Party time!

Friday 8^th Sept, 2017.

The big day has arrived. It’s party time! We’re meeting Cindy, Tarasa and Shane at the Mount Nelson Signal Station for lunch at midday and it’s about a 2 hour drive to there from Taranna, and we’ll also be glad to see the back of this place, although once we got used to the bits we didn’t like, it wasn’t totally awful, and the owners were really nice. And we really cranked the fire up last night!

We stopped off on the way to lunch at Rosny Hill for our first look at Hobart. There’s a really good view from up there, especially in the morning, as you’re facing west and the sun is behind you. We had to drive through the middle of Hobart and out the other side to get to Mt Nelson, but it was nothing like driving in Sydney or Melbourne! Lots of streets have been made one way to improve circulation, in the same way as Perth. Must be a pain for the old time locals, but for us, it wasn’t a problem.

The signal station was used back in the day to send semaphore signals to various parts within line of sight and then relayed further. The signal was sent from here, either back to Hobart or across the Derwent to Mt Augustus and on to Port Arthur, the convict settlement. The views would be spectacular with a bit of judicious tree pruning, but that seems to be the way with a lot of lookouts these days. 

Lunch was pretty good, Trevor got his first taste of Tassie seafood in a huge bowl of seafood chowder.  I think Cindy will be glad when the surprise is sprung tonight and she can relax again. 

After lunch, we could check in to our hotel, the Fountainside in Hobart, a handy location as it turned out.

Check in was simple and we were quickly up in our room, number 56. Close to the elevator and with a nice view over what was known as the Railway Roundabout. I can’t figure out why they stopped train services in Tassie. Anyway …………….. I need to stretch my legs, so go in the direction of the International Tennis Centre, the venue for the party, to see if we can walk there, but it’s up a big hill, and when I get close to the top, I spot the Cenotaph near the waterfront, so head back down the hill in that direction. I walk for half an hour, but it’s enough to get a feel for the place. I like it. The only thing that would make our hotel room better would be access to a washing machine. I really have to remember to book that in future. Talking to Tarasa later, we find out that they have a washing machine in their studio at the Old Woolstore, but we couldn’t book in there because Craig works there and we couldn’t blow the surprise. As far as he knows, we’re coming down for a visit next month! That was the ruse Cindy and I used so we could discuss things for Trevor and I to do!

It was so nice to walk in and the room be warm already and there’s carpet underfoot! Before we know it, it’s time to get ready and get ourselves up to the Tennis Centre. Craig is brought there under false pretences, of course, and we spring the surprise. He says later that he had no idea until he got near to the top of the stairs. Gotta love a successful surprise party! Everybody has a really good night, it’s a great success. Well done Cindy and her co-conspirators! I considered walking up and back because it’s not far, but it’s all uphill on the way there, and add to that, it’s raining, so we arrange an Uber ride. Turns out to be $7.50 each way, which seems expensive for the distance. Tarasa and Shane get a taxi from the Woolstore, only a block or so away from us (and the venue) and it costs them less. Go figure. Maybe there’s a minimum charge for Uber??

Cindy has arranged for us to have a private tour of the Mt Pleasant Radio Astronomy Observatory and Grote Reber Museum at Cambridge tomorrow, thankfully not till midday, so although it’s after midnight when we get to bed, we’re not in any hurry to get going in the morning.