Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Scene 1, Take 1.... and Action!

With a bit of spare time, it's the perfect opportunity to take in some Australian films!  Before I had come  I would have barely been able to name any Australian films, let alone list the ones I had watched. Australia would have made the list....and only now scrolling through a listing of Australian films can I add Happy Feet. I haven't even seen Crocodile Dundee or Moulin Rouge!...I know-deprived!

The first Australian movie I've watched since being here was Beautiful Kate. It's not the happiest of stories and involves death and sex (two recurring themes), but overall wasn't bad, although it doesn't exactly end on a high note. That movie was rented by my landlord from Blockbuster because the actress portraying "Kate" is in another upcoming film, so he thought he'd check it out.

Later in the week he came back from the University library with 3 more Australian films he thought I might like to see. Lantana starring Geoffrey Rush and Anthony LaPaglia was viewed first because he said he had enjoyed it when he'd seen it. It was an adult murder mystery...of course involving sex and death. I'm told that many Australian films are a tad on the depressing side which was the case once more, although the movie was quite fascinating.

I watched the other two movies in the same sitting, since they were only borrowed for 3 days.  The Dish was probably my favourite as it follows the Australian side of things as man walks on the moon. If you were unaware, the images of Neil Armstrong taking his first steps up there came through a satellite dish in Parkes, New South Wales. That movie definitely was a lighter, feel good type movie and starred Sam Neill (Jurassic Park) and Patrick Warburton (who has a very distinctive voice and voices many cartoon characters).

The final movie, Japanese Story, was another film involving the same old themes. It was a bit lighter than the other two, and although it had a sad moment, it didn't end on quite the same note as the other two. It did seem to play up the very different western Australia scenes that are in the film as well.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

The Morning Drivel...errr Guide!

While they say Hobart is the second driest capital in Australia, these past few days have been wet! This bleak view outdoors worked well with me having an essay due this week, but not so well with me doing my laundry! I ended up spending almost all of Wednesday indoors editing my paper among other things, as shorts and pajama bottoms were my only options of clean clothes left.

To make up for my unadventurous week, I thought I'd mention a couple Aussie observations.

To start off with, lets begin with the morning news! Although where I'm staying the tv only has 4 channels there are two morning news shows, a pure news channel and a kids program running in the morning. At this time the pure news channel seems to air in Greek or something and isn't too useful for me. So the morning shows are my best bet for anything of interest.

Similar to what you might find at home, the hosts gossip about the celebs, and usually American ones at that. They always seem to have a guest cook on too, cooking them up something for breakfast. Then there is the infomercial section....yes thats correct, the morning shows are blatantly trying to sell me something. I've seen the same 3 fitness workers selling an exercise machine for my abs a handful of times. A less important co-host for the show will ask a bunch of rehearsed questions, and will be given staged answers by the buff trainer. Then they air testimonies from people who have used the machine...and suspiciously they all have American accents.  I know that occasionally hosts on shows at home "sell" a product, but usually it only last a few minutes and is done so that it seems they use the item and just want to tell others about it. But this is actually very amusing to watch as I can't believe I'm basically watching an infomercial take place during the news.



Workout time on the Ab Circle Pro!

To continue on in the morning line of thought, breakfast cereal means Weet-bix! Yes they there are Cheerios and Cornflakes and some other flaky stuff, but there must be close to 20 varieties of Weet-bix. (Okay, I only counted 10 varieties but there are a lot of box sizes too!) It comes in bite sizes and plain, or flavoured with fruit, honey or cocoa. There are then the larger bricks usually plain but in many varying sizes of boxes. I used to associate Weet-bix as that tasteless stuff that only my father would eat...but now I'm the one with a box in the cupboard for days I feel like a bowl of cereal!


Mmmm the breakfast of champions...or so they say!

Saturday, March 19, 2011

No More Weekend Woes Part 2

So for the grand finally you go all out on the Monday!

Monday

Wake up early and pack a lunch...and then quickly head off to meet the others before embarking on your adventure!

We left Hobart at about 8:30am on our way to the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary.  The park isn't very far out of Hobart and one can probably catch a bus there...if you can work out the timetable and don't mind a bit of a walk. However, I would say that this park is a must for all Hobart tourists. In fact just as we were leaving a bus load of tourists (probably from the cruise ship) were unloading and heading into the park.

