Day three in Tasmania. As tempting as some of the many tours sound, spending $280+ (£130+) each on one of them doesn’t count as Australia on a shoestring.

So we hopped on the local bus and took a 30min ride across town.  Things were already going well as the driver ushered us on without paying. 

After a small walk, we arrived at The Royal Botanical Gardens of Tasmania. A huge contrast to the Sydney ones which are lush green spaces filled with trees, lakes, statues & benches, ideal for a stroll into the garden of Adam & Eve or a picnic in the park. These in Tasmania are a gardener’s dream. Flower beds splayed with an array of magical colours and scents.  Insects busying themselves with the pollination process of collecting nectar. Having one of us as an avid gardener and often known as the flower girl then this was definitely their playground of life.

There is something magical and a powerful force at work as you enter a japanese garden. Millenia of monks working peacefully to build a sanctuary for meditation and peacefulness. The zen can be felt through the water features, the calm and the quiet the garden almost demands as you enter.  Outside, in the main gardens there is a hurrying of people, children shouting and playing.  We hear even the children seem to sense the aura and walk around whispering.

There was also a fantastic water feature based on a French sailing ship.

Flowers & Fruit

When a girl is in her element, she is in her element.

Just a few images of the many thousands took of all the flora & fauna. It’s a shame we can’t share the fantastic fragrances and scents from these beautiful flowers.

Amongst all the beautiful flowers there was also an abundance of activity from the pond skaters to the birds nestling in the trees and bushes

After a leisurely stroll around the gardens we walked back to town for an ice-cream via The Cenotaph.

We  hopped on the next bus back up the mountains to Mt Nelson – Royal Signals lookout.  The forecast looked okay but from sea level we could see very low cloud in the mountains. What the heck, it was worth a try. Better still the driver waved us on with no payment.

Wait a second,  what’s that down there now the clouds are clearing?

We took a small trek to an aboriginal monument, which was very humbling in it’s simplicity before returning back up the mountain to The Royal Signals Lookout for the bus, getting caught in the rain.

We headed back to Hobart on another free bus after a well needed relaxing day with some manageable walks and treks. The highlight was finally seeing a wallaby or ten in the wild.