vango

We finished with the wildlife and headed for the town of Richmond. It is a very old town with historic value. It is also picturesque which is a reason to go there. It has some features worth mentioning. Our first stop was to visit Australia's oldest bridge that is still in use. The Richmond bridge was built of stone in 1823. It is a graceful structure that arches over a small river. It is near the oldest Roman Catholic Church in Australia. The denomination is important since there were older Anglican churches. St. John's was built in 1832. There is an old Gaol (jail) and the old Richmond Court House. I wondered what the settlers from the past would think of the Court House being used for Jazzersize. We parked there for about an hour to wander around the town and visit the shops.

Ron and I stopped in the ice cream shop for some refreshment. They had ice cream flavors only available in Tasmania so, of course, Ron tried one. It was Pepperberry flavored. Pepperberry is a type of Laural tree also known as the white walnut that grows only on the mountainsides of Tasmania.

Near Richmond we saw several fields of Opium Poppies. Tasmania grows 50% of the legal Opium in the world. It is used to make medicines. Tasmania is a relatively secure place to grow these. We returned to the city via the Tasman Bridge. It gracefully arches over the Derwent River to a height that permits boat traffic without having to lift or swing a section of the bridge. It is nearly a mile long and rises 200 feet over the river. It was finished in 1964.

The road passed the Hobart Cenotaph commemorating the dead from wars and is the center of ANZAC day celebrations. On the day we pass by it was the location for overflow parking for the “Taste of Tasmania.” going in downtown. We arrived in time for lunch on the ship.