HOBART,TASMANIA, AUSTRALIA

                         Capitol of the only  Island State

      Located at the foot of 4160’ Mt. Wellington, Hobart is a blend of heritage, beautiful scenery, and a relaxed island lifestyle, but with all the amenities of a thriving city. Graceful old trees cover the manicured lawns of the many small heritage parks and gardens in the city. Forty percent of Tasmania’s population live in the capitol. The lush lowland farms and villages with their Georgian cottages look very English.  Tasmania Botanical Gardens, originally a land grant for a farm garden, became the botanical gardens in 1918.

  In 1804 Colonel David Collins settled Hobart with 262 people. He named the city for Lord Hobart. The same distance south of the equator as Boston is north, Hobart is Australia’s second oldest city. (after Sydney) Once a whaling base, the city of 139,000 has one of the finest deep-water harbors in the world, and is now a busy port. The Derwent River runs through the city. St. David’s Park was first a burial yard for Hobart in 1804, and turned into a park in 1926.

 Hobart is the center of the state’s government. 1105’ Mt. Nelson has watched over ship movements in and out of the Derwent River since 1811.

 Governor Macquarie established Battery Point after a visit in the early 1800s. The oldest building at Battery Point is from the 1818 signal station. Twelve relay stations made full communication available between Hobart and Port Arthur. Battery Point was named for the guns that once protected the area. There is a lot of history at the Point and much to see.

Some of Hobart’s  old buildings  include St. David’s Church, 1868, a Regency Egyptian style synagogue 1843 (the oldest in the country), Parliament House, built by convicts in 1840 as a Customs House, and turned into its present function in 1856, and the Cascade Brewery, the country’s oldest. The oldest theater in Australia is located in Hobart. The city also houses a maritime museum and a folk museum.

The Royal Hobart Hospital is the largest teaching hospital in the state. The University of Tasmania is also in Hobart---Errol Flynn’s father taught zoology at the University.

There is much reclaimed land at the harbor, and it took convicts 60 years to reclaim it all. Apples grow well in Tasmania and many of the 250 varieties are exported to Japan.

The main street in the city is Liverpool. The expressway out of town was built in 1954.

      Warm sandstone buildings line the uncrowded waterfront in an area called Salamanca. The series of old warehouses were built in 1930 to store apples, corn, and wheat for export. At one time a jam  factory occupied one of the buildings.    Now the area is full of trendy restaurants, sidewalk cafes, stores, and art studios.

      The city is very walkable and we took advantage of the warm sunny day to walk by St. David’s Park where a sweet little gazebo stands in the center. Later we learned that there were no native trees in the park.

      A specialty of Tasmania is Lemmington---a lemon sponge cake covered with chocolate dough and coconut. I found the one we ate a bit dry. Unlike the Pavlova dessert that the Aussies have such rivalry about, I believe the Lemmington is strictly Tasmanian.

      Hobart is a delightful city and we had a great time there in Australia’s only island state..

TASMANIA

                                           An Island State

      From Texas to the land down under is a long trip. Australia is also about the size of the United States so when you make the trip think in terms of at least three weeks. I made two trips, five years apart, seeing different sections of the country each time with the North Island in New Zealand on one trip and the South Island on the other trip. Needless to say I have lots and lots of stories about those trips, many of which I’ve already posted.

     Our accommodations were different on each trip. The first time we stayed in 5-star hotels with never a whim lacking. But my favorite accommodations were the second trip when we stayed in small boutique/ B & B hotels. Although no complaints with the large hotels I just prefer the small friendly facilities.

     In Tasmania our boutique hotel had a widow’s walk which I’d never been on, although I’ve seen many on old Victorian homes. Our hotel, a stately mansion, was located on a hill in the heart of historic Battery Point. A short flight of stairs led up to the widow’s walk which was much larger than I thought it might be. The room was totally enclosed with glass windows and glass ceiling. There was a wonderful view of the entire city of Hobart and the harbor.  With the sun shining in everywhere the room was comfortably warm.

     Our hotel was an easy walk from Salamanca, the restored old waterfront. A series of aged warm sandstone warehouses line the uncrowded waterfront. The buildings, built in 1930, once stored apples, corn, and wheat for export. At one time there was a jam factory in one of the building.  Now the area houses trendy restaurants, sidewalk cafes, stores, and art studios.

      At the Salamanca Café we had lemmington for dessert---a lemon sponge cake covered with chocolate dough and coconut.  I thought it was a little dry, but ok. It certainly did not fall into the category to die for.

       There is much reclaimed land at Hobart’s harbor, and it took convicts 60 years to reclaim it all.

      Apples grow well in Tasmania, and many of the 250 varieties are exported to Japan.

       One end of the island is covered with heavily grown jungle/rain forest which is basically unexplored and  unpenetrable and certainly no tourist area.

      Hobart has a lot of history and a gorgeous botanical garden where walked many of the paths before sitting to watch colorful birds fly around. I particularly enjoyed the spectacular flora. It is a very walkable city. Hobart, capital of Tasmania, is Australia’s second oldest city. Tasmania is the country’s only island state.