Pinch Us! We cannot believe this lovely place called Saffire in Freycinet!

So, left Hobart at 9am… had the same driver who picked us up at the airport, Peter.  Nice guy and we headed out for our next destination for three nights. It was about 3 hours from Hobart and he took some of the lesser traveled roads which is something Jerry and I do all the time.  It’s always so much more interesting.  Went through a small town called Richmond which is home to the oldest bridge in Tassie, built in 1823 by, you guessed it, the convicts. 

We were so excited to think… a real legit bridge picture!  Asked Peter to take our pics, told him we wanted the whole bridge in the pic.  Yes-siree he said…I’ve got eight cameras at home, I can handle it for you.  We got on the bridge and he spent one minute appearing to take a gazillion photos.  We rendezvoused back together… I checked the camera as we drove away… TWO pictures and they were closeup of us, so you can’t see the bridge!!!  WHAAAAAT?  Think I still might use them as a bridge pic… way too funny! 

Got to our home for the next three evenings and couldn’t believe how nice it was/is.  Oh my, we certainly are not use to this kind of place but are happy to try it out! 

The center has a Tasmanian Devil Sanctuary for older Tas Devils.  The Devils are only found here in Tasmania now and unfortunately, a horrible, spreadable cancer has decimated about 80% of the population.  The government is working to help get this disease under control but not so easy with wild animals, but they are making progress.  So here, there are five older Devils (one male and rest female)… and females are the aggressors, especially when they mate.  They tend to all beat up on the poor guy and he is exhausted from trying to service them all, which is funny, cuz their age keeps them from procreating, you'd think they would loose the drive... guess not.  Interesting critters which eat meat… and the bones, and the fir, well, every single bit of their food. 

Enjoy the pics!

This is the bridge...pic from a web site

 

We drove up, they asked our names and had us sit and relax, gave us some wine and talked to us about the center.  While this was happening, our luggage was whisked away to the room.  The staff member than walked us to out home for the next three nights and showed us how to operate all the gizmos.  The view... well, you will see down below!

 This was our first view out the main pavilion... GORGEOUS

And then we find out this area is OUR room and our view was awesome!

 View from our bed... oh darn!

 Bathroom -  a shower with 4 heads!!!!

 Living room, dining area behind it...

 Our patio

 View from the dining room

 The plunge pool... PLUNGE????

 Walking to the beach...

 I just loved this sculpture

 And here are the little devils!!!!

 Sun setting behind us...like I said.... Pinch us...Can this place be true?

Tasmania - Built on the backs of convicts!

Well, our Tuesday, your Monday, was full!  First, after the storm yesterday, we wondered if the bay would still be full of slop (rollers, etc)!  Fortunately, that wasn’t the case today.  Nice sun and calm…

At 7:30 we headed to the wharf to catch our group, Pennicott Wilderness Tours.  We were going for a 3 hour cruise along the coast and then on to Port Arthur, where there’s an old Men’s Prison… Heavy into jail tours it seems, but they are a big part of the history of this country.  Truly:  Streets, Bridges, Bricks, Leather work, on the list goes.  And, after all, it was the Penal Colony for Great Britan.

Coastline was gorgeous and water so blue.  We went into sea caves, saw Albatrosses, Seals, even some rock climbers as we rode the waves along.  One poor lady didn’t fare too well and spent the whole time hugging the rail… felt bad for her.

Okay… so got home at 6:30 in the evening… and crashed!  Didn’t even try to do this blog… so I’m completing it now!  Sometimes I feel I get to wordy… so this one is mostly pics!  Had to reduce the quality of the pics to get it to upload...

All suited up for a possibly damp trip... but, it wasn't too bad... as a matter of fact, me, who was behind the captain, next to the side wall, was the only one who got drenched... go figure!

 Our fearless captain who apologized for dousing me with sea water on one turn!!!

Some  crazy rock climbers.... Zoomed in... 

 Albatross taking off... they were about 4-5 feet wide when they're flying!

 Tasman Island with the lighthouse... now totally automatic!  The local Rotary keeps the four homes up but no one lives there, just visitors now and then.

 Port Arthur

 Opened in 1804, closed down late 1800's.  The buildings were mostly destroyed by bush fires, and eventually some vandalism.  It is now part of UNESCO, like many other historic places in the world.  Good thing, otherwise, all this  history might not be told!

 A comfy room, you can see their shelf.  This is only on the ground level that you see this, since all floors collapsed and are gone.

 This was a different building for Solitary Confinement... No talking, only one hour a day allowed out of their room, and when they were out in the yard, they had to be by themselves... no fun.  If there were infringements in their behavior, they would go to another smaller place, where they were kept in the DARK 24/7.  Yuck!!!

 sample room

 The convicts build this church... now, just walls, but beautiful non the less!

 Got back to our room and this group of fun loving folks were getting ready for a night on the town!