Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Hobart - Day Three

Today was a visit to the historic Port Arthur. About an hour drive from Hobart we set of at about 10am. The drive there was lovely, you really travel through some beautiful areas, it was a littlewindy for the last 20kms and Sarah who is suffering from a head-cold really felt yucky for most of that 20kms.

Admission for Port Arthur depends on what tours etc you choose to do while you are there. We opted for the $55 family ticket whichgave us entrance, admission to all buildings, a guided walking tour and a harbour cruise.

Port Arthur is a full day trip, no doubt about it, there is so much to see and do, it is completely fascinating.

Here are the girls on the boat cruise
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The Isle of the Dead - where all the convicts where buried
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Next stop? ANTARCTICA - yep sail right on out there
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There are so many buildings in Port Arthur to look at, my favourite was the church which is just behind the governors gardens, it was so peaceful
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One of the walkways
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No trip to Port Arthur would be complete without a moment to reflect on the terrible tragedy that occur ed there on the 28Th April, 1996. The Port Arthur Massacre claimed 35 lives and left 37 people wounded. You can click the link if you want to know more about it. There is a beautiful memorial area in Port Arthur dedicated to not only the people that lost their lives on that day, but also to the injured and those that came to the aid of those needing help in what would have been terrifying circumstances. The memorial is simple yet so utterly perfect in its simplicity it is a touching reminder of something most of us will gratefully never experience or ever truly be able to comprehend.

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1 comment:

Kate said...

Oh Trudi

We loved Port Arthur as well. Went there in Jan 1998. The beauty of the place astounded us. It was a very strange and melancholy feeling to be where so many people died and suffered. It will stay with me forever. When I walked around with Samuel, Zachary and Stan all I could think was 'those other families were doing this too' and I could sort of imagine the whole scene. Horrific yet such a beautiful place full of history. Thanks for sharing!

k8