We needed to cool off. Really! The tropics are wonderful and there are a thousand things to see on the Great Barrier Reef and in the Daintree Rainforest. After all, both are World Heritage sites and incredibly beautiful. But, we are Oregonians. That means we have rain and overcast skies in our blood. We just don’t feel right unless rain touches our heads once in awhile. Besides, we brought clothing for warm and cold weather. We have to make sure that we use all of our equipment.

We are in Tasmania. We have traveled nearly as far as one can travel to traverse Australia from North to South. And we have what we needed. Cool weather, green forests, and rain. In fact, if it weren’t for the eucalypt forests and Aussie-speak, we could be deluded into thinking we were in Oregon.

It is beautiful here. Our time is short, but this is the place where we almost called home to sell the house and our possessions so that we could relocate. We spent two nights on Bruny Island in a place called Adventure Bay. Captain Cook landed here. Captain Bligh planted a garden. There is a place called Two Tree Point where Cook’s botanist drew a picture of the landscape – it looks the same today. The little museum tells you all about it.

Tassie is a magical place where ever you go. Two thirds of the island are World Heritage sites. We walked with penguins last night. Yes, penguins. We watched as humpback whales fished along the coast. We were dive-bombed by shearwater birds by the 1,000s. The coastline is stunning.

Yes, we have cooled off – and yet we are excited to see another side of Oz.