Tasmania - 11-14 October

I don't know if I've ever had a love affair with a place before, but I have one with Tasmania. In just three short days, I fell absolutely and totally in love with its rugged landscape, winding roads, beautiful coastlines, unique wildlife, mystical forests, and simple way of life. I had a taste, and I am already desperate for more. For this trip, I had two amazing travel partners - Eli, from Italy, and Laura, from France. Both Eli and Laura are also au pairs in Canberra, and Eli and I had met and hung out on several occasions. Laura and I met for the first time on the Friday night of our trip, when we drove to Sydney for our early flight Saturday AM. We picked up Eli at a hostel in Kings Cross, where she'd been on holiday, and we headed to Al's to spend the night.

We were fortunate that Al and his sisters were able to host the three of us on the night before our trip, AND Al even got up to drive us to the airport at 4 a.m. Saturday morning (what a champ :*). Despite getting up and to the airport an hour before our flight, we came very close to missing Jetstar's deadline for check-in. So after an extremely long line to check in, several hold-ups at security (aerosol and nail scissors in Laura and Eli's bags, respectively), and Laura getting frisked, we finally made it to the flight and arrived in Hobart, Tasmania at 8:15 a.m.

6:15 a.m. flight out of Sydney

DAY 1 - Salamanca Markets, Tasman Peninsula, Port Arthur, Federation Chocolate Factory, Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park:

Hobart Airport was tiny and precious. Upon our arrival, we had decided to look into renting a car, because from my research of Tassie, public transport was not feasible in order to see the things we wanted to see. After checking prices with several companies (damn those "under 25 years old" fees!), we rented a red Hyundai i20 for three days with Hertz - the only company without an under 25 charge. It was totally worth it!! We first went to the Salamanca Markets, which all of us had heard were full of interesting foods and wares for purchase. They did not disappoint. I got a small bottle of blackberry wine for my host family, a mini bottle of locally-distilled whisky for Al, and a wallaby burrito for myself!

Salamanca Markets with Mount Wellington behind

Wallaby burrito

The next stop was our hostel - a quaint and cozy neon-green building titled The Pickled Frog. It had its own bar, several lounges, a huge kitchen, and crazy cool murals and memorabilia all over the walls. Although check-in wasn't until 2 p.m., we were able to drop off our bags in a luggage store room and took a minute to regroup and plan the day. After looking at tour brochures at the hostel, we realized that with a car, we could do the exact things listed on the tour without paying the tour price! So we headed off toward Port Arthur and the Tasman Peninsula. The views on the way were stunning, and our car was definitely a highlight. It was adorable and new and hugged the Tasmanian curves like a dream. I may even look into purchasing a Hyundai i20 when I next need a vehicle!

Lobby/bar area of The Pickled Frog

Our rental car on the way to Port Arthur

None of my pictures do this landscape justice.

We traveled over two bridges that tied the mainland to the Tasman Peninsula, en route first to see the Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park; obviously we had to see Tasmanian devils in Tasmania. The views were to die for...each beach or mountain seemed more beautiful than the last, and the farmland and sheep were an ever-present sight. Shortly after entering the Tasman Peninsula, we began to see signs for some beautiful lookouts as well as the natural rock formations of the Tasman Arch and the Devil's Kitchen. We stopped for some short hikes around this area then made our way to the Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park. The entry to the park was rather expensive (~$30 each) but the money goes toward conservation efforts, and we all wanted to see Tasmanian devils. When we arrived, we were able to feed the kangaroos at the centre, which is always a fun experience! The centre also had birds of prey and quolls and other Tasmanian animals. The highlight, of course, was watching two female Tasmanian devils being fed, and learning more about the animal I've only ever known from a cartoon.

Pirates Bay

Tasman Arch, formed when a sea cave's roof collapsed

Pirates Bay lookout in Eaglehawk Neck

Devil's Kitchen

Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park

'Roo feeding!

Laura, Eli, and me with the 'roos

A quoll, which is a carnivorous marsupial native to Australia and New Guinea

Tassie devils

We went to Federation Chocolate Factory (an awkward experience as the factory was empty, and we were stared down by its only employee) then continued on toward Port Arthur, a town with much convict history. Upon arriving at the historic site, we decided against entry to the site, because several of the most beautiful old buildings/prisons were being constructed on, and we had seen signs for some other natural beauties. We headed on, following the signs to Remarkable Cave and another lookout then, based on a picture I'd seen on a Tasmanian tourism Instagram, we decided to hike to Cape Raoul, at the end of the Tasman Peninsula. Because I have a smaller phone company in Australia, I had no service in the more remote places, but Eli's Telstra service (the AT&T of Australia) was able to guide us along dirt and gravel roads to the trailhead for Cape Raoul. The hike was about two hours return, and we we hurried on the way back to beat darkness...but the view was stunning and a beautiful way to finish Day 1.

