Left our campground in New Norfolk to head the short distance to Hobart. We got a send-off with a fly-by of a flock of white cockatoos. They make an incredible racket. There were also lots of black swans on the river.
Found a campground just out of the city and headed into town for a day of exploring. We liked Hobart immediately. It's a small, laid back city with lots of sidewalk cafes, art galleries, small shops, buskers and vibrant street life. Downtown buildings around the harbor are all sandstone and the nearby residential streets have a mix of large and small, fancy and plain houses - all charming.
One gallery we went in had a show of paintings by an artist named Faridah Cameron. She recently retired and took up a new life as a painter. She uses acrylic, squeezed out of a small hole in a plastic bag, to make the most amazingly detailed abstract paintings, which looked a lot like weavings to me. Amazing use of color, too.
Had a snack at a cafe in Salamanca Square, an area that reminded me of Cuzco a bit. Hobart backs up to Mount Wellington, so is very hilly. There's a wall of rock behind the square with a residential area at the top, flowers and vines from their gardens tumble over the edge of the rock. Some apartments over the cafes and shops in the square are built up against the rock.
Went to South Hobart to the Female Factory, the remains of a women's penal institution. Such tragic stories. Australia is very upfront about the horrible parts of its history, including the terrible mistreatment of the prisoners sent from Britain and of the Aboriginal people. Everywhere we've been, there have been historical sites, monuments, and other educational information about these subjects and about how much the country owes to these people and their descendants.
Next stop was the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Garden (Randy's idea, not mine!) on the edge of the city. Very beautiful.
We're looking forward to being in Hobart again tomorrow, before an evening flight back to Melbourne.
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