Australia
Launceston

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    • Day 16

      Cataract Gorge

      February 28 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

      Cataract Gorge is about 5 mins round the corner from our site. It was Launceston Cup day, which might explain why there were lots of folk at the gorge today, think everyone had an unofficial day off. On a midweek Wednesday, there should only have been a few seniors (us included!)

      We jumped on the chairlift and traversed the gorge basin, it was quiet, calm and the views were beautiful. After a cuppa we wandered back over the suspension bridge and back to the magic bus. The sun was hot and think we both caught the sun at that point, as we’re sporting vibrant pink patches now 😬

      Next stop, Platipi…..
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    • Day 7

      Launcestion

      February 7, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

      Was war das denn für ein Tag heute. Ich starte heute morgen in Hobart mit dem Check out. Anschließend mache ich einen Spaziergang in den Hafen von Hobart und zu einem Outdoorladen, um Essen für meine Wanderung am 11.2 zu besorgen. Alles hat super funktioniert. Nun kann ich mich aufmachen zu meiner 3 - stündigen Autofahrt nach Laucestion. Ich schaffe es sogar auf dem Weg noch zu tanken. Es hat alles super funktioniert.
      Als ich angekommen bin, hatte ich nicht bedacht das ich ja dort kein Parkplatz habe. So bleibt die noch eine Parkplatz suche offen. Es ist unglaublich. Es gibt reichlich Parkplätze zum parken, allerdings nur zwei übernacht. Ich ergattere mir ein Parkplatz und mache mich auf in die Unterkunft um mich frisch zu machen. Von dort entschied ich eine kleine Runde am Fluss spazieren zu gehen. Ein kleinen Rast im Park mache ich. Du einen sehr aufmerksamen Asiatische jungen Mann entdeckt ich 3 Pfauen. Sie sehen wunderbar aus. Ich lass mich auf einer Bank nieder und die Pfauen kommen richtig nah. Ich bin schwer beeindruckt. Kann mein Glück kaum fassen, das ganze bleibt keine einmaliges Erlebnis sondern wiederholte sich. Voller Faszination verliere ich das Zeitgefühl und verweile hier über eine Stunde. Auf dem Rückweg habe ich mich leider verlaufen, da ich so von den Tieren beeindruckt war. Voller Motivation mache ich mich in das Hostel. Eigentlich freue ich mich auf mein Omlet nur leider wird das nichts. Denn vor lauter erschrecken Stelle ich fest, es gibt kein Herd, kein Salz, Pfeffer und Öl gibt es auch nicht. Nun muss improvisieren. Es gibt dann Salat und Brot. Das Brot wird mit ordentlich Avocado 🥑 Frischkäse und Tomaten belegt. Dazu gibt es Salat mit Tomaten, Pilzen und Avocado. Sehr lecker!!!
      Jetzt verstehe ich auch warum in der Küche niemand isst 😃
      Ich war etwas traurig das ich heute nicht ein Wort Englisch gesprochen habe und mich irgendwie etwas nach Gesellschaft beim Essen gesehnt habe. Sehe es aber optimistisch, so habe ich für morgen mehr Energie und bin fit beim frühen Aufstehen.
      Nun will mich startklar machen, um in meiner Kapsel zu schlafen. Super witzig. Man fühlt sich wie in einem Raumschiff. Bin gespannt wie ich hier drin schlafe. Wie durch ein Wunder schlafen in der Kapsel neben an 2 Mädels aus Australien. Wir unterhalten uns noch etwas und sie laden mich zum Cafe zu sich nach Hause ein. Eine wohnt in Melbourne und eine in Perth. Beide sehr nett zu dem Café wird es aber nicht kommen. Lustig ist das sie für morgen die selben Pläne haben wie ich auch. Mal schauen ob ich sie morgen auf der Wanderung treffe und in der Unterkunft sehe. Sie haben die selbe Unterkunft. Ein sehr schöner abendlicher Ausklang.
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    • Day 6

      Launceston

      January 18, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

      Launceston. A city I had not heard about until I started planning this trip. So, I came here with no expectations at all, actually getting out of here on the same evening my hiking trip concludes (after a shower ;-)).

      So, I just strolled through the town this morning, towards the little river I saw on the map… lucky surprise - I ended at the Launceston Cataract Gorge - which was indeed gorgeous. And ended to be much more sweaty than expected. A beautiful spot…

      After that, back to my hotel (still impressed that the guy at the reception knew my name and the duration of my stay simply by telling him my room number!), grabbing my stuff for the pre-trip meeting for my Cradle Mountain Overland Trail hiking tour starting tomorrow. 7 guests (6 women), 2 guides, and we will be ready to go early tomorrow… and it sounds as if we may have to endure a bit of a temperature shock… about 30C today - down to 13 tomorrow… but I was told that the weather constantly changes and we can expect snow or heat or both in one trip - so let’s see what we will get.

