Flowers in Tasmania

The village of Ross

2010-08-30T01:41:00.000-07:00

In making our way back from Launceston in the north of the Tasmanian Island to Hobart in the south, we cut across the centre of the island. On the way we stopped by at Ross, termed as "Tasmania's finest Heritage Village" and particularly to see the famed Ross Bridge. The village with its Heritage Town Hall, Post office and quaint churches and especially the Ross Bridge was a wonderful place to explore for an hour or so. The most outstanding flowers I saw in this place were the Hollyhocks grown in a row in someone's garden.

Buildings and a few flowers

2010-08-30T01:04:00.000-07:00

We stayed at this small hotel in Launceston that was clean and conveniently located.

Old buildings in Launceston, some built in the late 19th century that were well-preserved and now serve modern purposes.

Kentish Hills Resort and surroundings

2010-08-30T00:38:00.000-07:00

The place that I enjoyed most was Kentish Hills Resort because it was peaceful and had beautiful plants and flowers on its premises. Nearby there was a small town where we bought groceries and did our own cooking in the family suite that included a small kitchen. In the evening, we explored the area around the resort where we met cows and came across a poppy field, saw geese landing on a small pond and played with a rugby ball on a strip of green grass below a blue sky rippled with clouds.

Swiss Village

2010-04-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

The Swiss Village was a short stopover during our drive back to Horbart from Launceston. We bought some souvenirs and a giant Wombat stuff toy that my son hand-carried back to Singapore. There were enough flowers to keep me occupied while the rest of the family wandered around the shops.

Cradle Mountain flowers

2010-01-02T03:24:00.000-08:00

Cradle Mountain was the highpoint of our Tasmanian trip. We were not able to get accommodation there and in the end it was just as well that we stayed at a cheaper alternative in Sheffield and visited Cradle Mountain in a day trip.

Flowers at Kentish Hills Resort

2009-10-22T07:49:00.000-07:00

We stayed at the Kentish Hills Resort in Sheffield which is also known for its town murals. There were many varieties of flowers on the grounds of this resort. My son calls these the angry-looking flowers. They were pansies.

Flowers between Bicheno and Deloraine

2009-10-21T08:57:00.000-07:00

Bicheno - Outside the Sealife Centre that also houses a restaurant where we had a sumptuous seafood meal. Pricy but marvellous!

Beach behind the Sealife Centre. At night the fairy penquins come home to their burrows here. We watched them on the last night at Bicheno. It was cold sitting on the rocks and keeping as quiet as possible but it was a worthwhile experience.

Lavender flowers at Deloraine. We stopped over in this town to have lunch.

Hydrangeas on the grounds of Cataract Gorge

2009-09-09T07:38:00.000-07:00

From Bicheno, we moved on to Launceston, the northern gateway to Tasmania by air. From Launceston, we visited places of interest in the area and one of them was Cataract Gorge. Apart from the thrill of taking a ride high above the ground to get a bird's eye view of the beautiful gorge and surroundings, I enjoyed the garden that flooded my senses with countless heads of hydrangea flowers of different colours and forms. That was the first time that I had seen hydrangea flowers not seen before in Singapore. Here they are:

Bicheno

2009-08-15T08:51:00.000-07:00

We stayed 2 nights at the Harvey Farm Lodge in Bicheno and planned our own itinerary. We slept well, went to places of interest and visited the lovely beaches in Bicheno. Just driving around in our hired car was a holiday in itself as we got to see sights that were new to us, especially our kids. Flowers in Tasmania, like those in Australia are unique. Here I have taken several shots of the Kangaroo paw flowers.

Bicheno - flowers in nature reserve and by the sea

2009-08-02T22:42:00.001-07:00

Bicheno

2009-08-02T21:37:00.000-07:00

Bicheno is a small beach town that is about 2-hours by car from Hobart. The attraction around here is the lovely beaches with turquoise coloured waters from a distance, penquin watching and seafood. We stayed at Harvey Farm Lodge that was self-contained and clean. We had a glimpse of the sea from the ground floor. From the upper floor, you have a better view of the ocean and more luxurious accommodation. As it was summer the assortment of flowering plants in front of the lodge gave us an experience of having a mini botanical garden at our doorstep and we worked our cameras to the bone one morning when the weather was fine.

