So going back in time nearly a year from right now, I’m still at the photos from Tasmania. As a quick recap, I’d been down in Tasmania working to extend my visa in Australia. I’d been down there for about two months when Tam came to visit and travel around Tasmania with me.

We met up in Hobart, with Tam’s flight arriving fairly early in the morning and me taking a bus in from Nubeena. After a big hug and kiss, we got in our rental car and went to our first destination, Mt. Wellington.

Mt. Wellington towers up behind Hobart, but is most remarkable in the fact that it is so shear. The mountain goes from Hobart, right at sea level, to over 1200m high in little time at all. The drive up is very winding and narrow, and the views from the top sensational.

What you cannot see from the picture though is the wind – it was well over 100km/hr at the peak that day. We had trouble walking around the car park. I could barely open my car door. It was insane! But the peak was gorgeous to view from.

The rest of the day we explored the downtown areas of Hobart. Delicious fish and chips were eaten, and lots of exploring of the little city. Today was mostly a relaxing day, we’d go further afar the next day.

That 2nd day started with the famous markets of Hobart, the Salamanca Markets. Known for their size and quality, we wandered the markets for breakfast. We had several different delights, including salmon sausage and tiny pancakes.

Then, we took to the picturesque waters of Hobart’s harbour for a boat ride.

Looking at Mt. Wellington, now mostly cloud covered (and sometimes snow covered!) as the boat cruised further inland.

This wasn’t just an ordinary cruise though, this boat belonged to MONA – the Museum of Old and New Art.

A decidedly different decor to the boat (a cow was also there, as well as a live parrot inside), it was just a taste of the oddities of MONA.

MONA is one man’s eccentric dream, and it showcases all sorts of strange art. It’s privately owned and run, and has quickly become one of Hobart’s main tourist attractions. It’s very unique, right down to the building itself. You approach and enter at ground level…then descend underground, where the museum has been built right into the rock.

That isn’t to say there are plenty of refreshments and luxuries available. We had a tasty lunch at the cafe topside before starting our journey around the museum.

Because it’s privately owned, what is shown is entirely up to the owner. So the museum had a good bit of everything, including neat technology pieces. This device created words in air from water.

A mesmerizing lighting display. Beyond this was the ‘Adults’ part of the gallery. More grotesque than anything I thought.

Further on, I rather liked some of the simpler ones, like an entire room dedicated to white, empty books.

And a hall of binary sequences.

The museum didn’t lack for space for larger items either. Several times there were huge rooms dedicated to a single piece.

Finally, the bubble/fat car. I was highly amused. Even the seats were fat.

A room of decay, the walls here were actually decaying with time.

After a couple hours of exploring, we felt exhausted from our time at the gallery. Well worth visiting for the curious. We headed back to Hobart in style, once again on the MONA boat.

That night we had a *fantastic* Italian dinner before calling it an early night, in preparation for the next day. We had a lot of driving and exploring to do the following day…