The Wedding Day- Farewell to Australia

Friday night saw the wedding party meet up at St. Mary's Cathedral, for the wedding rehearsals. I had just about recovered from the fishing trip the day before and did my best to be helpful and, more importantly, remember what I was supposed to be doing the following day.

On the wedding day we all assembled in the church waiting for the arrival of Elena, the bride. As mentioned previously I was best man, and was therefore at the top of the church with Donal, the groom. I was curious about the traditions in this part of the world and enquired as to whether the bride would be on time. The general consensus was yes, she would be.

They say life is stranger than fiction and every now and again something happens to remind you of that fact. The time of arrival had passed and then some and there was still no sign of the bride! We began to speculate that something had happened to the car and as it would turn out we weren't far wrong.

The bride eventually arrived and it transpired that an uncle decided to visit the house before the wedding and parked the car in their drive. No problem there, except that when he went to leave, his car wouldn't start! and wouldn't you know it but the brides car was blocked in by the uncle's. It was time to roll up the sleeves and get dirty and the bridesmaids duly obliged. Picture the scene the bridesmaids all decked out and pushing the uncle's car down the drive. Like I said, life is stranger than fiction!

Here's a picture of us with Ian and Norah outside the Cathedral. (We just learned today, 18th April, that Ian is now minus his appendix, get well soon!)


There were no hiccups after that, they both said their "I do's" and became husband and wife. Here's a few pics of the happy couple.

The picture above is from the wedding cake but a pretty good likeness I think you'll agree.

After some photos it was onto the wedding venue which had a magnificent setting in Hobart harbour surrounded by all types of yachts and boats. The picture below gives a good idea of the setting.

The wedding saw the coming together of several traditions, Italian, Australian and Irish- the brides parents are originally from Italy. The Italians were keen to show off a few of their own traditions during the wedding and one that was especially popular with the kids- but probably not the cleaning staff- was the throwing of confetti during the first dance.

After the speeches were over we all let our hair down, I hadn't drank a whole lot before my speech but not to worry as myself and the barmaid got well acquainted before the night was out. Someone even remarked how during my speech I was quite articulate and that within the space of a couple of hours I couldn't string a sentence together and was slurring my words!

The bride and groom were good enough to organise a birthday cake for Ian and myself as Ian's was the day prior and mine was coming up on the 6th, the wedding being on the 3rd. We got presented with a bucket and a toy fish as reminders of our eventful fishing trip a couple of days before!

That was the wedding day, we spent the next day nursing hangovers and generally taking life easy. Although we did try to impersonate passengers of the third biggest ocean linear in the world, which just so happened to be docked in Hobart at the time. It seems big boats were one of the themes of the trip. Alas we didn't get on even though we tried to casually saunter by the security guard. Here's a pic of a really nice area around the harbour with the boat in the background.

I am not sure what the actual area is called or indeed whether there is a name to it, but there's a really nice hotel called The Henry Jones Art Hotel. Check out the web site, even if you can't afford to stay there, it's worth popping in for a drink and a gander. The picture below is of a covered courtyard area that the back of the hotel links onto. There are loads of nice cafes and shops in there also.

I forgot to mention in the previous post that during our time in Hobart there was Bioluminescent Algae in the water. When anything disturbed the water, lets just say for arguments sake a handful of stones, the algae light up as a defense mechanism. It was really unusual and something we had never witnessed before. Here's a pic I borrowed from another web site which isn't great but gives an idea of what I am talking about. When the boats came into the harbour there was literally a blue neon type halo affect around them like in the following pic.

So that was our time in Hobart, we departed the next day and arrived back in Wellington Airport at 23.59 on the 5th March, a minute before my birthday. Alas for once I had opened my present early, the trip of a life time!

