#Tasmania especially Hobart

I am in the air - somewhere over the Indian Ocean after just clearing the west coast of Australia. Almost a 14 hour flight from Melbourne to Doha before onward to the UK early tomorrow morning. I took an early flight from Hobart to Melbourne this morning as there are no international flights from Tasmania unless you count New Zealand. I am flying with Virgin/Qatar. The plane is modern and only half full. The in flight wi-fi is fantastic. Happy days ! Anyway I digress. To round up my month in Oz - Tasmania and it's capital Hobart.

Tasmania is apparently the 26th largest Island in the world and as such it is massive - 180 times larger than my home island the Isle of Wight. It is 150 miles off the southern coast of mainland Oz - separated by the Bass Strait (an infamous body of water re the Sydney Hobart yacht race.) Tasmania is an Australian State as Queensland or New South Wales. It's population is about 550000.

Apart from being an island state what sets Tasmania apart from the rest of Australia most obviously is its climate. Much of Australia has the capacity to find temperatures in the 40's even down in Victoria. This is not the case in Tasmania. It's weather is very changeable because it has several major influences which pull and push weather systems. Obviously to the north is the vast hot oven - the Australian mainland. It is surrounded by ocean - much of it very cold ocean affected by the Antarctic and the Southern Ocean. Tasmania has mountains. Broadly Tasmania's summers are similar to ours but its winters are milder.

Tasmania has the most mountains of any state in Australia - over 450 peaks. It has a rugged central plateau. The highest mountain is just over 5000 ft - so not massive. My understanding is all these mountains are hikeable and offer a lifetimes worth of walking possibilities in unspoilt terrain. There is also the coastline - I only saw the south of the island particularly the Derwent river and estuary. I can imagine the fishing and boating is excellent but we know there are challenging waters once you get out into the ocean.

Taking all these things together Tasmania is a tremendous place to visit and no doubt live if you are an outdoorsy type who appreciates natural surroundings. The island has a high reputation for being eco conscious and there is a lot of science based businesses there  - not least relating to Antarctic Surveys. It is also a farming area and exports food and wine to the mainland. In a world under pressure it feels like Tasmania will continue to be protected and retain its quiet wholesome feel unlike some of the Australian mainland which is under pressure from development, population increases, social problems and more extreme weather events.

In the short time I was there we walked to the top of Mt Wellington which overlooks Hobart. We were in the clouds at the top but no matter it was an excellent nature walk which I enjoyed a lot. Mt Wellington made me think of the Mona Lisa - wherever you are in the room she seems to be looking at you. Wherever you are in Hobart Mt Wellington is there. Amongst other walks we got to the lovely Fortescue Bay in the Tasman National Park. Pristine - and as far as I know - no sea crocodiles or box jelly fish ! We also visited the oldest brewery in Australia - Cascade. Another bonus is sea food is relatively cheap in Tasmania. Oysters abound !

As I have said Tasmania has so much going for it. But alas it is a very long way away. There is no international flights out. Most go via Melbourne.

I had a tremendous visit to Australia. I will write more about it perhaps later. For now I will say it is a wonderful country - a huge country - with relatively not many people in it - (but as we know much of the land is inhospitable.) In my several blogs I have made much positive comment about Australia. I am not finishing on a low note by any means but for balance I want to make the following observations :

Australia has many problems too. 

• More and more extreme weather events.
• A national hang up / guilt about the past treatment of aborigines. As an example when you get on public transport they play a pre recorded "acknowledgement of country" over the public tannoy. It says “We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which we travel today and pay our respects to Elders past and present.” A lot of Australians feel frustrated by this ie too woke - time to move on.
• It seems it is true generally that many Aborigine have been unable to adapt to the new Australia. Issues such as an inability to adopt the concept of a job (as their life was historically nomadic with the only thing to dwell on was survival and quiet peace) remains a problem. They continue to receive massive tax payer support but drugs, alcohol abuse and aimlessness seem to be a reoccurring and common theme. Many Australians are apparently fed up with it - particularly the tax burden - and feel it is time to say enough is enough. Despite the many horrific things that happened to the aborigines in the early times of white settlement they believe it is time to move on and they are not responsible for what happened in that time.
• Mass immigration - particularly from China/India/Nepal/Pakistan and some African countries is causing the same sort of resentments and pressures we are experiencing in the UK.
• The cost of living in Australia is high.
• Taxes are high
• There are housing shortages and prices are high. Again like the UK young people are finding it extremely difficult to get on the property ladder
• Many complain as in the UK that the welfare system is too generous to some but actually offer less than the UK to anyone one who even has modest assets (including a state old age pension which is means tested). ie rewards the ones that have not helped themselves and penalises the ones that have.
• While I never experienced directly there are apparently major gang problems and social cohesion and anti social behavior issues including unprovoked violence and robbery in Melbourne particularly and Sydney.

