Hotel Tasmania Launceston

... all in the process of unfurling their fronds. The largest of these had orangey fibres growing off them so they looked like orangutan hair!<br><br>The Marakoopa cave is a wet cave, which means water still runs through it. Inside a myriad of limestone deposits made up all manner of shapes and textures ranging from broccoli-like stalagmites, spaghetti-thin stalagtites, coral-like rock by our feet and strange, intriguing damp nobules everywhere. Iron in some places had coloured the ...

... Me and has an international reputation for great food locally sourced. Much to my surprise, it appears that I was lucky to get in as, after twenty years, the owners have decided it is time to retire and are closing down at the end of the week! This will be a real loss for the town and I hope others take up the mantle (which it appears they are already doing so). The restaurant is located in an old colonial house with ...

... a number of lookouts we stopped at and took some photos. I reckon I was by the end of the day going on Roxy's nerves by taking too many photos. :) We finally arrived in Launceston and found our accommodation for the last night of our holiday. After being shown to the room we made our way to the Launceston CBD where we had a pleasant walk. We came back to our room fairly early and went to slep as we have to wake up at 4:30 am in the morning! L

Launceston is the gateway to the northern section of Tassie. There are five touring routes that start here. It seems to be quite dry at the moment and therefore not at its best. We really liked the CBD with its unhurried atmosphere and large number of historic buildings. The city is Australia's third oldest, after Sydney and Hobart. It also has some unique natural beauty because of its location in the Tamar Valley. We spent a lovely day in two of the city's parks ...

... pretty nice - the white sand felt like flour under my feet and the water was a nice blue-green. I basically spent the day walking around and taking pictures. The next two days I spent in a neighborhood known as Glebe, which is considered to be the "alternative" scene (read: hippies and other supposed weirdos). Aside from a few very friendly pairs of females and a few people having conversations with themselves, I didn't think it was too different. I stayed at ...

Hey all, Just got a quick mo to pop onto the net so thought i would drop a note to let you know all is well. We're in Tasmania now with friends working doing the Broccolli harvest in a place near cressy which is about an hours drive from Launceston (where the nearest shops, supermarkets etc are) Have a car and camp gear now so were roughing it up in a field where we are working. Only 1 shower between 20 people ...

... Bay where we embarked on a guided sea-kayaking trip. We paddled for about 2 hours before stopping for a morning tea break of muffins and, well, tea. We paddled over an oyster farm (who knew?) and through the clearest waters I've ever seen! We were greeted by the largest species of pelican in the world and various other birds. This goes on the list of our favorite Australian experiences. Later that day ...

... of nervousness yet excitement I boarded the mini bus in Hobart at 6.20am on Tues 20th Feb to join 16 other fellow travellers on an adventure across Tasmania! All in all I had a great time - and hopefully the photos speak for themselves. The scenery was stunning, the hikes tiring - walking on sand is hard enough without a gradient! New activities were tried ...

... Goodness, He's getting ready to go out. The noise is 'Fantastic'. And, and, he's off, on a qualifying run" All of that in a Murray Walker voice & really fast. It was as if Button had just won a world championship, but that's Murray for you! After the qualifying we made some lunch - cheese sandwiches for all those taking a log of our eating habits. While fetching the cheese grater, i succumbed to a nasty duel with ...

... to go shopping and get some supplies for dinner and breakfast we drove into the city centre to try and locate a supermarket (Coles on Charles St). Launceston is a small city (although the second largest in Tasmania) and at 6pm on a Thursday most shops and establishments had already closed for business. Thankfully Coles was still open until 10pm, so we were able to cook up a nice curry with rice back at the hostel kitchen. The hostel is a little antiquated. The large dorm rooms have old ...