Kayaks, Mountains and Museums – Oh My!

My second two days in Tasmania were also full of excitement. I got up and met a group to go on a kayak ride on the coast of Tasmania. There were only six people on the tour and two guides. I paddled in a kayak with a retiree who loves to kayak and bushwalk (Australian word for hiking, I believe).

We stopped for lunch (including hot chocolate!!) on a pretty beach and then continued on.

It took many hours hours of paddling but we went 15 kilometers. I logged the ride on my phone so I told the group how far we paddled but I said it in miles and they all laughed. Obviously I have to learn the metric system so now I’m trying to go full immersion. I’m starting to get the hang of celsius already.

The following day, I rode on a bus up Mount Wellington. There were hikes I could have done but I wasn’t sure I’d really have the time given everything else I wanted to do. The view from the top was gorgeous.

Apparently Charles Darwin came to Tasmania and climbed Mount Wellington during his explorations. Pretty cool! That’s the second place we both visited in Australia (I promise, we didn’t coordinate!) Back in town, the festivals were still in full swing.

In the afternoon, I took a ferry to The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) which everyone I talked to seemed to think was very worth going to. It was! So much cool art.

My favorite exhibit was a machine that sprayed water to spell words that are searched frequently on the web. It is always updating.

I also tried out an interactive station where they give you headphones to block out noise and you can either count or make art out of black and white beans. The purpose is to practice mindfulness. I tried it for around ten minutes and it was peaceful until people started looking over my shoulders as if I was a part of the exhibit lol.

I grabbed dinner and headed back to my Air BNB. I often spend the evenings writing blog posts and watching something.

It was so incredible to be in Tasmania. I remember sitting on a sheep statue on the ferry to an art museum in Tasmania thinking “How did I end up here?!” I’m so glad I did!