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Kangaroo
Up close and personal with the Roos at the Tasmaninan Devil Park. Another day another flight. This time we were leaving Asia behind and heading off to Australia. When your travelling, moving on is always exciting but this time was even more so, as after five months in Asia we were really in need of some western normality.
The flight from Singapore only took seven hours but because of the time difference we arrived in Sydney at six am having had no sleep whatsoever. After going through customs where Becky was pulled up for having a sachet of tomato ketchup in her bag (apparently an offence if not declared)! we headed off to the arrivals lounge for a full English breakfast (heaven). After our hearty feed and a proper cup of tea we jumped on a bus to a hotel we had booked through the airport, where we spent the rest of the day asleep.
That evening we had a wander around Kings Cross, the area in which we were staying, and sat down to a nice meal and a glass of wine. It was then straight back to the hotel for yet more sleep so we could get up early for our flight to Tasmania.
We arrived in Hobart,
the capital of Tasmania, and made our way to 'Allports' hostel just a shot walk from the city centre. Having settled in we took a walk into town to have a look around. Hobart is just like an English fishing town, with the harbour and docks as the centre piece. Everything here reminded us of home, even the chilly yet sunny weather.
The next day we decided to hire a car and do a road trip as this seemed the best way to see the island in the time we had available. We left Hobart and headed east towards Port Arthur which in 1830 was chosen by Govenor Arthur as a place to confine prisoners who had commited further crimes in the colony. The area still has lots of its original buildings and is popular with Australian tourists. On route we stopped at Taranna to visit the Tasmanian Devil Park where we got our first glimpses of live native Australian animals (prior to this moment all our sightings had been road kill!). We had timed our visit well and got to help out feeding the Kangaroos and Walabies their afternoon meal. There was also a selection of Possums, birds
and of course Tasmanian Devils. We caught the bird display and the evening Devil feeding, all in all we had a great time and ended up leaving much later than anticipated. It was dark by the time we reached Port Arthur and we were lucky to get a room, although we had discussed sleeping in the car neither of us really wanted to experience it.
That morning we decided rather than paying the huge entry fee (well huge in comparrison to Asian prices!) to the Port Arthur sight, we would just take a drive around the peninsula and take in all the free, natural attrations including beautiful beaches and rugged coastal features such as the 'Tessalated Pavement', 'Tasmans Arch' and 'Devils Kitchen'. By now we were really getting a feel for the place. The scenery was just stunning and the people were so friendly and welcoming. Even when we stopped for petrol the guy at the garage, having realised we were touring the area, pulled out a map and proceeded to mark on it a good scenic route and some good places to visit. He then gave us the map and wished us well with our travels.
With
our new insider information we headed on a short cut through the Wielangta State Forest which took us on a 'B' road, unfortunately this was an unmade road which we bounced down for the next hour. Having survived our stint as a rally team and after stopping at 'Kate's Berry Farm', where they make the best raspberry jam in the world, we arrived at Bicheno (pronounced Bishnu). We settled into our new dorm and then headed out to see the evening arrival of the 'Little'/'Fairy' penguins coming up from the sea into there nests. The area is protected and because of the constant warden presence the penguins are not fussed about humans being around so you end up getting really close to these funny little birds.
The following day we went to Freycinet National Park which boasts some of the worlds most spectacular coastal scenery. First we took the half an hour walk to Wineglass Bay, apparently one of the world's top five beaches, a title it quite rightly deserves. Its gleaming white sands and crystal clear waters were a spectacular sight. From there we took the 4 hour circuit back to the car via Hazards beach (another equally
beautiful bay) and through some typically Australian bush. By the time we got back to the car we had just enought time to make the drive to Launceston, the second largest city on the island.
We didn't get there until late that night and were off again early in the morning to Cradle Mountain via Mole Creek Kast National Park where we visited the Marakoora Caves. These are limestone caves with spectacular formations of stalactites, stalagmites and columns. There were even glow worms which when the lights went out looked like hundreds of little stars above us. By now the quick pace of our road trip was beginning to take its toll so when we arrived at Cradle Mountain, with the memory of Mt. Kinabalu still fresh in our minds, we decided to view it from the comfort and warmth of the car and then head off to Strahan, a small fishing town/village on the west coast where we could spend the night.
We spent the morning looking around the picturesque harbourfront and then were back in the car off to Lake St. Clair, a beautiful scenic lake surrounded by dramatic peaks and dense forest. That night we
were due to be staying in Mountfield National Park, famous for its glaciated landscapes and worlds tallest Eucalypt Forests, but due to a lack of accomadation and a heavy rain storm we decided to head back to Hobart for some R&R.
Our last full day was spent in Hobart having a final look around and experiencing some of the locally renowned fish and chips at the harbourside restaurant Mures. To say it was good would be an understatement and topped off with a bottle of local wine, it made it a real meal to remember.
Before our flight was due to leave at lunchtime, we managed to fit in a tour of the Cadbury's factory. Of course being the mature adults that we are, we hoped to learn about the complex ways involved in the manufacturing process, it had absolutely nothing to do with the constant chocolate tasting and goodie bag!
We only had a week in Tasmanina and in hindsight could have done with two. Its a fantastic place with photo opportunities around every corner. We will be back.
B and R
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