What does one really know about Tasmania? Well, it is where the Tasmanian Devil comes
from, right? It is by Australia. Hmmm, but is it a state or a country? Um, it’s really far away? Truth is the Australian state of Tasmania doesn't really have much of
a presence on the global scene. It is
tucked away down there at the end of the world, pretty much out of sight and
out of mind.
For most of my teen years I was obsessed with Australia and
Greece. I desperately wanted to go to
both places. The irony is that when I finally got to travel I ended up going to Italy
and England instead. I still do want to
go to both places, but as time passed I became more interested in New Zealand
and the even smaller island of Tasmania, than Australia itself.
Port Arthur was the first place in Tasmania that I became
aware of. There's an old penal prison there. It really is amazing to think that men,
and sadly boys, in England would end up literally at the farthest point possible from
home.
Here's a picture . . .
What has really drawn me to Tasmania though are the national
parks. There are 19 across the island. Here are some highlights.
Russell Falls, Mount Field National Park
The Wineglass Bay, Freycinet National Park
Eddystone Point Lighthouse, Mt. William National Park
Here's a great site that breaks down almost all of the parks.
The other thing I would absolutely love to do is drive the Targa Tasmania rally course. I watched Eric Bana's Love the Beast documentary, which I really enjoyed, being a car lover myself. The whole time I was watching it, I was thinking "I want to do that!!" Seriously, I really want to do that. I don't have a desire to race the course, just drive it. So, if I am going to dream, I am going to dream BIG. Yes, visiting as many national parks as I can would definitely make up the majority of my itinerary, but I would also make time to drive at least one leg of the Targa course. How much fun would that be?
Here's the course map . . .
I don't know if I'll ever make it down under, but if I do there's no way I will not go to Tasmania. It is definitely a must see for me.
The Little Devil
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