So what makes this park better than even the last one I've been to? Well it costs significantly less ($19) and you are given a bag of food, what looks like hamster pellets, to feed the wallabies and kangaroos. Just as we arrived, a tour was starting as well. Inside the gates, a worker was holding a little furry pig like thing...or as we found out, a 9 month old wombat.  CUTE!! and even more so as it buried its head into the crook of her arm. It was brought to the centre because its mother had been hit by a car, and it was found (only the size of a jellybean) inside her pouch by the next car.




Baby wombat being snuggled


The guide let us pet him (a coarse but furry feel) and told us he has a flat and hard cartilage plate just around his bum. This is his only protective area so he can defend himself by smashing a dingo's face into the top of a hole if chased.


Wombat enjoying the attention

We also learned that when the wombat reaches about 3 years they are released back into the wild because their hormones make them not so agreeable anymore.


Somebody misses the guide

Nearby there were also some Tasmanian devils, in a very different setting to the other ones we had met. This time the lady stepped right into their pen, trying to tempt them out by kicking up the area near where they were hiding. If you recall, the last place we went, they dangled some meat over the edge of the cage, dropping it in eventually, and the devils went wild over it. This place was soooo different, as even though she brought meat with her, the devils weren't hungry or interested in eating and totally ignored her.


Hiding devils? What an anomaly!

On to the koalas and the last part of the short little tour. Koalas aren't actually native to Tasmania because they were just too picky! There are about 22 species of the toxic eucalyptus leaves a koala will eat...and only 3 of them are in Tassie, so I guess there wasn't much of a draw to come.  While the leaves are poisonous, they also offer a very small amount of protein, hence koalas are usually found sleeping...and when awake, found eating.

Koalas are related to wombats and have a similar face shape, but a much smaller brain... its not too much of a surprise that koalas really aren't that intelligent.  They also share that same cartilage plate, but use their's for sitting on!


Making a racket as he claims this tree

The guide put a koala in a tree and let us pet him as he gazed around. Koalas feel a lot more soft compared to a wombat. They also leave your had smelling kinda nice!


Brother koalas greeting one another

After the tour we were free to admire many interesting birds with colourful descriptions. There was also many kangaroos roaming freely and very willing to be fed.  Obviously in the wild they are much more jittery...but these protected ones would usually let you come right up and feed them and stroke them a bit. They were very good about softly licking the pellets right out of your hand.  There were also a couple unexpected kangaroo races we got a chance to watch.


Yum Yum!



An itchy kangaroo

With food still to give away, we ended our visit near the emu encampment. The emus are a little scary to feed, and definitely lack the social niceties of the kangaroos...but my hand is still intact although they rudely made a bit of a dirt mess on it.


Evil Emu

Still glowing from the awesome experience at Bonorong, we traveled the short distance to Richmond, a historical town.

The Richmond Bridge is Australia's oldest bridge still in use. It's a beautiful bridge which was built by convicts in 1823 using local sandstone bricks. Of course we drove over it in order to walk through the park running underneath.


The Richmond Bridge

Besides the historic buildings, there's also a very popular bakehouse that was brimming with people and makes a perfect stop for lunch.  Near to that is the Richmond Gaol (Jail) built in 1825 with some further additions done in the 1830's.  For $7 you get a very descriptive pamphlet and are allowed in to check out the jail.  It's no Port Arthur, but as a small jail built to house convict labourers, it has a very colourful past and is in rather good condition.


The original section containing the sleeping rooms, and day rooms.

The individual sleeping rooms have been cleared into just one large room....but most of the creepy solitary cells for both men and women still exist.  Convicts that had disobeyed a rule were flogged with a Cat-o-nine tails by a flagellator, usually an ex-convict.  This was a painful punishment, and if all lashings couldn't be completed at once, the convict was given time to heal until the rest of the lashings could be completed.  There is also a story about a very unpopular flagellator accused of aiding people into getting in trouble. One night while a little too intoxicated, he was murdered by being pushed off the Richmond Bridge. Of course he is claimed to haunt the bridge now.


A disobedient woman sitting in the solitary cell, in what would have been pitch black

If there was one thing for a convict to look forward to about the Richmond Gaol, it was the possibility of escape.  Many escapes, not all led to freedom, have been documented. In one case, 8 men dug below the floorboards and the foundation to their freedom. In another case stacking the bedding up against the fence and jumping to freedom was possible. Obviously more repairs and better plans were necessary to prevent further escapes.

