Day 69 – Bass Straight

 
This morning we went to the Launceston City Park where we saw monkeys, ducks, lovely gardens and flowers and took Ryan on a train ride around the park:









After visiting the park we drove up to Cataract Gorge where we took the chairlift from one side to the other (yes, the photo is a live action shot on the chairlift):





Apparently the chairlift is the “longest single chairlift span in the world” coming in at 457m long:



By the time we got to Grindlewald in the early afternoon Ryan had fallen asleep for a nap (thank goodness) so we didn’t stay long but we did get a couple of photos of the Swiss Village:





We didn’t have any dramas with the boat (or car) this time, although the boat crossing was a little rougher tonight, even I felt it this time!!

Accommodation – Spirit of Tasmania

Rest Stops - Devonport

Quiz Question #77 – On which river does Launceston sit?
 

Day 68 – Launceston

 
We went to the Cadbury factory in Claremont this morning. What can I say, cadbury chocolate, a factory, chocolate.....





Ryan thoroughly enjoyed himself and was only too eager to oblige when the staff offered him chocolate:







After lunch we drove up to Launceston where we visited the Hillwood Strawberry Farm where we picked (and ate) fresh strawberries:





Afterwards we drove around Ravenswood where we lived before we moved to the mainland. I found the last house that we lived in – it seemed a lot smaller than I remember from when I was 6.....



Accommodation – Big 4 Discovery Holiday Park Hadspen

Rest Stops - Brighton

Quiz Question #76 – In which town was Adrian born?
 

Day 67 – Hobart

 
We spent the day with Aunty Kate and Uncle Adam visiting our grandparents in Launceston and Bicheno.

We drove up to Launceston in the morning to see Nan. We haven’t seen her for a couple of years and she hasn’t yet met Ryan:







Afterwards we drove across to Bicheno on the East Coast. Unfortunately we couldn’t take any photos on the drive as Aunty Kate left the camera in the back of the car.

I did however get a few photos of the view from our grandparents house:





We had dinner with Nan and Pop as well as (my) Aunty Sandra and Uncle Frank.

It was a long day (13 hours and 500km of driving) but well worth it to catch up with family.

What did Aunty Kate say?!?!

Accommodation – Big 4 Discovery Holiday Park Hobart

Quiz Question #75 – What is the name of the bridge that crosses the Derwent River into Hobart?
 

Day 66 – Hobart

 
The journey across the Bass Straight was a little rough in parts but Kylie didn’t vomit so that was a plus.

While Kylie and I had a fairly restless night, Ryan slept like a log and didn’t wake up until we woke him up at 6am to disembark. He’s a bit behind on his sleep.....

In stark contrast to last night it took only 20 minutes to disembark, pass through quarantine and start our journey around Tasmania, The Apple Isle:



We headed west across to Cradle Mountain. It took a couple of hours driving through the rain, fog and winding roads (for most of which Kylie and Ryan slept):



Unfortunately we couldn’t see the mountain through the fog, but we could see Lake Dove that sits at the bottom of Cradle Mountain:







It was bloody freezing when we arrived (those smiles are frozen on), only 9 degrees – the first time we’ve had single digit temperatures during the day!!

Aunty Kate and Uncle Adam are also in Tasmania at the moment (Adam’s here for work) so we caught up for dinner as it’s Adam’s 30th today. Happy Birthday Uncle Adam!!





What did Aunty Kate say?!?!

Accommodation – Big 4 Discovery Holiday Park Hobart

Rest Stops – Devonport, Cradle Mountain, Oatlands, Bridgewater

Quiz Question #74 – What name was given to Tasmania in 1642 by Dutch explorers?
 

Day 65 – Bass Straight

 
We caught up with Kylie’s good friend Michelle for brunch this morning. Michelle was one of Kylie’s bridesmaids and we haven’t caught up since Ryan was a few months old.



The boat across to Tasmania didn’t leave until 21:00 so we had some time to kill after lunch so we went to a shopping centre to see a movie.

Ryan went to sleep in his pram so we thought we might be in luck. Unfortunately he woke up just after we sat down in the cinema!! He was good enough to let us watch the first hour before we had to leave.....

The movie was Date Night, a comedy starring Steve Carell from 40 Year Old Virgin, Evan Almighty and more recently the Get Smart movie. The bits we saw were pretty funny so we’re keen to see the rest of it at some point.

We had fish and chips for tea down at Port Melbourne. It was a little cloudy and drizzling but it wasn’t too cold. We could just see the Melbourne CBD in the distance:



After passing through security we waited for over 2 hours in the car on the pier waiting to board the boat. Silly me had the CD player on to keep Ryan amused (without the ignition fully engaged due to the build up of exhaust fumes) and the battery went flat. Apparently it wasn’t the first time this had happened and the crew organised a jump start. How embarrassing.....



We had a deluxe cabin (one of the highest classes of cabin) with a queen , ensuite, lounge, fridge and two big windows looking out over the front of the boat.



Accommodation – Spirit of Tasmania

Quiz Question #73 – What is the average speed of the Spirit of Tasmania during crossings of the Bass Straight?
 

Day 64 – Melbourne

 
I had to take the car in for a service today as we’ve just passed 10,000km on our trip around Australia!!

We went for a drive around today (avoiding the CBD of course) and passed through some of the suburbs that have AFL football teams named after them including Footscray, Essendon (go the Bombers!!), Carlton and St Kilda. We avoided Collingwood of course....



We took Ryan to Luna Park this afternoon, he absolutely loved it!!







We took Ryan on a little train, the carousel and the flying dumbo ride (like a kids version of the octopus ride):









Ryan was rather delighted with himself when he won some prizes on the laughing clowns:





Accommodation – Ashley Gardens Big 4 Holiday Village

Quiz Question #72 – Which other city in Australia has a Luna Park?
 

*Quiz Answers – Week 8*

 
Quiz Question #58 - Which is the smallest coin denomination in the New Zealand currency (in both size and value)?

Answer #58 – The smallest coin in the New Zealand currency is 10c. They don’t have 5c coins, nor 2c or 1c coins (the same as Australia).

* * * * * *

Quiz Question #59 - Which city is the capital of New Zealand?

Answer #59 – Wellington is the capital of New Zealand.

* * * * * *

Quiz Question #60 - What is the time difference between Darwin and Auckland at the moment?

Answer #60 – Auckland is 3 ½ hours ahead of Darwin.

* * * * * *

Quiz Question# 61 - Which is the largest city in New Zealand?

Answer #61 – Auckland is the largest city on New Zealand.

* * * * * *

Quiz Question#62 - In which year was construction of the Sydney Opera House completed?

Answer #62 – Construction of the Sydney Opera House was completed in 1973.

* * * * * *

Quiz Question #63 - In which year did Home & Away first commence screening on Australian television?

Answer #63 – Home & Away first commenced screening on Australian television in 1988.

* * * * * *

Quiz Question #64 – Who was Australia’s first Prime Minister?

Answer #64 – Australia’s first Prime Minister was Sir Edmund Barton.