Tasmania

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Tuesday the 10th was the day we flew out to Tasmania. We spent the day packing our stuff, and weighing it to make sure we didn’t go over the 15kg limit for the plane. We were flying Tiger Airways, a discount Australian airline, and wanted to make sure everything would go according to plan. We’d heard some horror stories about flights being cancelled as late as boarding time, but that’d be out of our control (so no point worrying about it). Hillary and I made it to the airport plenty early, and our flight was even on time! After a short one-hour flight, we were finally in Hobart!

Wednesday was the first day of our tour. We booked with a local company called Under Down Under. They had several options for exploring Tasmania, so we signed up for a 6 day trip that would give us enough time to see as much of the east coast as the west coast. This first day would be a day trip to Port Arthur, and then we’d return to Hobart for the night.

Port Arthur was a penal settlement back during the 1830s. It was chosen largely due to its location, being on the Tasman peninsula it was easy to guard. The stretch of land that connects it to the mainland (Eaglehawk Neck) is less than 30m at its narrowest! Meaning a few guards and guard dogs could easily patrol the area. The people sent there were repeat offenders. So convicts sent over from England would be “given” to settlers to work off their crime, and if they continued to offend, they’d then be sent to Port Arthur. However, the penal station was only in use for less then 50 years. After which it changed hands several times, and is now a historic and cultural destination.

There was tons of stuff to see at Port Arthur. There was an old flour mill, which was changed into a penitentiary. An insane asylum, where many inmates would be sent if misbehaving. There was even a type of small town, where the officers and their families would live while staying on the station.

After checking Port Arthur, we saw a few of the natural landmarks around the area. We saw the Devil’s Kitchen, which was like a small gorge, and a blowhole, which was just a cave on the shore where the after spray from the waves would shoot up into the air.

By the evening, we were back in Hobart at our hostel. As a group, we all spent a bit of time getting to know each other, and went out to do a bit of groceries. Dinner unfortunately wasn’t included in this tour, but that also meant that evenings were free to do whatever we wanted. In other words, we usually rested from walking around all day. Haha

Kevin

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