After spending a good hour in the jail, head on down to the Richmond maze and get lost. It's actually two mazes connected with a passage. Nya and I were content to just make it to the second maze without even finding the middle of the first one. We then wandered back and forth in circles trying to get to the centre of the second. Eventually we ran into the guys and they found their way to the middle. Then the challenge was to get back to the start.  Nya and I may have taken a shortcut once...but it didn't speed us up in getting back to the beginning.


Umm so which way is out?

To finish off such a busy day, its only appropriate to take a leisurely stroll around a lake. The Risdon Brook Dam (okay so its not a real lake) is where we went. The lake is right outside Risdon Vale, home to Tasmania's only maximum security prison. Meaning that this time we got a brief view of an operational prison for a change!


The Risdon Brook Reservoir

And that is how you spend a Tasmanian long weekend in Tasmania!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

No More Weekend Woes Part 1

Last weekend was a long weekend due to having Monday off. While other states may refer to Monday as having been Labour day, Tasmanians called it the 8 hour day.

So what exactly does one do when given a whole extra day of freedom? Well in case you're having any difficulties figuring it out, luckily I can provide you with a run-down of how I spent my time!

Friday

This may seem a little peculiar, but after watching a couple TV episodes in the evening its actually time to call it a night and head to bed early....

Saturday

Wake up early because it's finally time to visit the Salamanca Market!

This weekly market is where everything is happening and everyone seems to be. Fresh fruit, vegetables, arts and crafts, plus lightly used books, stalls selling honey, or pickled olives, fresh fudge, or just gift items are combined with stalls selling all types of international foods for breakfast or lunch along Salamanca Place near the harbour at Hobart. This place was so busy and so exciting I'm definitely going to head back soon... after all, the kilo if strawberries I bought are already gone! I ate breakfast before going but the yummy looking crepes are tempting me to skip breakfast next time and just come early...maybe I'll even stay for lunch and try one of the many restaurants in the surrounding area. If you get bored, there are plenty of musicians, magicians and other local talents as well as enough spots for people watching that the time will just fly by.

This is also a good time to check out Elizabeth Street Mall as it is not quite as busy with people and all the shops are open. Of course I had to add a couple summer shirts to my small wardrobe.

After dropping of the groceries at home, I was heading back to the harbour to meet up with Sam to go check out a museum. While the bus does run to the museum located just outside of town...it's way more fun and very popular to take a ferry! We bought our tickets and then had about an hour to kill before we could catch the next ferry over. The art gallery, MONA, is the talk of the town. MONA-Museum of Old and New Art offers free admission to see it's very interesting collection of art work. An ancient Egyptian sarcophagus might be housed next to a very controversial painting from this century while very old collectible coins may lead to the entrance of a short film.



An ancient Egyptian bowl with aquatic decoration


Zizi the Affectionate couch (it vibrates and makes animal sounds)

Not only is the combination of pieces so bizarre, but forget about having labels on anything....Instead an iPod is given out to each person so that you can find pieces near you and choose if you want to read about them. Sometimes this involves an audio transmission, at other times an odd description is given by David Walsh, the owner of this personal collection.


An Italian 300+ year old  model of a beeswax head of a man


A nine and a half minute long video titled "Am I a House?"


David Walsh is said to be somewhat of an eccentric....he is a Tasmanian millionaire having won most of his money online. He then built this nearly $200 million art museum to house his $70 million collection. But I guess that's the cost involved it you want to build a 6000 sqm museum into a rocky hill with specific designs to house a truck in a hallway, a wall built just for a "snake collection" and have a tennis court on the roof.

Anyways visiting the MONA will take the better part of any day and should be seen with an open mind as sex and death are both prominent themes. On a side note, the Cloaca (the machine that digests food and makes, well, you know) is fed at 11am and 4pm and produces around 2pm.


The Cloaca set up



Lunch time! the machine probably eats better than most of us...and yes that is a beer.

Sunday

Well I wish I could say something exciting...but this is actually a good opportunity to get some work done...I am in school after all! The computers at the library are very accessible so it's the perfect time to take that online quiz. Also, as your mother is missing you, a phone call home is in order!

