Port Arthur, Doo Town and the Tasman Penninsula

One day we took an outing to Port Arthur. It was striking to see the old convict jails contrasting with the green grass. It was the coldest day we had and there was a little drizzle making us feel like we were back in England. They have set up some great interactive exhibits that allowed the kids to learn a lot about convict life and the sort of crimes that landed you at Port Arthur. The kids were amazed that there were prisoners who did something as small as steal a loaf of bread that were sent across the world to prison.


The more recent history of Port Arthur includes a massacre that occurred there in 1996. While we were visiting the site, we had no idea this had happened and only found out afterwards in talking to our Australian friends. I am glad that we only knew of the far distant history of the place or it would have really changed our day.

The Tasman Peninsula in general is quite beautiful. The house was located on a beautiful beach with squeaky, white sand. Yes, the sand actually squeaked when we walked on it. The house was located a 5 minute walk from the Tessellated Pavement. This is a place where the water has formed the rocks into what looks like tiles. It was very interesting and hard to believe that it was just the water that has formed it.

Tessellated Pavement

This stretch of beach was also a little sea shell collectors paradise! The girls loved how many shells there were and spent hours digging through and finding their favorite ones!


We also walked around several of the other Tasman Peninsula sights. Again, the natural beauty of the area was striking!

The blowhole

The Tasman Arch

To get to the Blowhole and the Tasman Arch, we had to drive through a little town called Doo Town. This was a silly little place where every house had a name that included "doo." We all got a kick out of the names (well, most of them at least!)

and the PG-13 house...