The ferry ROCKS!...........

My Cabin

The “Spirit of Tasmania” ferry takes you from Melbourne Australia to Devonport Tasmania; and let me tell you, the ferry ROCKS!......... It also sways, bobs, and rolls. As I walked around the ship, you could hear the wind howling and although it was dark, you could see the spray hit the window and you knew it was miserable out on deck. I thought I heard someone say the swells were 6-8 meters. This lasted all night and made for a fitful sleep. Maybe if you’re a sailor it is no big deal, but for a landlubber it was noticeable.

The bus ride from Devonport to Hobart was almost as bad as the ferry. The wind was blowing so hard at times that the bus moved off the road onto the rumble strips. The driver even commented about it as we disembarked. And just like my train ride, I saw several rainbows along the away and again in Hobart. I talked to a bloke on the bus about this and he said they have them all the time, and another fellow later concurred. They happen so often that people take them for granted. I can’t imagine living in a place that has so many rainbows you don’t even notice them. However both gents stated that they have yet to find the pot of gold. They don’t realize that they are living in it. Tasmania is beautiful.

Albatross

Rope as Art 

Since I arrived later in the day, I had just enough time to squeeze in the Hobart Maritime Museum and the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG). Both are somewhat small but interesting and worth a visit none the less. The maritime museum has a nice collection of local artifacts and photos of their seafaring history. They don’t have full size ships, but their exhibits are very well documented. I especially liked their collection of scrimshaw and examples of knots and braiding. The things the sailors could do with simple rope was truly an art. The TMAG is undergoing renovation so many exhibits were packed away. They have a nice collection of colonial art and huon pine colonial furniture.

The Big Sing

In the evening I experienced one of those unexpected events that you’re sometimes lucky enough to happen upon while travelling; in this case “The Festival Bonfire and Big Sing”. This event is the culmination of the week-long “Festival of Voices” held in Hobart each year. It’s Australia’s premier event celebrating the power of song. During the week there are workshops, concerts and short courses for singers of all ages. The festival ends with a candlelight procession, bonfire, and group sing. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate and it was too cold (by Hobart standards, not Chicago) to have the event outside, so it was held indoors. Let me digress here for a moment. Don’t get me wrong, it is cold here; a wet, windy, blustery cold, not the below freezing, wind chill, arctic cold of the Midwest. My cold weather and rain gear has been very valuable and getting quite a workout. Anyway, there was no procession and the bonfire was on a video screen, but the song and celebration were live. There were individual artists, a choir of about 400 youngsters and a big communal group sing. I was lucky to be there.

Sing like no one listening!

norb