Friday, March 11, 2011

Soaking in the Arts

Thursdays are a void waiting to be filled, considering my two classes that day have me finishing around 1 pm. However some free events gave me a very pleasant evening. A few weeks ago a newsletter sent to my inbox for International Students listed some events happening in town. By following a link on the Greek Street Festival, I found out about some more events occurring.  A free lecture at the University by a Dr. Richard Miles on what I assumed would have some Greek topic was happening. So I wrote down the date on my calendar and didn't think much of it.

Anyway, yesterday was the day, so I suggested it to a couple friends assuming they might meet me there. Then I head on down to the lecture theatre. I know the type of crowd these free lectures draw (around the  55+ age category) but there was about 10 people in my age range also attending the totally packed lecture.  Dr. Richard Miles was described as the David Beckham of Archaeology and gave a very interesting presentation on Ancient Greek history. While my friends didn't show up, I was pleasantly delighted to find out that there was a free reception. Plates of cheese, fruit, baklava (YUM!!), and sandwiches adorned the table. Surprisingly there was also beer and wine (and juice) being offered out as well. I talked to the pleasant lady beside me and a retired History professor as well.  I believe that a BBC documentary was eventually to be played, but I was called away by friends waiting for me in Salamanca.

As the presentation had taken longer than I thought, I got to the bar at Salamanca as their cups were getting dry. Sam said he wanted to show Nya and me a surprise nearby, so we headed towards the harbour.  What a cool art surprise it was!

As part of an arts celebration in Tasmania, an event called Ten Days (on the island) is running (for more than 10 days!). Anyway, a projection of water dwelling creatures was visible along the water surface. It looked really neat, but sorry no pics.

A short walk away in Franklin Park near the bus region, was the second surprise.  On the trees were projections of faces. They looked so neat as they blinked and adjusted their faces. Overall they looked rather sad, but it was so neat to watch them. There was also a slowly moving doll like woman projected under the statue in the park. I believe it was supposed to be the man's wife acting like she was supporting him.


The face in the tree


And the sad looking woman whose face was also being projected


Downtown Hobart at night

Now I know to attend some more free lectures when I hear of them as they are definitely worth it! As well, I'm going to keep my eyes open to see if I can spot any more interesting art exhibitions around!

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Keeping Busy

Mondays are my busiest when comparing the amount of time I spend in classes.  I happened to sit next to a mature student in my geography lecture, and he suggested I attend the PASS following the class. PASS stands for Peer Assisted Study Session. TRU has something very similar for its harder first year courses. Basically a previous student who did well in the course will run a session where current students are able to interact and go over lecture material in a fun way.  The student running the session doesn't teach anything new but tries to assist in the learning method and comes up with interesting methods to get the lecture material across.

Any way, I followed the other geography student to the session and met some more students taking the class. I am comfortable learning material by myself, but I figured it was a good opportunity to meet some others whether or not I felt the need to go over the learned material again.

Right after the session ended I headed to my Environmental Chemistry class which was being done over the internet with the class in Launceston.  Luckily we had the lecturer on our side as the videos never turned on and we were unable to hear or see the students in Launceston.  However, after phoning them we found out they could see and hear us...so the lecture continued.

With an hour break before my Geography workshop, I decided to attend the Chemistry BBQ. Yup! Another BBQ, this time just for the 2nd and 3rd year Chemistry students. The menu was sausages and all sorts of drinks. I was a little disappointed that no one from my single Chemistry class decided to come. Instead I stood around for a bit, finally talking briefly to a Chemistry professor. After having my fill, and not recognizing anyone else, I headed on to my next activity.

This day's workshop activity involved us making a sketch map of the Sandy Bay coast.  Thus a field trip to the local beach was necessary. We were to find our own way there, and as it's about a 20 minute walk from the University and I decided to walk.  The day was a really nice sunny one, and perfect for a field trip. I was about 8 minutes away from the meeting point when a girl driving by stopped to give me a ride. She had recognized me from the PASS and was a little unsure of the exact meeting location. We ended up parking a bit away from the actual meeting point and had to walk along the beach to get there meaning we probably would have arrived about the same time I had just by walking all the way.


On my way to the beach and near where I was picked up

The activity took a while to actually get underway as we ended up pacing the beach and the lecturer pointed out signs of erosion, weathering and human prevention to these natural events. Finally with only about an hour left, we formed groups to individually make a small sketch map of a short stretch of the beach. Then I was treated to a ride back to Uni after quite an eventful day.


