This is a very different type of blog for us. Firstly, we wont be writing it in a HE SAID... / SHE SAID...style. I (Ren) will be doing most of the writing with input from Andrew. Secondly, this Tasmanian trip will span the whole year, with day trips, long weekends and possibly excursions being undertaken whenever we have the time.
As is our usual routine before we travel, weve started immersing ourselves in books, films and TV shows about/set in Tasmania. Tasmania has many faces and moods, but it seems that many writers and directors have chosen to focus on stories about the bleak and austere aspects of island life. Its even been given a title – Tassie Noir – a that captures the harsh, dark and moody aesthetic of Tasmania.
Given we are not fans of Rosehaven – the (that we know of) thats been based in Tasmania, the creative ambiance at home has been quite heavy recently. But even though its been hard sitting through such brutal gothic, horror, thriller and supernatural storytelling the haunting beauty in the way the landscapes have been captured somehow makes it palatable. Theres also something
Over the last decade or so, Tasmania had slowly but surely climbed up the tourism ladder and tourism numbers were starting to get so high that we were worried about and our fragile ecosystems being destroyed. Its a small island with limited infrastructure outside the cities, and it really isnt set up for the mass tourism that used to be belched out from cruise ships every summer.
I can totally understand why its a very exciting destination, but I would be much happier if our State and local governments looked more closely at the impacts of tourism. Having said that, we feel for the tourism operators who are struggling at the moment. Last year, while our State borders were closed for a few months, local tourism helped to keep many operators afloat and we hope they keep flourishing this year too. It was lovely to read of many places that traditionally closed over winter but stayed open to cater for the influx of local tourists. Our State governments travel voucher incentive program may have contributed to this cultural shift too.
realising very quickly that organising a local holiday is a very different beast to organising an overseas trip. Very interestingly, planning these local trips has been a lot more time consuming than designing our overseas adventures. As it is the case all over the world at present, our tourism and hospitality industries are in major flux, and all my usual methods of travel research have been proving unreliable. Ive had to rely heavily on trawling social media and directly calling businesses in order to get any current information.
I had also assumed that booking a series of short local trips would be much than a longer trip. That definitely hasnt been the case. Finding the time for multiple short trips is proving more difficult than blocking out one longer holiday. The flexibility of travelling whenever we have the time is tempered by the fact that many of the trips are highly weather dependent, and travelling in Australia is also far more expensive (especially in summer/high season) than most overseas destinations. On the other hand, we dont have to worry about getting vaccinations, packing a smallish 12kg backpack for a whole month or more, spending looong hours on
They say that every journey has an explicit aim and an implicit agenda. Ive already covered the explicit travel aims of our Tasmanian trips in the Prologue, so I probably should now admit that one of my implicit agendas is hoping to ‘research and locate the best pies, servo pies (distinctly different to ‘normal pies), sausage rolls, egg and bacon rolls, toasties, fish and chips, bangers and mash, parmigianas and pub meals in Tasmania! And in the sweet stakes, Ill be hunting for the best vanilla slices, custard tarts, lamingtons, apple cakes and pies! 😊
Ive also been looking forward to supporting the very special rural roadside stalls.
