Hobart, Tasmania

Last evening the sunset over the sea was beautiful as was the sight of the large number of huge albatross' flying beside the ship and diving for food as we sailed along.

We arrived this morning on the island of Tasmania- still in Australia. 

The town of Hobart where we are docked is the state capital. It was founded in 1803 as a penal colony and is the 2nd oldest city in Australia. Currently it is the 11th largest city.

Charles Darwin visited Hobart in 1836 as part of his expedition looking for various kinds of creatures. This is now a busy seaport and serves as the headquarters for exploration into the Antarctic for Australia and France.

We took a shuttle into town and did a little exploring and shopping. The weather is a bit windy and chilly. BUT the sky is a beautiful blue and the town was most friendly. We decided not to take an organized tour since the town is small, so we had fun doing a little exploring on our own. 

We saw the lovely neighborhood of Battery Park with small cottages. Many of the houses were decorated with wrought iron and all of them had gardens filled with colorful flowers. Even downtown was more colorful because of the flowers.