Monday, July 4, 2011

Touring Tassie

Beau and I left last Wednesday to head down to Tasmania to do a little sightseeing before the Sabres double header in Hobart and North West Tassie.  We have begun our travels of Australia.  Wednesday we got to Hobart and ate lunch, walked around the town and then planned out our day for Thursday. 

 The boarding tickets looks like reciepts.  Good thing I didn't accidently throw them away!

Lunch at Hog's Breath when we arrived in Hobart.

Exploring the streets of Hobart.


Down at Fisherman's Warf.

Beau like the brass seals.


On Thursday, we decided we wanted to go to the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary to see Tasmanian Devils, Wombats, Koalas and Kangaroos.  We found Judy at Eye See tours who will personalize a tour based on your interests.  She knew everything there was to know about Hobart, wildlife and Australia.  It was such a good experience!  She picked us up at 9:30 and we started our day!

The Kookaburra bird!  I still know the song from kiddie shows when I was little! 

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Merry, merry king of the bush is he
Laugh, Kookaburra! Laugh, Kookaburra!
Gay your life must be

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Eating all the gum drops he can see
Stop, Kookaburra! Stop, Kookaburra!
Leave some there for me

Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree
Counting all the monkeys he can see
Stop, Kookaburra! Stop, Kookaburra!
That's not a monkey that's me

Kookaburra sits on a rusty nail
Gets a boo-boo in his tail
Cry, Kookaburra! Cry, kookaburra!
Oh how life can be

The first animal we learned about at Bonorong was the Wombat.  The caregiver picked him up and let us pet his back.  We felt the cartlidge plate that they have on their lower backs to use at protection from other animals. 
The next animal we learned about was the Tasmanian Devil.  Needless to say, we did not touch them!  They have very strong jaws and they will bite you.  The caregiver got into the cage with them, and she had to state her dominance to let them know that she was the boss.  At one point, one of them decided to challenge her. To show dominance she had to put her boot up to his face, clap her hands and hiss at them for him to back off.  She also fed them so that we could see how they eat.  They eat together because both of them have to grab a side of the meat and pull to break it, so they work as a team.

Next, it was Koala time!  We actually got to go inside of their cage too.  The Koalas are very picky about the kind of eucalyptus leaves that they will eat and they will only eat the ends of the leaves.  The Koalas at the Wildlife Sanctuary are either oprhaned or injured Koalas.  The caregivers have to collect a ton of branches for the four Koalas that live there to eat. 

The Koalas has very thick fur.  They move very slowly. 

Beau loved the Koala!

Unlike Oprah,  I did not get to hold the Koala!

The Kangaroos at Bonorong are out in a big open field.  When you get to Bonorong, they give you a bag of feeding pellets to feed the Kangaroos.  These Kangaroos are obviously very used to people and will just walk right up to you.  This Kangaroo is an old Kangaroo, which you can tell by the length of their toenails.

The Kangaroos like the be petted under the neck.  Petting them from behind is threatening. 

The whole time I've been in Australia, I've waited for this moment!  I loved the Kangaroos!

Thanks Judy for taking pictures of Beau and I together!  We will cherish these memories forever!

Beau had a crowd of Kangaroos waiting to eat.




After we left the Wildlife Sanctuary, Beau wanted to head up to the top of Mount Wellington.  Mount Wellington looks out over Hobart, which is seperated by a river, and the bay.  It was such a great experience and a great way to see the sights of Hobart.
We made it to the pinnacle!

Gorgeous views of Hobart, Tasmania.

At the highest point on Mount Wellington.

Us with our fabulous tour guide Judy from Eye See Tours!








On the way down the Mountain, we stopped at a park for afternoon tea. 

Judy keeps a map to mark where all of her tourists live.  We made the map! 

After a long day of touring and going to the MONA museum, Beau and I were advised to go to dinner at the Drunken Admiral.  It was a cute little place that was decked out in the nautical theme.

Yummy.. Seafood Chowder.  I'm pretty sure it was fat free too. :)

1 comment:

  1. mallory! i can't figure out how this blog business works.. i might have already posted this like four times... but what i wanted to say is that I'm so JEALOUS you got to feed kangaroos and meet koalas! also, i like that you wore your leopard scarf to meet the animals. way to show them your 'one with nature' side ahha!

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