Remarkable Cave

Cape Raoul

Sunset at Cape Raoul

DAY 2 - Mount Wellington summit, Mt Field National Park (Russell Falls, Horseshoe Falls, Lady Barron Falls):

On Day 2, we slept in a bit and got up at a leisurely time. Because the weather in Hobart was predicted to be rainy on our final day, we had decided to do some activities closer to Hobart on Day 2 and save Freycinet National Park for Day 3. Around noon, we drove to the summit of Mt Wellington, which looms over the city of Hobart. An American from the hostel (who we'd actually met the day before by chance at the Tasmanian Conservation Centre) came along for the ride. The overlooks of the city and ocean were gorgeous. Twelve hundred and seventy metres up, the summit was full of giant red rocks and looked a bit like a space station, with a giant tower and satellite dish.

The pinnacle of Mount Wellington

Lookouts

Hobart from 1270 metres above sea level

After we summited, we dropped our new American friend back at the hostel, and the three of us headed to Mt Field National Park where (again from Instagram), I had seen pictures of several beautiful waterfalls. The national park entry was $24 per car, and the trail to all three waterfalls began just behind the visitors' centre. Russell Falls was closest, about 15 minutes walk from the visitors' centre. Past Russell Falls, we hiked on to Horseshoe Falls, which was probably 30 minutes further. Horseshoe Falls were my favorite, simply due to the immense greenery surrounding  the falls. The entire hike was absolutely beautiful. We were surrounded by huge swamp gum trees (a type of eucalyptus), myrtle, giant ferns, and mossy boulders and trees. The rainforest environment was damp and vibrantly green. The final falls were Lady Barron Falls (about 45 minutes past Horseshoe Falls), which we were able to climb. The full hike was such a pleasant day, and the drive to and from Mt Field was so nonchalantly beautiful.

A swamp gum tree, which can be as tall as 90m

I loved the moss everywhere!

Russell Falls

Horseshoe Falls - my favorite

Eli, me, Laura at Horseshoe Falls

Trekking to Lady Barron Falls

Lady Barron Falls (I'm camouflaged on the left side)

DAY 3 - Freycinet National Park (Wineglass Bay and Sleepy Bay), Cascade Brewery, Downtown Hobart

We woke up bright and early on Day 3 and left the hostel at 7 a.m. in order to make the 3 hour drive to Freycinet National Park and have time to explore Wineglass and Sleepy Bays before the return to Hobart for beer, a little shopping, and returning the rental car before Laura and my 8:30 p.m. flight back to Sydney; Eli was staying in Tasmania longer with a friend. It was a long drive but we arrived right on schedule, and our parking pass from Mt Field the day before worked again in Freycinet; it was a 24-hour pass. We first did a short hike to Sleepy Bay, which we had been told was worth the detour from the more popular Wineglass Bay. Despite yucky weather, Sleepy Bay was beautiful! We saw tons of huge boulders, stained red and the most vividly aqua water I have seen before. I absolutely love the view of mountains meeting the ocean, which Tasmania is full of! Following Sleepy Bay, we drove further into the park to the trailhead for the Wineglass Bay lookout hike. Unfortunately, we didn't have time for the hike down to the water but the lookout was a one-hour hike round trip, so we enjoyed the views of Coles Bay and the surrounding mountains on the way. Wineglass Bay, although not in all its glory on our dreary day, was still a sight to see and something to check off the ol' Australia bucket list!

Sleepy Bay

Friendly wallaby in the car park

Wineglass Bay - Do yourselves a favor & look up how pretty it CAN be when the weather's nicer!

Loved traveling with these two! (Excuse our hair, it was WINDY)

After leaving Freycinet National Park, we drove (or I drove...while Laura & Eli slept haha!) the three hours back to Hobart and went straight to Cascade Brewery, which is the oldest operating brewery in Australia.

Beer paddle at Cascade 

Beautiful Cascade Brewery, established in 1824

Next we went shopping in downtown Hobart and walked to the waterfront. At last, it was time to head back to the airport, so Eli's friend met us to get Eli, then Laura and I returned the rental car and headed to our gate.

