An Alphabetical Stroll Through Bali and Australia- N is for: New Day, New Adventures on Tasmania- Swansea to Hobart (12/24)

[pkondz]

I know I've been absent. Most of you know I'm dealing with my dad who suffered a massive stroke last Saturday. There are lots of moving parts and difficult decisions. I am committed to finishing this TR for sure. There's lots left to share. But.... I leave Monday for my Trip to WDW (see other TR!) and will be hopefully starting a job (interview on Monday) around the start of the new year. Hopefully, I can some sense of routine and normalcy soon.... Please stay tuned. I will finish, but it's going to take time.

Do know about your dad. Continued thoughts and prayers.
Good luck with your interview, enjoy your trip, and best wishes for you and your family at this time.

 

[missjackiemcg]

I hope the interview went well yesterday! Also hoping that this trip allows you the time and space to rejuvenate and take care of yourself in the midst of everything else going on in your life. Sending love!

 

[Steppesister]

N is for: New Day, New Adventures on Tasmania- Swansea to Hobart​

Our night at Wagner’s Cottages as fantastic. It was lovely in every way- quiet, luxurious, yet homey and warm. As I was getting ready for the day in the bathroom, Anara rushed in and excitedly exclaimed that I have to come out see our visitor. A visitor, you say? Yes, Mom, hurry up!

I went to the glass doors of the patio and lo and behold, there was the most exquisite peacock strutting around as if it owned the place. (It probably did.) It literally paid no attention to us as we gawked at him taking a turn about the garden. I followed him around for a bit taking pictures and just enjoyed his presence in our lovely private enclave.

​

He finally decided to find other places to roam and when I went in, Anara declared that she had named him Sandra.

“Ummm, you do know that’s a boy bird, right?”

“I know, but it looks like a Sandra, so that’s what I named it.”

“Okay then…”

I think she missed her calling to work on UP.


Here is a map of the day's route to refer to. I'll talk about the highlighted area in a bit...

​

We finished packing up our bags and loaded the car, then we both enjoyed some of our hostess’ fresh bread, jam, butter and tea and coffee. It was a perfect start to our morning. Today was our last day touring Tasmania and we had several stops on our itinerary- the first of which was purely an accidental find- Spiky Bridge. While not a top tourist spot, I still found it quite interesting and enjoyed the signage about its history.

​

When we got about half way down (south) to our next cluster of stops, the road took a wild turn for the scenic, but rough. As true with a lot of our driving in Australia we ended up on a rough dirt road which was entirely unexpected. By now, you’d think it would be EXPECTED. In hindsight, I have no idea why Google put us onto this little offshoot where I’ve highlighted the map, but I’m kinda glad it did. While it added a good bit of time and a little stress (are we going the right way?!) to our day, I came away with some lovely shots of the scenery along the way.

(I ADORE this shot!)



(The scenery was sooooo different now! Almost prehistoric!)

​

I asked Anara to take a photo for me on the go and in usual fashion, this is what I ended up with. At least it wasn’t her feet. But it does give a good idea of the road we took for what seemed like forever.

​

The next stop IS a hot spot for visiting and proved to be one of my personal favorites on our whole visit to Tassie overall. The Tessellated Pavement is such a geologic oddity and makes for a really fun photography shoot!

If you’re interested in how this beautiful freak of nature formed, here is the Wiki…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tessellated_pavement

And the signage at the Park:

​

We had so much fun here. I mean in a quiet, exploratory way. We each went our own way inspecting the little tide pools full of shelled creatures and other sea goodies and taking in the formations from different angles. There were only a few other visitors on the rocks, and it was easy to get all the photos I wanted. In all, I think we spent almost an hour here.

​

From there, we stopped at two locations very close together, also at the Eagleneck area on the Tasman Peninsula. The first was The Tasman Arch and the second, the Devil’s Kitchen.

The Kitchen:




A little video I took:

​

Both were quite awe-inspiring showcasing Nature’s power in the sea. They each only had one viewpoint, so a couple of quick snaps of each were all there was to get. Regardless, the roar of the ocean below was worth the stops.

We didn’t have time to really dally at any of these places too terribly long as we still needed to get some lunch, drive all the way back into Hobart, and get the rental car returned before finding our hotel for the night. I’d done a little research on where to find a lunch of local flavor and came up with the Dunnalley Fish Market. This has since changed names to the Dunnalley Seafood Market, and the ratings have plummeted... so YMMV. I can say then when I was there last year, the food was really great! I ordered the fish and chips (that’s basically all they have) and it came with 3 HUGE pieces of 2 kinds of fish and enough fries to fill an average-sized bathtub. Anara doesn’t care for fish, so she walked to another place in town and got something else. I ordered the $22 meal, found a window table, and opened my package when they brought it. It was all wrapped in paper and I must have looked like a cod fish myself when I saw the size. Seriously, it was enough to feed an entire family and here I was, just lil ol’ me who wanted to have a taste of Tassie Fish and Chips. It was delicious and I certainly got my fill, but sadly ¾ of it ended up in the trash. I wish more places (everywhere I travel) would offer a "light-eaters special" for those of us who just want a small meal or taste. If you’re interested, the fishes were Pink Ling and Grenadian (which I’d never heard of before).