On the road to Bicheno

2009-07-31T23:49:00.000-07:00

From Port Arthur, we drove to Bicheno, a seaside town to the north of Hobart on the eastern coast. We passed through a forest reserve and saw these flowers along the way.

Nearer to Bicheno, we diverted off the main road to scenic spots along the coast...

By the time we arrived at Bicheno, it was almost dark.

Port Arthur Historical Site

2009-07-31T22:59:00.000-07:00

Day Two in Tasmania was spent getting to Port Arthur from Hobart in the morning. The place is a vast expanse of land that was once a hardcore convict settlement where the worst of the worst criminal offenders from England and Ireland were sent. We did not have the luxury of time to explore every nook and corner but we did follow a short guided tour afterwhich we were free to roam the premises. We made the best use of time there. There were not many beautiful flowers here. The most interesting ones were the Apple blossoms. We eat apples from Australia, USA, China, Japan, Taiwan but have never seen the flowers.

Apple blossoms.
.

01Hobart - Stopover for dinner

2009-07-31T21:48:00.000-07:00

Returning from Huon River to our motel on the fringe of Horbat, we passed by a steakhouse that looked like a cozy place to have a nice dinner. The place was full and we, of course, did not have a reservation. We spent some time photographing the flowers in a small garden near the entrance and then went on our way. The number of food joints in sight was cose to nil except for a Chinese restaurant and so we had a pretty good meal there, probably cheaper than the steakhouse. Those were the times we missed Singapore for its abundant food 24/7, round the clock, Chinese, Indian, Malay, Vietnamese, Thai, Italian and you never go hungry in Singapore. Non-stop cheers for Singapore!

Huon River

2009-07-31T00:11:00.000-07:00

From the mountain to the valley and that was where we drove to in the afternoon - the forest reserves to the west of Hobart. When we reached the Huon River it was already late and we could not explore the reserve beyond this bridge.

Still it was relaxing to be surrounded by nature's trees and river. There were flowering shrubs at one end of the bridge that provided me with a lot of fun till it was time to leave.

There were so many of these clusters of flowers in bud. I thought how nice if I could bring them home, grow them in my garden and once in a while use them to complement brighter looking flowers in a vase. Then on second thoughts, why not just let them be in the wild and enjoy them in the open while I could. As for its name, I have not been successful despite looking through a few books. At first I thought they could be wild carrot flowers. On closer examination of the leaves, it is not likely that they are.

The Maori name for this plant is Manuka and it is a Leptospermum specie that is native to New Zealand and South eastern Australia and is said to contain healing properties. Doesn't the name ring a bell? Manuka Honey is something that visitors to Australia bring home for their friends and relatives.

Mt Wellington, Hobart

2009-07-30T23:05:00.000-07:00

We drove up to Mt Wellington to get a panoramic view of Hobart and its surroundings. The weather was fine and there was no fog on the way up. The road was good and in half an hour's time we were at the peak at about 1270 metres (about 4000 ft). In Hobart, the weather was cool and with the sun shining we enjoyed a temperature of about 19 degrees celcius. At the peak of Mt Wellington, it was another story whenever the clouds covered the sun and the chilly wind cut into our flesh. Bring winter clothing with you up there because summer is no guarantee that you will not freeze.

Even the plant life at such a high altitude knew better than to have large surface areas and flowers were small and compact.

As we drove down the mountain, the vegetation became more generously endowed.

We stopped for coffee and snacks at midway and a different set of flowers greeted us.

Hotel in Hobart

2009-07-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

We arrived at our hotel on the outskirt of Hobart. It was actually a motel and we had rooms that gave us a view of the city in the distance and we could see Mt Wellington as well.