Really weird spotted clover....even the locals I asked had never seen anything like it

Wednesday, my weekday with no classes was my other busy day so far.  I woke up earlier than necessary and made Kamloops Pancakes (I just found the identical recipe online in case anyone is interested).  They are basically fluffy pancakes with apples and raisins in them and are super yummy! I even treated my Canadian roommate to some as she arrived just after I finished cooking the last ones.

As I have lots of free time, Wednesdays are the perfect day to do my grocery shopping. However, I wanted to finally deposit the rest of my travelers cheques as well. I had been waiting for my dollar to gain a bit on the Australian dollar, and although it had, I still loose money when cashing it in, not too mention the bank takes $8 when you deposit them as well.

Ahhh banks! Before leaving Canada the home owner here asked that I wire some money for my first two weeks of rent. No problem, just head to the bank, let them charge you around $30 dollars just to send the money, plus whatever the exchange rate is and away it goes. Well...it actually could take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours for the money to show up on the other end.  Now wait one second... why hasn't all the money shown up?  Well first the incoming bank wants a share of some of that money...still missing some? Thats because this intermediate bank also took some money but nobody bothers to tell you that when you decide to send the money in the first place.

So anyway, even though I was still losing money, the bank here has a good interest rate so I might as well be making something from the money I brought.  I will eventually have to deposit a personal cheque and that could take over a month for the money to show up...so you can't leave that for the last minute! My other option is to withdraw money using my Canadian debit card...but as limits are in place to the amount one can withdraw, plus charges occur when using an ATM, this might actually cost me more in the long run.

After finally depositing my money, I head over to the first grocery store. Woolworths is actually the store of choice for most people I've met. I had checked what was on sale on their online catalogue and knew what I wanted. However, they of course had empty shelves which was rather disappointing. Instead I looked for sale items and ended only up purchasing a couple items.  Things to note are just how expensive fruit is here. Mangoes can cost around $4 each, oranges work out to about $1 each, and Bananas tip the scales at a pricey $7 / kl. I think I'll be better off trying Salamanca Market (finally!!) on Saturday.

Although Coles is on my way back, as I was already carrying one bag, so I got my exercise in by going home and then coming back out again. Coles had the cheaper yogurt, and I could find some of the items I had missed at just about the same price as what they would have been at Woolies.  I was hoping to spot some bagels in the bread section, but no luck. I'm told I might find them in a smaller grocer that sometimes carries some fruit flavoured ones. Also no chipotle sauce to go with my yam fries I planned to make for a snack. Instead I bought a discounted hot sauce which I can tamper with.

Back home I made my yam fries and then moved on to Orange Muffins using a recipe off the internet. Always risky, but they did turn out delicious so I was happy to share with my house-mates. Leftovers for dinner, a bit of reading for my only homework that week, and some tv watching ended my relaxed but busy day!

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Tasman Peninsula

As expected, I had a very eventful weekend. To start off with I attended a BBQ at Seven Mile Beach on Friday night and then headed to the Tasman Peninsula with Port Arthur destination in mind for Saturday.

I only have one class on Friday, so after attending it in the morning, I bought a day pass bus ticket and rode into town. I didn't actually have anything in mind to buy, so I just wandered through Target and checked out the Reject Shop and Chicken Feed (probably the closest thing to a high end Dollar Store). On the television I had noticed an advertisement for large size jams requiring you to buy 2, but since there is another Chicken Feed closer to me, I decided to forgo that purchase. I then headed to the bus section where I made a silly error.

I know where the location of Blackman's Bay is, and I know that there is a bus that runs through the Sandy Bay shopping precinct on its way there. However there is also a bus that takes the highway out of town and through some inland small towns on its way there. I of course hopped on this bus thinking it would be the first. Too late, as I was on my way to the highway and out of town with no more bus stops in site. We entered the small town of Kingston which actually had a couple of stores that Hobart didn't, as well as the usual Coles and a Chickenfeed.

Noticing a bus schedule tacked to a bus stop on the other side of the road, I decided to hop off and see when the next bus would be coming in the opposite direction. Unfortunately the schedule didn't tell what stop I was at, so I backtracked a couple blocks down to another stop with a posting. I was pretty lucky I had chosen to make a mistake on a weekday, as the buses are much more frequent. Also luckily a student day pass allows you to cross any number of zones...and I had definitely crossed a lot! So I got back to Hobart safely on the next bus and then made sure that this time I was taking a bus to Sandy Bay.

