What I am most amazed about at the moment is that the boys seem to feel immediately at home in any accommodation we stay at. However, the favourite place was the cottage in Cradle Mountain, where we a) had two real bedrooms, a living/dining room cum kitchen and a bathroom and b) stayed for 3 nights in one place, which had not happened since Sumatra. The current place in Coles Bay on Freycinet Peninsula, however, will most likely top their rating as it is really beautiful, with views towards Hazard mountains and Oyster Bay.
The second thing that is amazing is the weather. While we had some rain (drizzle) yesterday, it’s been perfect since we came to Van Diemen’s Land. Perfect views and blue skies in Cradle Mountain, a beautiful day on the ocean and Gordon river near Strahan (it must have been very different if you reached the place as a convict through Hell’s Gate on a stormy, rainy day…) and another nice day at Penguin, where we – obviously – had to take a picture with the big penguin.
Today – as our weather luck was a bit off and it was cloudy / rainy in the morning – was all about the food: Tasmanian lobster and prawns for lunch, then an oyster tour with fresh oysters and mussels (and wine) directly at the source – fantastic. We even learned how to shuck them easily!
Dinner will be salmon and abalone sashimi, which we are excited to try and some pasta with scallops; good thing none of us is allergic to shellfish 🙂
Tomorrow, we are hoping for clear skies again and will ‘tackle’ the hike to Wineglass Bay, one of the most famous sights here along the East Coast.
So we have seen Tassie Devils, Quoll, Seals, Kangaroos, Wallabies, Wombats, but no Platypus and Echidna so far. And yes, we visited Grindelwald near Launceston – which was not very alike the Swiss village with the same name, after all…
Next stop Hobart and then off to Brisbane, where our actual trip through the South Pacific will finally start…
The MoNsTers on tour 