Last Looks

Exam week being over, we rented a car one last time to have a break out of town and to see some of the sights we hadn't yet seen.

On Saturday morning (after the grocery shopping was completed!) we headed north...off to see the sea!

Our first stop was Yorktown - one of the first four settlements in Australia apparently. Ollie was going to take advantage of the facilities provided, but when he opened the door he was greeted by a very large Huntsman Spider...Ollie decided he could wait!

We went to Greens Beach, near where the Tamar River (that starts in Launceston) meets the sea. So nice to see the sea :)

From there we headed further west. Along the way we past this sign - home away from home!
 

We went to Port Sorell and the surrounding little seaside towns. Lovely golden sandy beaches - shame it was so grey and drizzly!

 
It was then time to head to Ruth's Kitchen Warming Party - which started off as High Tea (lots of yummy cupcakes, cucumber sandwiches, scones with jam & cream, macaroons and muffins) with Pimms :) and then became a BBQ. Some of the guests played their Fiddle & Mandolins, so we had a bit of a sing-a-long. These were my contributions to the High Tea - Banana Petiti Fours.
 

Sunday started off with brunch at The Rivers Edge Cafe in Longford. One of the best cafes we have found in Tassie - great food, welcoming staff, nice warm fire, and a lovely garden - there were even little bunnies hopping round in the garden! The cafe is run by a Kiwi so guess its no suprise it was good...te he :)

We then headed in towards the Central Lakes area - found the states Opiate supplies. Tasmania is the world's largest producer of opium alkaloids for the pharmaceutical market. The fields are all fenced off with electric fences and barbed wire along with lots of warnings to not enter the feilds!

 
To get to the Great Lake we had to drive past some of the states Hydro system - part of it is under ground, but we saw some of the penstocks and power stations along the way. The temperature had plummeted by the time we reached the Great Lake - a grand total of 6 degrees outside...which we weren't prepared for so we didn't spend much time outside the car! Lots of ramshackle Shacks (Bachs/Holiday homes) make up the little town of Miena by the lake.
 

 
We were taking the round about route home to see a bit more of the countryside, going through towns like Bothwell when we realised we weren't all that far from Hobart, so we decided to go to Hobart for one last look. We always enjoy the chance to walk around a marina or harbour and look at boats :)
 

And then it was time to return to Lonnie....back in time for a leaving dinner with Ollie's classmates.

Now its time for one final week of study before Ollie's last exam, and my last week of work, before its time to return to NZ :)