My arrived destination circled in red, and the way I thought I was going but ended up going, as well as Seven Mile Beach circled in purple

Later in the day I headed back to the bus section in town to wait to catch the bus heading to Seven Mile Beach. In our invitation to the BBQ being hosted as a house warming party to one of the international American students, they had suggested catching this bus to get you there in time. Only one other bus was running that evening and none were running back to town.

I met Nya moments before the bus was to leave and we got on, assuming that some of the others would also be catching that bus. But no one else was there. We hadn't expected that...and being unsure of where abouts Seven Mile beach was, which stop to get off at and even the address of the house, we were a little anxious. But through sending out some texts to get an address and rough travel time, we asked the bus driver and the one other passenger on the bus was able to give us some help. Turns out we were to ride the bus to the last stop and the house was a short walk away.

After getting a quick tour of the beach we met up with one other party-goer who had come earlier to get in a walk along the shore. Then the others eventually showed up either having taken the late bus, or many from the University accommodation had carpooled in. For a change, there was buns to go with the hamburgers and sausages instead of the usual bread. There was also a giant crayfish, chicken and a couple salads to chose from. It made for a very delicious and filling meal. While I didn't drink much, and actually was given a cup of tea by a sweet older lady, there were many overly enjoying the alcohol they had brought. Thus Nya and I, knowing we were going to be up early the next day, wanted to head back. The plan had been to rent a large taxi for those who had bused in, and to split the expensive fare (around $60 back to town). But of course not everyone wanted to leave. However the kind older lady, who seemed a little out of place in all this, offered to drive us home as she was thinking of leaving too. We filled her car with two others and she refused to accept any payment to drive us back! Instead, she requested that we treat others travelling abroad in our home countries with kindness as she had been a grateful recipient herself when she was travelling abroad.

The day didn't end quite as smoothly as hoped. Right before leaving a former tenant became a bit rowdy and had to be asked to leave. Of course this angered him and he took his rage out in his car. We were very lucky we weren't hit by his car, but we made it out of there safely and back to home. Our kind driver dropped us each off at our doorstep, dropping me last and making sure I had her number in my phone. It's a blessing to have met someone so thoughtful, and who wanted to ensure that if ever I needed to contact someone she'd be available.

Saturday morning my travelling companions and I met up early and left towards the Tasman Peninsula. The drive is really not that long and soon we were making a stop at Eaglehawk Neck. This is considered the last defense against escaping prisoners. Taking a look at a map, you'll notice that the land narrows greatly here. If an escaped convict had made it this far...they would run into a chain of hungry dogs blocking the way. These dogs stretched from one side of the coast to another and were chained down so that they'd be able to eat from the same food bowl but wouldn't be able to attack one another. In the water you risked the chance of meeting a great white shark. This area also had some guards and a house still stands that would have served as the honeymoon spot for soldiers who worked at the jail.


A statue depicting a hungry dog that would have stood guard at Eaglehawk Neck years before


The beach along one coast of the bottle neck section at Eaglehawk Neck

A short drive away leads you to Doo Town. A lookout over the coast is one point of interest, but most people come to check out the Tasman Blowhole. The ocean water has eroded away at the steep cliff forming a tunnel to a piece of inshore land. With the motion of the tide, the water surges in splashing up against the rocks. You can actually hear the air whipping around. Since the conditions were rather calm, it was a rather tame sight but still fairly interesting.


A lookout near Doo Town


The Tasman Blowhole looking rather calm

Moving on, nearby we got out of the car to see the Tasman Arch. This was also formed from water tunneling inland and then a large chunk of land falling down leaving an arch of land. Walking a bit past this led us to another lookout and then the Devils Kitchen. This is an interesting formation due to sea water far below, eroding into the sheer rock.


Standing strong is the Tasman Arch


The barren wall of the Devil's Kitchen with just a trace of water far below

After enjoying the sights we drove on for awhile, entering the Tasman National Park and stopping at the Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park. For the steep price of $30, we were allowed to check out the animals being cared for. Of course, Tasmanian Devils were the first stop just outside reception. They were relatively young ones and moving all over the place. We broke for lunch near the bird fountain filled with Green Rosella.


A Devil checks out his surroundings



Enjoying the water, a local flock of Green Rosella entertain us during lunch
 

Nearby were some other caged animals, and then we head into the bird section.


