was called "Hell's Gate" because it was the entrance to a harshly run convict camp.
3. We saw fish farms where they take salmon and ocean trout eggs for a 2 year growth cycle before harvesting the fish.  Some of the fish were said to grow as big as your leg.
4. We cruised on the "protected" Gordon River.  At one point, we disembarked the boat for a nature walk through a rain forest.
5. The area is famous for Huon Pine used in boat making.
6. At the end of the cruise, we visited a saw mill devoted to processing Huon Pine.

We ate dinner in Strahan and then attended the longest running play in Australia (23 years).  It was titled' "The Ship That Never Was" and was about the last ship built by convicts and their escape to South America.

Did you ever wonder what Hell's Gate" would look like?

Fish Farms...feeding time!

$7 Million cruise boat.

Huon pine saw mill.

Play: "The Ship That Never Was"

Day 10: Crosscountry to Queenstown

We left Hobart, Tasmania and drove all the way across the state to Queenstown.  It was a 6 hour trip but part of our goal to travel around the entire island.  Along the way we stopped at Mt. Field National Park.  It is one of the oldest parks in Tasmania.  We heard about two spectacular water falls in the park that we wanted to see.  Some of the pictures below are of Russell Falls and Horseshoe Falls.

We will spend the next two nights in Queenstown.  This is a former gold mining community with lots of the characteristics of old mining towns.  We arrived late so we will try to see more of the town tomorrow.

Tour Group at Russell Falls.

"The Devil"was here...Tasmanian Devil.

My Fitbit said it was a 22 story climb to view the falls.

Barb and Brad at the Horseshoe Falls.

Day 9: Boxing Day in Australia

Boxing Day is a national holiday on the day after Christmas.  The celebration actually started in England as the day the churches opened their alms boxes and distributed the contents to the poor.  I am unsure about the alms boxes in today’s celebration but it is a big time holiday in Australia.

Today we drove to Port Arthur, Tasmania.  Port Arthur is a place of national significance for Australians.  Australia was originally settled and developed with the help of England who started sending their convicts to help build the country.  One of the first penal colonies was developed at Port Arthur and it was known as “hell on earth”.  The title came from the fact that the colony’s serious convicts were placed in total isolation.

The other fact about Port Arthur that you may have heard about occurred on April 26, 1996.  On that date the Port Arthur Massacre occurred when one man with a gun killed 35 people and wounded 19 others.  That incident led to the Australian Parliament banning gun ownership for all Australians (with some exceptions).

Main Prison Building in Port Arthur

Typical Isolation Cell.

Sent from England for little reason.

Little reason for being sent to prison in Australia.

Lavender fields in Port Arthur.

Lunch: Largest oysters I have ever eaten.

Day 8: Christmas Day on Mt. Wellington

Christmas Day in Hobart, Tasmania and everything is closed.  We decided to go to the top of this huge mountain just outside the city.  Mt. Wellington is 4165 feet above sea level.  There are lots of hiking trails so we took our trekking poles and went hiking on the mountain.  The views were incredible.

Mt. Wellington from sea level/.

View from the top.

More views from the top.

Treckking on the mountain.

Day 7: Salamaca Market

Every Saturday in Hobart, Tasmania, Salamanca Market comes alive at 8:30 AM.  300 vendors showcase a variety of arts,crafts, clothing, and fresh food.  Our hotel rooms were one block away from the market so we started early and finished before noon going stall to stall.

In the afternoon we picked up a Hop-on-hop-off bus to sightsee in Tasmania's largest city and state capitol.

It is Christmas Eve here in Hobart, Tasmania and we wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

Salamanca Market

Tasman Bridge into Hobart

Hop-on-hop-off

Shrimp Fleet

Day 6: From the Gaol to Hobart

We started the day in Richmond, Tasmania.  This is a quaint little town that looks like a typical "English Village" with all kinds of shops.  We spent some time at the Gaol, constructed in 1824...the oldest Gaol in Australia.  It looks much the same as it did in the 1800"s.  Solitary confinement was used quite often.  We saw those cells as a tiny match box with no light.The Richmond Gaol once housed the inspiration for Charles Dickens "Fagin" from "Oliver Twist".

Richmond has a bridge built in 1823 that is still used as the main way to get into town.

After Richmond we headed to Hobart, the largest city in Tasmania.  We will use Hobart as our home base for the next 3 days.

Women's solitary confinement cell.

Typical men's sentences.

Current bridge built in 1823.

.

Day 5: Through the Mountains and on to the Sea.

We left Launceston early to drive to the east coast of Tasmania.  Our original plan was to drive around Tasmania.  What we did not count on was once we got into the interior, it is a lot of mountains.  As a result, the roads are narrow, very curvy and it takes a lot of time to get where you want to go.  We were surprised that Tasmania has so many mountain ranges, narrow highways and rainforests.  We spent a lot of time in the car today.

 Driving down the highway there is always a need to use the facilities.  In Australia and they call them “Longdrops”.  (Use your imagination.)

When we hit the coast we wanted to see “Wineglass bay”.  We had to walk to the overlook, 1.8 miles away.  The problem was that the walk was straight up.  We got our 10,000 steps in early today…and the Fitbit said we climbed 76 floors.

Lunch was a wonderful sea food restaurant.  Our night accommodations were so remote there was no wifi…but it was right on the ocean and a spectacular view.sea.

The "Longdrop"

Oysters, Prawns and Abelone.for lunch.

Wineglass Bay

Barb and Brad making "The Climb".

Overnight accommodations on the right.

Day 4: Launceston City Tour

On our last day in Launcaston we decided on a walking tour of the city.  It is an attractive city with a mix of beautiful parks, churches and historic buildings.  One of the historical features includes a functioning umbrella shop built in the 1860's.

One of the parks is home to a live monkey habitat which was a gift to the city from a sister city in Japan.  We saw evidence of lots of green space formerly used as parade grounds for the military but now used for the quiet enjoyment of the Tasmanian people.  Our Fitbits said that we had our 10,000 steps before lunch time.

Launceston is home to the famous James Boag Brewery (at least famous in Australia).  We visited the brewery and of course they offered beer tasting...for those of our group over 18.  Have I told you that we are all over 18?

At the monkey habitat.

1860 Umbrella Shop

The fountain in Prince Square

Tasting for the over 18's.

Day 3: Art and a National Park

We started early today and headed West out of Launceston to Sheffield, Tasmania...an exceptionally arty place. This town has 80 murals.  Sheffield hosts an International Mural Fest each year where 9 artists compete to each paint a mural in just one week. Over the years they have tons of murals in evidence throughout the town.

Then on to Cradle Mountain, a National Park.  To get there was as exciting a drive as I have ever been on. The roads were very narrow and we were on the left side of the road. There was beautiful scenery and fun hiking trails.  We also saw lots of wildlife.

On the way back to Launceston, we had: (1) scones; (2) a cider brewery; (3) a chocolate factory; (4) a cheese factory; and (5) a raspberry farm.  I am thinking that TUMS should probably close out my day.

"Baker's Oven"

Tasmanian Tiger (now extinct) and Tasmanian Devil

Christian Heritage

Barb and Brad at Cradle Mountain

Wallaby at Cradle Mt.

Echidna (Porcupine Family)

Wombat