Wednesday 11 May 2004, 5pm
By Felix Cameron

A big hello from Tasmania! Three

10 May 2004  

Hello all!

Today's update comes to you from New Norfolk in the picturesque Derwent Valley (it really is!).

On Thursday we drove on from Sorrel to Lindisfarne -- a suburb of Hobart -- where we stayed for two nights.

On Friday we made a day trip to Richmond which was stunning in glorious Autumn colour. It has the oldest Catholic church (where Zayda lit some candles for some Catholic friends) and the oldest bridge in Australia, truly wonderful sights.

We spent the day exploring art galleries, historic buildings and antique shops, and enjoyed a ploughman's lunch.

As we drove back to Hobart, Zayda suggested we make a trip to the top of Mount Wellington which towers over Hobart. We made the short trip to the top where to our delight there were patches of snow and an incredible view! I was temporarily (I think) reduced to a five year old as i played in the snow!

The next morning we went to the Salamanca Market, a wonderful Saturday market which is a blend of the Queen Victoria Market (a famous Melbourne open-air market), Camberwell Market (another large Melbourne weekend market) and the St Andrews Market (a small bush-market and Cameron Family favorite).

There were buskers everywhere, and the atmosphere was warm and friendly. Zayda and I split up and enjoyed the market, meeting up some hours later.

After a lovely lunch of hot dogs, we ventured on foot to the nearby Maritime Museum where some hours were spent enjoying the beautifully constructed model ships and displays. Zayda managed to get a copy of a painting of a ship -- the Lady Franklin -- which he would like to paint, and he chatted away about a mutual friend at the Queenscliff Maritime Museum in Melbourne.

That night we stayed in New Town, a suburb in the north of Hobart...

This is Harry [known as Zayda to the grandchildren] now, while Felix has hurried to the toilet...

Felix has been doing a wonderful job driving etc. From Newtown we spent a wonderful trip in the Huon Valley, the climax being the incredible Tree Tops Walks -- one of Tassy's three most popular tourist sites.

Walking approximately 20 metres above the magnificent forest ... Felix back again ... we were able to look right through the canopy to the beautiful Huon River, stained a blackish brown by tannins.

Zayda managed to walk up all the stairs and over half the way along the airwalk, a feat for which I was very proud of him! I doubt I will manage anything like that when (and if) I'm 85!

From the airwalk we returned through the stunning forest (sadly most of which was recently logged or will be logged soon) back to Huonville -- stopping on the way at a garage sale (on the way we bought fresh crisp apples and stopped at a local sunday market!)

From Huonville we made a detour via Cygnet and were stunned by the wonderful views and autumn colour of the apple orchards. In Cygnet we had lunch -- a delicious roast -- but waited well over an hour to be served as it was Mothers Day (HAPPY LATE MOTHERS DAY MUMI!).

We returned to Lindisfarne last night and this morning we began the drive back to Launceston via many detours (hopefully stretching a few hours drive to a couple of days).

Today we are covering some of the Derwent Valley and aim to stay somewhere near Oatlands tonight. We have been having lovely fresh and mostly sunny weather and a wonderful time!

All our love and hoping you are all well and happy,

Felix and Zayda