arkon

Just thought I'd ask because the wife has just spent a day there and when she phoned to check in tonight she had only enough time to say on the phone before it was cut off, "It is the bowels of humanity....click!" So didn't really get much of a feel for the place in the few seconds we had a conection.

So anyone like to comment on what it's like to live there and can you compare it so somewhere else for comparison?

Pollyana

Personally I think its the most beautiful place on earth, and I have wonderful memories of times spent there. Never bored as I could always get on a bus and go somewhere - walks, climbs, just the scenery is stunning. I loved the village feel of Hobart - not a city pretending to be modern and up to date. Just a sleepy place, content to be quiet, and yet with a vibrant cafe culture, lots of bars and fab restaurants, and a very lively arts scene

However......this is you and your wife Arkon, and I'm sorry to say that I wouldn't recommend YOU go to Tassie. Many of the gripes you have about your place - supplies of stuff, small stock held, feeling of being isolated, allt hat kind of thing is even more so in Tas, because its not just rural Australia, its also an island. If your posts are anythingto go by, Tas is not for you

arkon

I think she is in a place called swansea but I could be wrong. The call got cut off short for some reason. I didn't get the impression she liked it at all. She is off to hobart in the next few days so we will see what she thinks of that.

Pollyana

Swansea is a very small place -sleepy village in the east coast. I knew some guys that used to go there every weekend fishing. They'd load up the trailer with beer and fishing stuff and stayed in a holiday cabin. Its quiet, rural and isolated. Also its not far from the area that was recently hit by the busfires - Scamander is to the north, and St Helens and St Mary's were hit too.

If you think your place is quiet, you should try somewhere like Swansea.
Hopefully she will prefer Hobart - more sights, more shops, more life. If she likes walks though, its great - very close to the Freycinet Peninsula, Wneglass Bay, etc

http://www.discovertasmania.com.au/h...cfm?SiteID=426

http://www.tasmaniasouth.com/freycinet/index.html

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Tasmania/...500205985.html

arkon

Thanks Polly. God knows why she went there first, she must like fishermen.

rugbymatt

Could it be worse than where you are?

arkon

Swansea did sound like it would be. Maybe I should move there.

rugbymatt

You have to take the alpacas! You would be a local celebrity,

"Brit arrives in Swansea with herd of half wild Alpacas!"

arkon

It's hard enough taking a banana inter-state, can you imaging how hard it will be to take an alpaca.

busterboy

Only if you are a lifelong tour of arse-end of the world locations....where's next....a goat herder's hut in Uzbekistan? A whaling station in South Georgia? Rotherham?

Vash the Stampede

arkon - on the basis of the fact that hate your current location with an unconcealed malice, I can assure you that you would loathe Tasmania with a mouth-foaming passion.

Total population: 484,700. Two largest cities: Hobart (the capital) at 202,138 and Launceston at 103,200. A teeming metropolis it is not.

Tasmania has the highest level of unemployment in the entire nation. The population is sparsely distributed, infrastructure will seem almost non-existent, and the casual, laid back attitude of the locals will drive you mad. (They are also quite friendly, which will no doubt upset you as well. Somehow. For some indefinable reason).

Though not far from the mainland, it cannot be reached without a boat or a plane - so it will feel incredibly remote. In short: it's a bit like Devon, but with the advantages of 21st Century technology and a modern road system.

I lived there for 15 years, and love the place dearly. It's a terrific holiday destination (see the photos in my reccie thread, here) but I couldn't call it home, and never will.

There, it's done; now you can't say I didn't warn you.

IIRC, you come from Solihull. I have friends there (Widney Manor Road) so I know what the place is like - and yes, it is bloody lovely. By comparison, Tasmania will feel like a morgue.

On the basis of the innumerable complaints you have posted about your current location, I can only suggest that you find somewhere which resembles Solihull as much as possible. An expensive Sydney suburb should do the job; or perhaps one of the classier Melbourne areas, like Toorak, Brighton, Canterbury or Kew.

Failing that, there's always Solihull...

Dom the Pom

Lovely scenery, but the autumn/winters are sh!te.

A bit like Scotland then.

rugbymatt

The sunny Isle of Elba, the Barrios of Mexico city, South central La, Moss side, the Govan, Gaza, and to top the year a short stay in Mogadishu.

Lord Pom Percy

Tell her to go to the Freycinet peninsular and wineglass bay nearby great scenery . l don't understand why she thinks its the " bowls of humanity" when it has what most people agree to be some of the worlds best scenery and national parks, maybe because shes ony been there one day she as'nt seen anything yet.

arkon

The thing is, neither of us put much store on good scenerey and national parks, good to look at but hardly anygood for keeping the brain ticking. The last time she used the phrase I think it was when we went to Jamaica. parks and scenery are good for holidays maybe for a few weeks a year but to live there full time with little life would drive us nuts.

The strange thing is on here you don't hear many people complaining about Tas, same as you don't hear them complaining about Canberra, which is why both might need further exploration.