So overall Australia has many problems too as well as some tremendous assets. Would I live there ? The answer would be a no from me. It would not suit my lifestyle. I love the sea - boats - the coast. It seems so sad and so frustrating that much of Australia's beautiful coastal beach areas are not what they seem. Danger from sharks, jelly fish and sea crocodiles are real and in many areas mean it is too dangerous to even paddle. That would be hard to live with.

It is also a heck of a long flight. But what a trip I have had. Fantastic for so many reasons. I am deeply grateful for being able to do the trip I have done and seen and experienced so much. There were many highlights and I was seriously moved on a number of occasions. I am so proud of my youngest son Richard with whom I was able to share so many of my Oz experiences with. He is a doctor currently based in Darwin. Part of his role has been flying out to some very isolated Aboriginal settlements in the Northern Territories to help run clinics. A tremendous and valuable experience for him before he returns to the UK in due course.

Thank you Australia xxxx

Some mob photos :

From Mt Wellington

Trig point - the top of Mt Wellington

Hobart Botanic Gardens

Cascade brewery. The oldest in Australia

#Melbourne

I have taken the opportunity to spend 3 nights in Melbourne as in effect a stopover on the way to the final leg of what is likely to be my one and only Australia visit - Hobart, Tasmania.

Melbourne - in population terms is Australia's second city - over 5 million people. I would say it is not as glamorous as Sydney - not on the tourist trail to the same extent - but it does have some huge draws including the iconic MCG - Melbourne Cricket Ground - the Australian F1 Grand Prix at Albert Park and the Australian Open Tennis. The MCG also doubles as Australia's Wembley and it is where Australia's huge AFL finals are held - crowds of 100000. Melbourne staged the Olympics in 1956.

Visually Melbourne is pretty unique I would say. It doesn't have a easily discernible style. It has some impressive high rise but the dominant feature I think is that no two buildings are the same. That is not to say individual buildings aren't stylish but they are all fitted together in a pragmatic way. I am not criticising it - actually I rather like it. Certainly not sterile. Perhaps it is more human. But boy do the Australian's like their signs ! Everything has a sign on it. I also think Australia would give the UK a run for it's money on Health and Safety. Signs everywhere stating the obvious ! Another feature of down town Melbourne - they have buses, trams, overhead trains operating around each other.

But what I sense - what I feel and it is confirmed by the guide books is Melbourne is a melting pot. Apparently 42% of its citizens were born outside of Australia. It is a artsy liberal place. Lots of students. Coffee bars are everywhere. Every type of food is available. I think back to talking to the guys in the pub in Jindabyne. They were scathing about the State of Victoria and it's capital Melbourne. They said it should be cut out of Australia to be let drift to somewhere else. There are similar sentiments about London for similar reasons.

But I liked what I seen of Melbourne and actually in the short time I was there I saw a fair bit of it. I hired a bike at 9am and except for some shortish breaks and lots of view stops I did the 20k St Kilda and Albert Park ride which included Port Melbourne the beautiful Royal Botanic Gardens and a stretch of the Yarra River plus a lot through downtown. Despite what appeared initially to be a bit hectic on a bike the bike lanes are there and people/drivers are considerate - so easy. Actually it felt great cycling around a famous city on the other side of the world under my own steam. The bay shore from Port Melbourne to St Kilda was particularly nice early in the morning. I thought I was looking out on the ocean but actually Melbourne is wrapped around the huge Port Philip Bay.

Part of the bike route was through the huge Albert Park. Initially much of it was laid up in all manner of sports pitches but as I got down further I started seeing huge ongoing constructions of grandstands that must have been using up half the worlds supply of scaffold poles. I wondered if it was something to do with the Melbourne Cup Horse Race which I knew was a massive event. However the penny quickly dropped. Albert Park is where the first F1 Grand Prix of each season is staged. March 2026. It must be such a colossal money spinner. It is a street circuit not a purpose built track. The work involved is staggering. I did a couple of bends on my town bike !

Next day I decided to take it easy. I made an enquiry about the MCG. There was a Sheffield Shield cricket match on - a 4 day interstate match between Victoria and Queensland. Tickets were 25 dollars. £12.50. I am no cricket fan but I decided to go and see the famous MCG first hand. It is an incredible stadium - no gaps with that massive oval pitch and seats right down to pitch side. For the match I watched only 20% of the stadium was used and probably only a couple of thousand people there. It seats a 100000. If full as it can be for test matches and AFL finals - the atmosphere must be incredible. It was an enjoyable way to spend a few hours.

Melbourne apparently has its social problems but they weren't apparent to me. It is a vibrant city. Liberal, arty, maybe decadent according to the guide books. Also sports nuts. I am glad to have made the short visit. xx 

Melbourne scenes as per my blog above using my mob camera :