This one is for you, Kara. Gotta look very carefully to see the rowers, all women, and the accompanying boat.
The Vice Mayor of Hobart is greeting most passengers and inviting them to a reception later this afternoon.
We hired a tour guide for ourselves and three shipmates -- $80 Aus each. First stop is Bonorong Park....a wildlife adoptive center. All the animals here have been injured and can no longer live in the wild.
First stop is the toilets, of course!! These are beaded curtain entries....and the toilets were immaculate!
The farmers consider the cockatoos a pest also because they eat the seeds that they plant.
Check those claws!!!!
Kangaroos everywhere and they eat out of your hand.
Check the babies!!!! They live in the pouch for nearly a YEAR!! Quite a sight to see Momma hopping with baby tucked in pouch -- a rough ride for the little one. These kangaroos were so gentle, sweet and lovable.
But the Koala is THE most gentle, sweet and lovable.....AND THE CUTEST!!!!!!
Munching on the leaves....having a bit of lunch
Looks like an owl to us!
This devil is 7 years old and that is why he is here.....too old to protect himself....a nocturnal animal, but obviously is oblivious to the daylight. The Aborigines named this animal a "devil" because of its horrific screeching sound heard in the night! The Tasmanian Devil was a bit of a disappointment because it does not look or act like the cartoon character. They are very near sighted and, therefore, are very poor hunters. They have a strong sense of smell making them excellent scavengers. No wonder they have such a bad attitude.
The wombat is a close second to the koala in cuteness! They don't make very good pets though. They can grow big and strong enough to break down a door. And will if they want either in or out of a house.
Our guide, Heather, took us by this church and school to show us where her granddaughter is in school. Like many buildings in Tasmania, this one was built by convict labor. Whereas Australia was initially settled as an English penal colony, Tasmania was settled as a colony for the repeat offenders from mainland Australia. This building is constructed of sandstone because it was easier to cut and work with.
Some of you may know about the St. Vincent de Paul Society....an arm of the Catholic Church which has ministered to the poor for centuries.....first time I have ever seen them referred to as "Vinnies"....more NZ/Aussie humor!
The children at recess...I took this to show the HATS!!!! Every child is wearing a hat to protect from the sun. Skin cancer is widespread in NZ and Australia due to their proximity to the South Pole and the serious hole in the ozone layer. By the way, I got in trouble for taking this picture....the teacher yelled at me: "You are not allowed to take pictures of the children!!": supposedly because of issues regarding child custody. Our guide was upset by this "calling down" and called the school while we were there to report the TEACHER!
We traveled about 30 miles to a very historic town, Richmond, where the "worst" convicts were sent.....from Australia on to Tasmania.
This was a depressing place....most of those imprisoned committed minor crimes....petty larceny, insubordination, disobedience. And it cost $5 Australian each to get in.
Flogging occurred on Wednesday and Saturdays and all were required to attend.
Solitary confinement was for a minimum of two weeks up to two months.
Time for a bit of shopping....
Lunch and a shared bottle of wine with bridge buddies, Ramesh, Nina and their daughter, Kavita.
Ramesh and Nina live in Vancouver; Kavita, a forensic psychiatrist, lives in Santa Monica, CA.
A wine tasting and a cheese factory provided us with some delicious provision to take to the ship....smoked gouda and goat cheese and pinot noir. Tasmania is on a similar latitude in the southern hemisphere as the French wine country in the northern hemisphere with similar soil. So the wine should be similarly good. Our experience confirms this.
Drive through residential areas of Hobart enroute to the "Millionaire Dollar" hill
As expected, the priciest real estate is on top of the hill with this gorgeous view......
Also, as expected, the architecture is contemporary with walls of glass.
Heather protects her vehicle from damage......from collision with the kangaroos!!!
By the way, our crossing from NZ to Tasmania was smooth as a lake.....traditionally, it is a very rough crossing. All the Aussies whom we met in NZ warned us about it....and dreaded their return trip. Once again, we got lucky!