      And after grabbing some last things from the supermarket (snacks) and (almost) successfully fighting the temptation of all these outdoor stores here (another nice add on of this town) I’m now enjoying a glass of wine and a fancy dinner and the other amenities of modern life (shower, proper bed, light simply by pushing a switch, wifi, using the bathroom at night without shuffling out of a sleeping bag, finding shoes, a headlamp and walking through the cold), before heading out tomorrow.

      Remaining question: Should I bring my camera or just take the phone?!?

      There may not be many updates during the next 6 days - so all the fancy hiking pics and weird stories will have to wait…

      Fun fact: the sun sets only at 8:45pm - and I and my body are sooooo confused…

      PS: Launceston is Tasmania’s second largest city with a population of a bit less than 90k, which makes it 18th largest city of Australia. It’s a UNESCO city of gastronomy (little did I know that existed), has some nice restored Victorian houses and at least 8 churches.

      PPS: For anyone interested - this is what I’m doing the next couple of days: https://www.intrepidtravel.com/us/australia/cra…
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    • Day 52

      Launceston: QVMAG

      February 1 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 73 °F

      After a good night’s rest, we headed into the Launceston CBD to run a couple of errands. And then we were ready to spend time at QVMAG — which stands for Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery.

      The museum actually consists of two separate buildings.

      First up was the Art Gallery at Royal Park … described as reflecting “…our histories, identities, and stories in a fresh and contemporary context.”

      It was interesting … and some of the pieces were thought-provoking.
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    • Day 54–55

      Party in the Paddock 🥳💃🏼

      February 9 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

      When I decided to prolong my stay in Tassie, I figured that there was the Party in the Paddock festival near Launceston with some bands I wanted to see - so it was obvious where I was going to spend my last few days 🤩🤩
      While I did my research about the festival it came into my mind that a friend told me about volunteering, thus I gave it a go and applied - on the last day possible appearently 😆 and got accepted - whoop whoop 🙌🏽🙌🏽
      I had two 6,5h shifts at the merch booth, which was really fun and got free access to the festival & camping in exchange - pretty nice deal, isn't it?! 😉
      Both of my shifts were during daytime, which was great as it got quiet warm with bright sunshine on these two days so being within the merch tent was perfect. After my shifts (which ended at 8pm resp. 5pm) I checked the festival area, got some food and simply enjoyed the music and festival vibes 🥳🥳 and of course danced my ass off to Milky Chance, Tash Sultana, Holy Holy and the electro night-tents haha 💃🏼💃🏼💃🏼
      Definitely was an awsome thing to go there - absolutely had a blast! 🤩🤩🤩

      Soundtrack of the days:
      Living in a haze - Milky Chance
      https://open.spotify.com/track/3yfki4r5cgFA784t…
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    • Day 93

      Je me tatoue 😱

      March 8, 2023 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

      Hello les amis,👋🏼
      Journée à Launceston, nous avons tous les 4 choisi de nous faire tatouer (oui, c'est pour la vie je sais !). Un petit cœur discret, il représente tout ce que nous avons vécu sur cette île, les rencontres fortes, les fous rires et les bons souvenirs.
      Et moi, j'ai décidé de me faire tatouer le 601, le chiffre qui m’a emmené loin et qui me guide d'une manière ou d'une autre. Il me dit que je suis au bon endroit au bon moment.
      La petite Alice s'est fait tatouer pour la première fois.
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    • Day 52

      Launceston: QVMAG II

      February 1 in Australia ⋅ 🌬 77 °F

      From the Art Gallery at Royal Park, we headed to the second building that comprises the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery.

      The Museum (the M in QVMAG) at Inveresk is home to a collection of permanent and touring exhibits, and the Planetarium. The exhibits are varied … some might describe them as eclectic.

      The permanent “Tasmanian Connection” exhibit includes displays on the now-extinct Tasmanian Tiger; the Sydney Cove Wreck; the history of Tasmanian pottery. There are also a number of dinosaur and natural science exhibits. As well as a couple of vehicles and more.

      On the temporary side, we found the “Wetlands” and “Botanica” … the latter exploring how flora of the land and sea influences our lives, from food and medicines to visual arts and design.