8:30 p.m. came and went and before long, our plane was delayed until 9:30 p.m. Our plan was to take a train from the Sydney airport to Al's place to get the car, then drive back to Canberra. I was exhausted after the busy weekend and grudgingly accepted that I likely wouldn't be in my bed until past 3 a.m., then would be up with the kids before 8 a.m. However, finally, the airport announced that our flight for the night was canceled. Laura and I both immediately called our host families to notify them then went to the Jetstar desk for more information. As it turns out, there had been bad weather in Sydney so the flight was delayed getting to Hobart. Then, due to an 11 p.m. curfew at Sydney airport, the flight could not return Monday night. Laura and I were then carless, low on money, and hadn't expected to have to stay an extra night in Hobart. Additionally, because the cancellation was due to weather and not a fault of the airline, accommodation would not be covered by Jetstar. We decided to sleep at the airport but then were told that it closed at 10 p.m. Likely we would have slept with our bags outside if it had not been for Al, who I had been messaging about our situation. He, without even asking me, booked a hotel room for the two of us at an airport hotel with a free shuttle then told me to check my email for a confirmation. I was absolutely speechless that he did something so sweet for us, just so we could have a shower and decent sleep in a bed after our long weekend. So Laura and I quickly got on the shuttle and checked into our divine room at the Travelodge Hobart Airport. THANKS, AL <3


(Unexpected) DAY 4 - Departure:

Our flight was rescheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday morning and departed without any hitches. We caught the train from Sydney airport to Al's and I got a brief kiss outside of his place before we hopped in the car, headed back to Canberra. Tasmania was amazing but another favorite part of the trip was getting to discuss French and English with Laura during the trip. I obviously enjoyed both girls' company (especially singings "Colors of the Wind" in 3 languages while we hiked to Cape Raoul) but because I have such an interest and love for French, I soaked up every minute of getting to ask questions about grammar or vocabulary I'm not familiar with, as well as share the English language and answer questions Laura had about grammar or phraseology. I have so much respect for all of the girls I meet who speak such good English...because the more I try to explain it to others, the more confusing I realize it is.

Harbour Bridge and Opera House from the flight into Sydney airport

All in all, Tasmania was a dream. I desperately want to go back and am already trying to plan a trip to hike the Overland Track, a 6-day trek around beautiful Cradle Mountain. I know that most people who visit Australia likely will not make it to Tasmania on their trip but if it's at all possible, I really really encourage it! It would be impossible to see properly without a rental car but it is so worth it, and I want to visit again and again and again.

Till next time.

~
Alli

Wollongong & Bondi - 3-6 October

My computer is finally out of the shop, after $118 AUD and a new track pad - ugh - and I am able to update you on my adventures the past three weekends! On the first weekend of October, there was a public holiday on Monday, and I think that I spent it well! On the Friday, Lisa (another au pair friend in my suburb) and I headed out to Wollongong, which is a coastal city about an hour south of Sydney. We had originally planned to stay in Wollongong for both Friday and Saturday night, at the recommendation of Lisa's host parents, but the hostel was booked out for Saturday night so we decided to continue our trip north to Bondi Beach for Saturday night and Sunday beach time.

The Wollongong YHA was quite interesting. Apparently, it is housing comprised of hotel rooms, YHA rooms, and also university dorms. Although it was clean and decent, per the YHA standard, it was not the typical hostel, and our company included older men and women as well as families of all ages...there was not the social atmosphere I had come to expect from my first YHA stay in Melbourne. We stayed there only one night, and in the morning, we decided to take our time driving the trip to Sydney and to take the scenic Grand Pacific Drive rather than the inland highway. In trying to find the start of the Grand Pacific Drive, however, we stumbled upon Killalea Beach. The car park was crowded with surfers so we parked further back from the beach to enjoy stunning views, including rugged cliffs, shimmering aqua water as far as the eye could see, and dolphins! We even saw a very large dolphin leap into the air from the water several times. It was beautiful, and I appreciated so much the opportunity to be in Australia, amidst so much natural beauty.

From Killalea Beach, we continued north, following the signs with the Grand Pacific Drive logo. The Grand Pacific Drive traverses 17 patrolled beaches and passes through the Royal National Park before ending just outside the Sydney city limits. The drive curved and twisted along the coast, through rain forests and mountains, along jagged cliffs, and was an amazing road trip to embark on.

