Bay hopping
Wineglass Bay was impressive with turqoise water and ornage coloured rocks. Flowering wildflowers made it a joy for my eyes. Unfortunately we had not so much time to spend here, as we needed to reach the other bays as well. The more time we spent in the car the more disgusting jokes got told (see box text). At this time I felt like a Japanese tourist too, as we just stopped, did a small hike and then left the place. At the same time we could see more stuff in a shorter time, so that was my inner piece. Wineglass Bay and Freycinet NP were a little bit similar, but it was the group again what made it such a funny trip to here.
To satisfy everyone at last we visited Bruny Island. Against all odds we saw here the Fairy Penguins which are smaller than a cat. A ranger had a talk for 1 hour and after we went spotting penguins with him. I helped him out with the counting. It felt like being at work again, so good! Other hikes revealed echidnas, snakes, and many birds.
The last night we stayed at the place where Reinhart and Kristien worked. These people were so friendly: Mike and Joe. We could stay as long as we wanted and could always come back. Kristien, Reinhart and I left to Maria Island after dropping the car in Hobart. Julie and Marco were leaving to main land.
Maria Island has a rich history and the hikes are particularly beutiful along the coast. We did a 3 day hiking tour across the whole island. The feeling to be away from cities, traffic, and pollution is something I normally don’t get. And wildlife? Plenty! On a certain moment you could trip over the amount of wallabies, kangaroos, wombats and snakes. Although Tasmanian devils are present on the island, I only heard them from a distance but we didn’t see any. Haunted Bay, the convict cells, the campsite; all have some history going back to the first settlers. With that all aboriginals got tragically killed. Maria Island was a good choice, but also Mike and Joe turned out to be even more kind then any other! I made a curry for them on my last day. Mike treated us with Souvlaki when he brought me back in Hobart. When back in Australia I’ll visit them again. And yes, Mike is a funny man, has many stories to tell and it’s great to discuss environmental issues with him.
With all of these super experiences I finish my travel through Down Under. Soon in a few months to be continued and hopefully with work on my own study level. Got some new couchsurfers to know around the world and at last Australia did not turn out to be as bad.
What’s next?
Before going back home I got a 5 week trip in the Philippines planned.
Ciau,
Amar