Cathal

Bicheno & Freycinet National Park (Days 20-23)

Monday morning we hired a car and set out for our next stop Bicheno. Bicheno is a small sleepy sea side resort known for it's penguin spotting and it's closeness to Freycinet National Park. (He was French so the "T" is silent. ) We had Monday to ourselves as our friends from Ireland were not due to arrive until Tuesday afternoon. We therefore decided to drive to Cape Tourville in Freycinet. A lighthouse within the park which boasted some nice views and we weren't disappointed. Before you enter the park you have to get a parks pass, which is a formality as I do not think there is a restriction on numbers. It costs about $20 for a day pass and $50 for an extended pass.

That evening we ate at the Sea Life Centre Restaurant. If you time your visit to coincide with dusk you will get to see the penguins coming into their rooks at night. There are also penguin tours available.

Here's some pics taken from the Cape on a dull enough day.

On our way up to Bicheno we stopped off in Swansea and had something to eat at the Swansea Wine & Wool Centre. The food was good and fortunately, for me, they didn't sell wool, but only finished garments. We weren't long there when we began to realise that our mobile phones had stopped working. I enquired at the restaurant about a signal only to be informed that Vodafone have no reception up the entire East Coast. This was problematic as we were due to meet our friends and had only made tentative arrangements.

Our friends Norah and Ian did manage to find us however and joined us on Tuesday evening. We had booked a Kayaking trip and were wondering if the weather would hold, and hold it did, but just long enough for the trip to go ahead and for us to end up soaking wet. The kayaking set off from Coles Bay and headed around the bay hugging the maintains until finally you have the cross the Bay itself to get back where you started from. Suffice it to say Sharon and I were not naturals and found it hard work. I think we nearly wrecked the kayak twice. Here's some pics, taken with our underwater camera, from the only respite you get on the trip.

During our break the guides explained how sand is normally made up of different types of stone that erode over time and that really old beaches have squeaky sand. This is because really old sand contains only quartz, the most durable stone, which eventually becomes spherical- in much the same way as a pearl I presume. When the spherical grains rub off each other they make a squeaky noise! At least that's how I remember the story. How is this relevant. You'll just have to wait and see.

The next day we set out for Freycinet National Park yet again but this time to go on a 14km tramp that takes in Wineglass Bay. Before we got there however we decided to stop off for petrol in Coles Bay. We pulled up at the only free pump and I got out and waited for the cashier to start the pump once, I presumed, the person before me had paid. I was there for a while and started staring into the shop, as a none so subtle hint, when the cashier came out to the door and yelled. "That pump never works in the morning." I was dumb founded. Here I was, a total stranger, like so many in Coles Bay and I was expected to know that the pump in question never works in the mornings! My psychic powers let me down that morning I can tell you. The guy on the pump beside me, somewhat bemused too, suggested my pump was a bit like himself in the mornings! I got back in the car and waited for the other pump to clear.

We eventually got to Parsons Cove the starting point of our tramp. Once registered we set off. Estimated time of arrival back about four hours later. The tramp is heavy going especially the first part up to the Wineglass Bay lookout. Unfortunately the day itself was pretty dull. Here's some pics from the lookout and one on the beach.

We had dragged our swim gear all along the tramp so we could have a swim in Wineglass Bay and yes the sand was squeaky. In fact so squeaky it had the same affect as rubbing Styrofoam together, which sends a shiver down my spine.

We were all togged off and the three others were in the water- I was going to get in honest. When two people who happened to be passing by suggested that the others should get out of the water. I laughed and watched for their expression to change, eventually asking, somewhat concerned, if they were serious? It was at this point that the guy took the time to point out the Blue Bottle Jellyfish or, as it is also known, the Portuguese Man of War, nearest to me stating they were everywhere on the beach. I knew the answer to the next question but felt compelled to ask it nonetheless. Do they sting? I enquired and as the reply was a resounding affirmative, I decided to relay the good news to my fellow paddlers. In an instant the reward, awaiting us for our long tramp, was dashed. My last few days in Australia and I still hadn't swam in the sea.

In case you don't believe me here's a pic, there small but they pack a punch.

After Wineglass Bay you walk to Hazards Beach and from there back to Parson's Cove. Here's a few pics of Hazard's Beach including one of a Wallaby.

