We grabbed a handful of brochures from the airport lounge and planned our day's activities over breakfast. We decided that we wanted to see the James Boag Brewery and the Bristowe Lavender Farm. I don't know what it is but I've always been interested in seeing how things are made. Plus, I thought it would be good for the girls to learn how things are made (even if it is beer!). Neither Hubby nor I are beer drinkers but a visit to the brewery of this famous Tasmanian beer was a natural choice. Unfortunately, since we now arrived in town on a Saturday, the Brewery was closed but that didn't stop us from taking some photos of the beautiful brick buildings that clearly reflected the company's heritage.
After speaking to a few locals, they suggested we visit Cataract Gorge. We walked from the Southern side of the Gorge across the suspension bridge over to the Northern end. It was an interesting walk that had the girls watching a family of ducks and their ducklings as well as a resident peacock.
It was a beautiful spot and if the weather was warmer the girls could have jumped into the pool for an impromptu swim.
I also once dreamed of owning a lavender farm so the thought of seeing rows and rows of those purple flowers was quite enticing. So the Bristowe Estate Lavender Farm 45 minutes North-East of Launceston made it onto the agenda.
Admittedly, this farm was a lot bigger than the one in my dream. 'My farm' was a little cottage farm with just a few fields of lavander.
It was off-season when we were there so tours weren't running but we were still able to do a self-tour around the farm and learn about the whole process of distilling lavender oil. It was also the first time we had ever heard of lavender ice cream so we had to try that at the cafe! It was purple, of course and tasted a bit like... perfume?
The drive out to the lavender farm took a lot longer than expected but it was great to see the lush Tasmanian countryside. The pine trees and rolling hills were beautiful and a refreshing change from the countless eucalyptus trees that dot the mainland countryside.
Since we were already in the middle of 'nowhere', we decided to stop by one of the boutique wineries along the way to sample some Tasmanian wine. My pick at the Brook Eden Vineyard was the 2008 Pinot Rose (ros-ey) - a pinkish wine that's a bit like a mix between red and white wine (ooohhh...I'm sure wine connoisseurs will cringe at that description!)
The great thing about Launceston is that it's so small. You can virtually go from city to countryside and back to the city all in a day as we did.
By the time we got back into Launceston, it was time for dinner so we found a little Chinese restaurant in the centre of town. Actually, it was the only one we could find on a Saturday night! As soon as we entered we knew we were in for something. The lady at the counter running the entire front dining area (and I suspect the owner) was a character. She was almost 'barking' at the customers in line before us. When it was our turn, we placed our order and sat down as instructed. Hubby had ordered an 'eat-all-you-can' type of deal so when she handed him his plate, she quite sternly told him that if he shared his food with any of the kids he would be charged for two. Later on , she came over to check on us and told the girls they had to eat their brocolli. She also informed Hubby that he shouldn't get more food than he could eat and that he needed to finish the food on his plate because it was wasteful to leave it. We all finished our dinner and left the restaurant with a slight chuckle. Maybe this is just the way they are in Launceston?
We had seen what we wanted to in Launceston and decided to drive down to Hobart that night instead of the next day as planned to save time. The kids had been fed and slept while we made the 3-hour drive to Hobart.
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