The cute, but also meat eating relation to the Tasmanian Devil, the Eastern Quoll nibbles away at something in its cage


The massive Wedge Tailed Eagle shows off its wings. Not too surprisingly these large birds are capable of swooping down and grabbing a wallaby.

 It was more a rehabilitation centre than a conservation centre as most cages only held one bird. They do have  flight bird presentations, but we had just missed the latest one and wanted to be on the road again before the next.

The bird section led us to the Kangaroos. They seemed quite lazy all lounging around in a herd.


This guy is a bit more alert than some of the others


The lazy Forester Kangaroos, the only type of kangaroo found in Tasmania

This was also the way to the Wallabies, but as I've already encountered wild ones we decided to make our way to the Devil's feeding instead.

These devils were a bit bigger and one was already waiting for its food. We were told that they actually aren't very smart animals, being near blind most of the time and fighting all the time.


Rawrg!! Don't get in the way during feeding time for Tasmanian Devils.


The chasing ensues...lap after lap after lap and only a slight decrease in speed is noticed

We watched them start to fight when they thought one had the food, and then they chased one another round and round the enclosure after one finally did snatch the piece of meat. Eventually the other one realized there was another piece of meat and took that chunk running off assuming the other Devil would chase it. Finally they both sat down to eat their meal. You could hear the crunch of the bone as they devoured the meat. Apparently one time a lady dropped her glasses in and a Devil ate them, only to have the glasses come right through its system a couple days later.

After having enough of a look at the Devils we headed through the Pademelon enclosure on our way back to the car.


A couple of Pademelons hiding in their enclosure. I've actually spotted one of these briefly hopping through my backyard

Next stop was Port Arthur. We arrived around 2:30 and this time they had student discount tickets (concession) for $25 each. This minimum level ticket gave a tour of the site, access to any of the buildings and a short boat cruise around the islands.

As the tour had just started, we hurried to where the group was listening to the guide. Oh but his voice!! He had clearly memorized his lines but even with an accent, a dreary monotone voice is hard to listen to! A fit of giggles took over our group as we all stared in opposite directions to avoid bursting into full fledged laughter. After his spiel finished we made the unanimous decision to explore the site ourselves instead of continue with the tour.


Half of the Penitentiary is shown in the foreground with the Hospital siting on the hill behind

The buildings are just a skeleton of what they once where. Bushfires have all but destroyed them. Even after the fires, tourist would sometimes snag a brick as a momento. In the archaeological museum a letter written by an anonymous tourist speaks of the horrible streak of bad luck they had after swiping a brick, hence they chose to send the brick back to the site in the hopes their luck would change.

There were many placks to examine and we didn't get to all the buildings, but it was time for the cruise. A lady explained very briefly some of the nearby landmarks. We headed towards the island that held the young boys who had committed crimes, and sailed around the Isle of the Dead. For a price, one could take a tour of the individual islands as well.


The Isle of the Dead, the final resting place for the bodies of roughly 1100 convicts, soldiers and even an archbishop


What remains of Point Puer Boy's Prison on an adjacent island.


We headed back into the the dockyard, remarking on just how beautiful Port Albert looked.


The lush green landscape of Port Arthur seen from the coast


Choosing a last couple buildings to admire, we walked to the almost hidden Church. Even as a shell it looked very majestic between the trees. Nearby was the Governor's Cottage, located at the top of the Governor's Garden. Who would have thought the convicts would have a beautiful garden next to them. The small brazen birds zipped overhead all the way down the garden path.


A church peaks out of the trees surrounding it


In the centre of the Governor's Garden

We then headed to our final stop, a memorial at the site of the old restaurant- Broad Arrow Cafe. On April 28, 1996, a gunman shot and killed many people in the Cafe, injuring many more. Although caught, his name was never released so that the shooting could not be glorified by releasing his name. The outer shell is all that remains of the Cafe now too.

Inside the reception building we matched a card given when we had arrived to a criminal. You could then find out what your person had done to come to Port Arthur, and how they ended serving their crime.

After checking out the pricey gift shop, we loaded back into the car for one last stop. The Remarkable Cave, located a short distance away provided us with another amazing view at the work of nature.


Leading down to the Remarkable Cave


The water flushes into the Remarkable Cave's mouth

Then we rode home quite content with our day. We also gave our driver $10 each, which was quite a bargain compared to the $23 one way fare that would have meant no stopping along the way.