The Christmas before we arrived in Perth it was brutally hot reaching 45C (108F). So when our first Christmas approached, I figured we should go away somewhere further south where it would be cooler. Tasmania fit the bill - an island, which is also its own state, and located a 45 minute flight south of Melbourne, Tasmania likes to boast that they are the home of Princess Mary of Denmark and Simon Baker (the girls would know him as the cutie from the Mentalist - oooops, did I say that out loud???)
We started our week at the top of the island in Launceston and circled clockwise south east to Hobart, continued south to Strahn Village then came inland to Cradle Mountain and then ended our circuit in Launceston. During our route we found Tasmania to be an interesting mixture of juxtapositions, in several respects.
Launceston is a pretty coastal city, where the surrounding area is pastoral, peaceful, pretty, sunny and warm.. Dairy, fruit, vegetables, grapes and vineyards are plentiful. It is a Foodies paradise.
But as we circled clockwise and south-east on the island, the landscape changed to become more rolling hills and cooler temperatures . Just north of Hobart (the capital of Tasmania) was Port Arthur, the first example of the contrasts in Tasmania. Port Arthur is so pretty on well manicured lawns and old original limestone buildings. However, Port Arthur was a penal colony, one of the first ones in Australia. Despite the pretty grounds and location it was a dismal place to be sent. Conditions were brutal!
In Hobart we had an interesting evening strolling along the docks witnessing the sailboats arrive from the Sydney to Hobart sailing race. The first sail boats arrived several days after leaving Sydney and sailed through treacherous waters of the Bass Strait to reach Hobart. In conjunction with the race they had a Foodie Festival so we got to sample beers, wines, cheese, fruit and other local culinary delights in one spot. John was very happy going from booth to booth asking for samples of beer and wine, occasionally supplemented with cheeses, sausages and fruit.
Continuing on our clockwise circle the contrasts continued as it got more rugged and even cooler – stormy, dark and cloudy in Strahn Village. Apparently it is like that approximately 350 days of the year – in a good year. Perfect for another penal colony. I thought Port Arthur was brutal, BUT, Strahn penal colony made Port Arthur look like a day at the spa. Convicts entered the area by boat through “Hell's Gate”. We were there In the middle of summer (Christmas is summer in the southern hemisphere – remember geography classes in school?) the water was freezing and the air was cold – both my fleece jacket and gortex jacket became my best friends! The convicts worked in brutal conditions harvesting Huon pines (phenomenal huge hardwood trees) for ship building. An expression came to mind all day ; “those poor bastards”!
Continuing on our clockwise circuit of the island we went inland to Cradle Mountain. The landscape is pretty and very rugged (okay, coming from Calgary I use the term VERY loosely), another contrast to the northern part of the island We saw some local wildlife – a cute, shy little baby Tasmanian Devil (which are being threatened with some weird fatal cancerous growth on their faces) and a cute pudgy wombat. Despite our best efforts at keeping our eyes peeled we did not see any Tasmania Tigers – hunted to extinction years ago.
But the most amazing thing that happened, on January 2nd, we woke up to SNOW! Yes, SNOW! Okay, that would be normal in Calgary, BUT in the middle of summer in Australia it is NOT what we expected. We were so cold we wore all our clothes at the same time to go hiking – in the SNOW! We wanted to escape the heat of Perth, BUT SNOW???
We ended our week and circuit of the island in Launceston to once again be greeted by the sun and warm weather.
We left thinking it was such an interesting island with contrasts of pretty pastoral landscape, hazardous harsh coast line, rugged mountains, warm weather coupled with snow in the summer The serene landscape was also in sharp contrast to the brutal and inhumane conditions for convicts – some lifetime criminals and some just victims of circumstances. Definitely an interesting place to visit, eat and drink our way through. But SNOW in the middle of the summer?!?!?!?!!?
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