We live in Tasmania now, and when we travel to the 'Mainland' I hear similar statements, but in regard to Tassie. It is a beautiful place, and I know there are many beautiful places in Australia, but I think Tassie just has that extra allure of being an island, separate to Australia. Not to mention the incredible produce that has Tasmania has to offer and is world renowned for, has it firmly embedded onto any 'Foodie's' must visit lists.
Previously I have written about where we live, The Oaks. Now I thought I would expand on the area surrounding us a little more. We live in the Richmond area, just 20 minutes from Hobart.
One of the perks of living so close to an iconic town is we get to explore it a little more deeply then most tourists.
Croccy is unaware he is sitting on 190 year old hand craved stone (aka, the Richmond Bridge).
Not exactly what I had in mind when I was thinking exploration.
Graffeti is a rare find in Richmond.
Our little secret tree on the other side of the river.
A secret tree (well to us anyway!) with many seats.
Best buddies.
A rarely used back road.
You also get to encounter Royalty on occasion.
Another of the perks is being just minutes away from the famous Richmond Bakery with all of it's decadent treats and heart warming pies. Of course this comes with it's downside, as every tourist in Richmond seems to want to lunch at the same time as us, how rude! No problem, we have it all figured out and make sure we are there at around 11am. In between the morning tea and lunch rush means much faster service as it is not uncommon for the line to be 10 people deep and all the way across the room.
From the bakery it is just a hop, skip and a jump to the village green (I do love to live in a town that has a village green!), the park and the infamous Richmond Bridge which was built by convicts in 1823. The Coal River runs through Richmond and is aptly named after coal was discovered at the river mouth.
The convicts have since moved on, but have been replaced by another motley crew. The ducks and geese that now call the Coal River home are a very clever bunch of birds. The gaggle of geese can be heard from afar, and make sure non shall pass without an offering of food of some kind. Visit them in the afternoon and you will receive a much quieter welcoming, as their bellies are already well and truly full by the days never ending tourist trade.
The long road we travel in and out of Richmond offers incredible scenery and often a little extra intrigue. I have stopped more then once along that road to take a photo of something you don't see everyday. A fire perhaps? A fabricated rainbow. Or even a dreary fog filled early morning.
The day in January that we were evacuated from home (the hill you see on the right).
A perfect Autumn day in Tassie.
One cold Saturday morning on the way to soccer.
Want to visit yet?
I am linking with Essentially Jess, for IBOT (I blog on Tuesdays). In fact, I almost didn't blog this Tuesday thanks to to coffee spill on my laptop yesterday afternoon. Luckily it seems to be ok, except for the keyboard that no longer works, but I have plugged in a USB keyboard until I figure out what to do next.