When we got back to the car park we signed out and sat down to rehydrate. They say to bring two and a half litres of water per person and it is definitely a good idea as we didn't bring enough. At the car park there were some more Wallabies.

Ian and myself set off the next day for Hobart as we were going on a fishing "stag" trip early Thursday morning from Port Arthur. The sea was rough, but some of the guys managed to catch some yellow fin tuna fish. Which was slightly ironic, as after I had deposited my breakfast into the sea, I began to marvel at the fine array of yellow colours my own body could produce. I had to ask the boat to come back into port after only about two hours, and I was best man! Enough said. To be fair though, five out of the ten guys decided to get off.

The girls stayed on in Bicheno and after a recommendation from a very nice waiter at the Diamond Restaurant, decided to visit Diamond Island, tide permitting the next day. Apparently the island was really worth the trip, especially if you want to get up close and personal with some penguins. Here's a few abstract pics of them crossing over to the Island, almost impressionist in quality.

When the girls were on the beach waiting to cross over to the island they met the waiter again who pointed out Jan Cameron, the founder of Kathmandu, walking down the beach. He explained how she had bought a lot of property around Bicheno in an effort to preserve it's charm.

Hopefully she'll succeed!

Cathal

Tasmania (Days 18-26)

Tasmania was the holiday within a holiday, if you know what I mean. Although we had planned to meet up with some friends later in the week, and I was due to be best man at a wedding towards the end of our stay, we took things relatively easy considering we were here for over a week.

Hobart is another big port and is not unlike Sydney in that regard, with a population of just over 200,000 though, you cannot say that it is over run with people, locals or tourists. This is Hobart's and Tasmania's charm. It is still off the beaten track, but one wonders for how long?

In the lonely planet's blue list book Australia is listed as the number one destination and within Australia, Tassie is listed as "the region of choice." I am sure they are aware of the irony that by recommending a place for it's isolation they are undermining the very reason for picking it in the first instance.

Here's a few pics of the port to give you an idea of what it is like.

The bride, or should that be the bride's parents, or should that be both (diplomatic to the last) were good enough to put us for the first few days in Hobart. I mean they only had the small matter of a wedding less than seven days away to worry about. Who couldn't do with visitors to entertain at a time like that!

We arrived late Friday night and were looking forward to going to the toilets and freshening up before we collected our bags and headed into the arrival hall where, the future, bride and groom were due to pick us up. Little did we know that the baggage reclaim was the arrivals hall! The groom confirmed that the area we were in was brand new and a couple of month's previously we would have been picking out our own bags from the back of a trolley in a shed. Like I said it's off the beaten track.

The first thing we did on the Saturday was got to the Salamanca Markets. There are really great markets and the best we were at in Australia. The market is not full of tat and general crap, but proper crafts people and artists selling their wares. Unfortunately I didn't have the camera on the day of the market so the picture below is one I "borrowed" from another web site.

The next day the groom borrowed the future in laws car and took us up to Mount Wellington. Given the name we felt we couldn't give it a miss. It was a fantastic day and the visibility was excellent, you could see the whole of Hobart and beyond.

There is a sheltered look out area at the top of the mountain here's a pic of it and one of Sharon with the future groom. The groom is doing his "I'm a little tea pot impression!"

On the way back we decided to take a minor detour to Cascade Brewery. Tasmania has two main breweries, Cascade, in the shadow of Mount Wellington and James Boag from Launceston up North. In Cascade you can get a paddle of it's six beers and have a little taste of them all. They give you an A4 sheet explaining the various types, they even have a stout. Here's a few pics.

After that we headed back to Newtown where we were staying.

We did a bit of exploring around Hobart ourselves during our time there and here's a few pics.



There are some really nice walks and areas in Hobart. The pic above is of Battery Point, where there are lots of B&B's, cafes etc.

That was our first few days in Hobart, on the Monday, Day 20, we headed onto Bicheno, where friends of ours were due to join us on the Tuesday evening. There will be more on the next post.

Cathal