​

After our meal stop, it was time for the last push on into Hobart. We easily found a place to gas up and got the car returned with no hassles at all. If you’ll remember, this was the place they got really pushy with the insurance and gave me low-level threats about dings or damage, etc… Glad to have that behind me, we Ubered to the Montacute Boutique Hotel for our half night’s stay at checked in at 3:00. I was happy for an early arrival as our next day’s alarm was set for 3:00AM. The little hotel, which was FAR more akin to a hostel, was within easy walking distance to the historic wharf area. Laundry was very inexpensive, so we threw in our loads and sat around editing photos and just resting for a while. Anara struck up a conversation with another hosteler which I overheard from around the corner. I was so impressed with her maturity and insights about travel and cultures, but also with her ability to gracefully withdraw from it when she was ready to be done. She is by nature an extreme introvert and I could tell she was ready for a break after a time. She also made friends with the resident bulldogs and took some time to cuddle with them.

​

After our laundry was done and we’d both finished re-packing, we took a walk down to the historic harbor area. There were a couple of cruise ships in port, so the pubs and bars were definitely hopping with lively conversation and activity. Aside from that, there were also a lot of locals enjoying happy hour and it really made for a fun, vibrant atmosphere. Neither of us wanted to spend more money on drinks and we were still way too full for food, so we just stuck with the sight-seeing and found some gems. I’ll let the photos do the talking.

​

The only regret I have was not having the time to visit the historic Port Arthur. Perhaps someday I'll return to stroll around there and see it. With that early alarm set for 3:00, we were in bed asleep by 7:00. Tomorrow, we’d be in Alice Springs and ready to begin Part 4 of our Asia-Australian Adventure!

 

[pkondz]

Anara rushed in and excitedly exclaimed that I have to come out see our visitor.

I bet she was excited. Who wouldn't be! Cool!

there was the most exquisite peacock strutting around as if it owned the place. (It probably did.)

It probably did!

"Okay, now you're just getting ridiculous... I know I'm beautiful, but enough with the pictures!"

Anara declared that she had named him Sandra.

“Ummm, you do know that’s a boy bird, right?”

“I know, but it looks like a Sandra, so that’s what I named it.”

“Okay then…”

I think she missed her calling to work on UP.

Right away, "Spiky Bridge" caught my eye.
I had visions of porcupines guarding the roadway.

we both enjoyed some of our hostess’ fresh bread, jam, butter and tea and coffee. It was a perfect start to our morning.

That sounds amazing.

Cool! It really is a spiky bridge!
Too bad they don't know why the spikes are there.

By now, you’d think it would be EXPECTED.

(I ADORE this shot!)

So do I. Nice!

I can see why you'd wonder if you were going the right way!

(The scenery was sooooo different now! Almost prehistoric!)

Yes! Very.

Holy smokes! Either that's a gnome-sized Anara look alike, or those ferns are massive!

I asked Anara to take a photo for me on the go and in usual fashion, this is what I ended up with. At least it wasn’t her feet.

But it doesn't look too bad.

If I hadn't read the explanation, I'd have taken that for man-made.

They're raised! Huh!

Another cool shot. So unique and interesting.

Won't post them all, but the tide pool shots are really interesting. Can see why you kept shooting.

The first was The Tasman Arch

Cool.

and the second, the Devil’s Kitchen.

That, somehow, is even more impressive. In a few millennia, the water will carve it's way all the way around the rock.

A little video I took:

I like it. Really shows how it'll keep working at the rock.

the Dunnalley Fish Market. This has since changed names to the Dunnalley Seafood Market, and the ratings have plummeted... so YMMV

Well, shoot. I was thinking of heading over for a bite.

I must have looked like a cod fish myself when I saw the size.

If you’re interested, the fishes were Pink Ling and Grenadian (which I’d never heard of before).

I've heard of Ling... but as in Ling Cod. Otherwise... nope! Never heard of them.

If you’ll remember, this was the place they got really pushy with the insurance and gave me low-level threats about dings or damage, etc…

Did they do a walk-around?

I was happy for an early arrival as our next day’s alarm was set for 3:00AM.

I was so impressed with her maturity and insights about travel and cultures, but also with her ability to gracefully withdraw from it when she was ready to be done. She is by nature an extreme introvert and I could tell she was ready for a break after a time.

Good for her. I mean that. I don't know if I would approach strangers and strike up a conversation.
And to have an intelligent conversation!

Aww.

There were a couple of cruise ships in port

Oh! Had no idea cruise ships could even stop there.

the pubs and bars were definitely hopping with lively conversation and activity.

I bet. Did the cruise crowd detract from the charm? Or add to the bustle?

Aside from that, there were also a lot of locals enjoying happy hour and it really made for a fun, vibrant atmosphere.

That's good.

This is so interesting... and I'm not sure if it's funny or sad!
Free speech... as long as you get a permit and don't talk about things they don't want you to talk about...........

Tomorrow, we’d be in Alice Springs and ready to begin Part 4 of our Asia-Australian Adventure!

Can't wait!