Sea Cliff Bridge, linking Coalcliff and Clifton, NSW

The red flowers are waratahs, a state emblem of NSW

Gorgeous rainforest in the Royal National Park, the second oldest national park in the world

We arrived at the Bondi Beach YHA close to 4 p.m. and dropped our things off, changed into swimsuits and headed to Tamarama Beach, which was directly behind our hostel. There were a few hours left of sunlight before it got too cold to stay out, and we walked toward Bondi Beach to check out the shops and restaurants. For dinner that night, I tried a Bite Box Portugese chicken burger then Lisa cooked some pasta back at the hostel. The atmosphere at this hostel was much more social and had a much younger crowd. There were lots of surfers and beachy types, being just blocks from stunning coastline. We met some other German guys cooking in the hostel kitchen, and our 8-bed dorm room was shared with two British guys on Working Holiday visas, one Italian girl and her boyfriend who were servers at a local restaurant, one Dutch surfing instructor, and one very, very strange man who was seen by Lisa and several others in our room shooting drugs via a needle at 2 a.m. Luckily for us, there were lots of friendly guys in our room, and I slept right through the needle incident so we checked out before seeing the strange roommate again.

Tamarama Beach

View from the Bondi YHA roof

I am amazed by the view from hostel rooftops.

At Bondi Beach, we set up our spot with towels at 10 a.m. The rules at Bondi and other patrolled beaches in Australia is that swimming is only permitted "between the flags." Sections safe for swimming (weaker currents etc.) are marked between two yellow and red flags. These areas quickly become packed with families, so Lisa and I chose a relatively deserted area of sand in the no-swimming section to avoid the crowds. Before long, it didn't matter. Bondi Beach is one of the most famous in the world and on a Sunday of a holiday weekend, it was packed. I was amazed by all of the accents I heard there. At least every other person, possibly more, was speaking a language other than English. Tourists (us included) abounded with "I <3 Australia" t-shirts and cameras out. With the strong Australian sun, it was necessary to apply SPF 50 sunscreen all over our bodies to avoid a bad burn. It was so weird for me to use so much sunscreen, coming from the States where I maybe put SPF 8 on my shoulder and SPF 15 on my face IF I use it at all. But here, I don't want to mess around with the lack of ozone layer and really mess up my skin.

A little after noon, Lisa and I got delicioius gelato from Gelatissimo, and then Al met us at the beach! We lounged around the rest of the day, people-watching and chatting. Al and I got in the water at one point, and the spring Pacific water was frigid! Helicopters flew over constantly, which Lisa and Al told me was to scan for sharks; if one had been spotted, sirens would have gone off - Al has seen it before although he doesn't remember any attacks occurring at Bondi.

That evening, I took Lisa to the bus station for a bus back to Canberra, then I headed to Al's to spend Sunday night and my Monday off work. We enjoyed take-out Thai and some Little Creatures pale ale for dinner Sunday night while watching the NRL (National Rugby League...different from rugby union, which Al plays) Grand Final.

On Monday, Al surprised me with tickets to go to the Sydney Tower Eye observation deck in the heart of downtown Sydney. From the top of the tower, we could see panoramic views of the city, and each side was labeled with landmarks that could be seen from that window. It was beautiful and we had a clear, sunny day with great visibility! After a few errands in the city, we went back to Al's, where I cooked dinner for him and his younger sister, Shara. I love cooking for my host family on Wednesday nights but miss cooking as much as I was able to in college, so I'd offered to cook and picked a red curry recipe to try that called for chicken (Actually, it called for tofu but I offered to change it to chicken for Al; he preferred that option :p), fresh pumpkin, onions, red capsicum, broccoli, carrots, peanuts, and Thai basil. It was delicious and a perfect amount of spiciness - leaning towards spicier rather than mild! I will definitely be cooking it again and look forward to trying tofu in the recipe as well.

Beautiful Darling Harbour

Hyde Park, and the ANZAC Memorial

You can barely see the Harbour Bridge and Opera House on the other side of the buildings!

My new favorite curry recipe

I drove back to Canberra after dinner and prepared a few ideas of activities to do with the kids for week 2 of the September school holidays. Of the many ways I am blessed, I feel especially grateful to have the use of a car here in Australia. I absolutely love driving and road trips (obviously because you can pack as much as you want, no restrictions ;p) and although many other au pairs have access to a car for use with their kids, there are very few who are permitted to use the car outside of au pair purposes, for personal use in evenings and on weekends. However, being able to drive myself (and also other au pairs) on trips and to various places I want to visit in Canberra and NSW is such a gift!

Coming up next: TASMANIA!!

~
Alli