      It continues to amaze us that these regional and national museums in Australia are free to visit, donations gratefully accepted.
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    • Day 41

      Windy excursion 🌪🏔🌬🏖

      January 27 in Australia ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

      My first way today was to the famous Harvest market in Launceston, which takes place pnly saturdays and even is a UNESCO heritage. 👩🏼‍🌾👨🏽‍🌾
      Besides local fruit (especially cherries 🍒), herbs and vegtables one can also find local pastry, honey, olive oil and food stands. 🍇🍐🥦🥕🥐🍯🥟🍔☕️
      It was a really lovely market, especially when a live band started to play as well. 🎶🎙
      After about an hour there I made my way to the Ben Lomond national park, as I wanted to hike up to the summit of Mt. Ben Lomond, which is around 1,500m high. 🏔
      In winter locals can go skiing up there and in summer it's supposed to be a nice hiking spot. 🎿🥾
      On my way up (you have to drive up rather high) I already realizid, that I did not bring the right clothes...it was sooo windy and freeeezing up there 🌪🌪🥶🥶 so I decided to just stop at Jacob's ladder and then drive back down...even more as the summit was completely foggy anyways 🌫😶‍🌫️
      I then drove to Bridgeport, a nice village on the northshore of the island and went for a little walk there 😊
      It was for sure warmer than on Ben Lomond, but I couldn't escape the wind today haha 🙈 it was so strong there, that I constantly had to hold my sunglasses on my nose, cause otherwise they would have been blown away 🤓 and no, taking them off was not an option, as I would have had all the sand blown in my eyes then 😅
      From Bridgeport I headed back to Launceston, where I spent a nice evening 😊

      Soundtrack of the day:
      Windy - The Association
      https://open.spotify.com/track/6RUpOheT93fUdI50…
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    • Day 40

      Aussie national day in Tassie 🥰

      January 26 in Australia ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

      First of all - happy Australian national day! 🇦🇺🥳
      Once again the alarm clock went off veeery early...see picture 😬
      So I got ready, walked to the airport (so glad the hostel was just a 10 mins walk from there) and dropped off the backpack.
      The plane took off punctually at 6 am and almost 3 hours later i safely landed in Tasmania 🤩🥳 so excitedto be here!
      When picking up my rental car, one of the agents said it's a must to go to the Cateract Gorge when staying in Launceston, so I did right away. 😉
      Driving there was a bit thrilling, since it's the first time for me to drive on the left side 🚙↔️ but I got used to it quiet fast 🙏
      The place was really nice, since it's not only the Gorge itself, but also a national park around. 🏞
      Even thought it's been rather crowded at the beginning - probably because it was a holiday and there's also a pool and a basin to swim in - I kept on walking paths for around 4 hours and probably met only 10 other people. 🤠
      Soooo enjoyed the hiking...being just with myself, listening to the Wind and the sounds of the wood and oh, this smell of pines...love it! 😍
      But I also had other encounters...with 2 wild kangaroos 🦘🦘 and 2 snakes 🐍🐍. For those who know how easily I get scared...you can imagine my reaction when I saw the snakes in the corner of my eye right next to the path 😱
      After this adventurous walk I drove to the hotel, did some grocery shopping & enjoyed my dinner in a nearby park. 😊🥕🥑🥪

      Soundtrack of the day:
      Meet me in the woods - Lord Huron
      https://open.spotify.com/track/54hj06Z7sm7DaHSr…
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    • Day 120

      Three waterfalls and curry with a view

      January 7, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

      Mole Creek —> Lilydale

      Wir müssen wieder über eine lange unbefestigte Straße fahren, um zu dem Startpunkt unserer Wanderung zu gelangen. Als dann auch noch für die letzten Kilometer ein „4-Wheel-Drive Only“-Schild erscheint, werden natürlich die Erinnerungen des Steckenbleibens am Vortag geweckt. Aber Tasha spielt ja nicht Kreisklasse und meistert auch das letzte Stück der Straße.
      Die Wanderung beginnt schon wieder mit zugezogenem Himmel, aber das zweite Wanderpärchen vor Ort sind Locals die einfach nur glücklich sagen: „Wetter ist super, schließlich soll es heute nicht regnen!“. Wir starten auf zum ersten Wasserfall, den Chasm Falls und werden schon unterwegs von einem kleinen namenslosen Wasserfall verzückt. Aber als wir letztendlich die Chasm Falls erreichen sind wir begeistert und Wolf klettert im ganzen Gelände umher, um ihn aus verschiedensten Winkeln zu begutachten.
      Weiter geht die Wanderung zu dem dritten Wasserfall des Tages, den kleinen aber feinen Smoko Falls. Von hier aus heißt es mal wieder ewiges bergauf klettern, um auf den Cummings Head in 1.240 m Höhe zu gelangen, denn wir wollen natürlich unser Mittagessen (die Reste des Currys vom Vortag) mit Ausblick genießen. Zum Glück lässt die Wolkenfront hier und da ausreichend Löcher für eine schöne Sicht.
      Der Rückweg zum Parkplatz ist nicht mal unseren Wanderapps bekannt und so müssen wir wieder pfadfindermäßig nach Steinmännchen und anderen Markierungen, über Wurzeln, Baumstämme und durch Büsche unseren Weg suchen, um wieder zum Auto zu gelangen. Wir steuern wieder einen Umsonst-Campingplatz in Lilydale an und machen uns dort auf der Wiese breit, um draußen eine leckere Bolognese zu kochen. Que aproveche!
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    Launceston

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