With 247,000 people, Hobart, the capital city of Tasmania is a bustling port city in the southeast part of the Island of Tasmania.

When the sun came up this morning, with Steve still sidelined with a nasty virus that won’t let go, I was left to my own devises. So, I went off in search of breakfast and a day of solo exploring of our host city for the next several days. After several false leads by my ‘frenemy’ Google-Search, I happened upon an Italian restaurant called “Tesoro.” What a great find! I had the most delicious meal, with great customer service and great coffee, as well. I knew then that I would have a good day. From there I headed toward the harbor for the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery.

The Museum and Art Gallery occupy an entire block, including the 1810 Commissariat Store which houses a touching historical exhibit on the arrival of the first Europeans and how they were viewed by the Aboriginal people whose ancestors had lived in peace and harmony on the island for thousands of years. While they were prolific builders of bark canoes, they saw the Dutch ships as floating islands with tall trees on them that seemed to be coming nearer to them. The later violent history of the treatment of the natural owners of the Island is well known. The story of both sides is told with compassion and truth.

Homes of the Aboriginal peoples, pre-European arrival; and beautiful shell necklaces crafted by the Aboriginal artisans.

Tools used by the Aboriginals that met their needs. And this beautiful diptych painting titled “Stolen Journey.” It was a difficult, but worthwhile visit to this lovely museum.

My next stop was just across the street to Hobart’s deep-water harbor.

Mountains in the distance, plenty of room for pleasure boats and cruise ships. There are luxury flats and restaurants and shops, as well as historic sculptures like this one titled “Heading South” to honor Hobart’s connection with fishing the southern seas and the exploration of Antarctica.

My last two stops of the day, as you might guess were…wait for it…cathedrals. My first stop, taking longer than it should have to reach, thanks again, Google, was Saint David’s Anglican Cathedral. Its cornerstone was placed in 1892. It sits on a bustling corner of the city, open for the public to come in to pray or just to admire its beauty. I did a bit of both. I was alone in this lovely building and enjoyed the quiet of the day and the chance to think about how blessed I am to be on this incredible journey at this point in my life.

Since I had been to one side, I figured that I really ought to make the 15-minute walk over to the other side, just in case dad and my godmother Aunt Mary were watching from way upstairs.

As, you can see, Saint Mary’s Cathedral looked very nice from outside, well-tended, with a good Aussie Garden outside. So, I strode proudly up to those beautiful brown doors, and they were locked tight. Not one to give up that easily at the house of our Lord, I went around to the to the side where I found an open door. This took me into a vestibule with glass doors leading to the church. I took hold of the handle and found that it was locked. I guess the church must have had some theft issues or something but at least I was able to get a few pictures through the glass panels in the doors as I sang a farcical version of the refrain from a hymn, we used to sing at a church I spent many years attending before its clergy decided we were too far on the progressive end of the spectrum of Catholicism for them. The hymn “All are Welcome Here” was jokingly changed to “You’re Not Welcome Here” to keep us laughing during our darker moments when we didn’t quite know where our spiritual journey would take us next. But I digress. Here are the pictures I was able to take.

The stained-glass windows look nice. I like the reflection of the Madonna and Child in the second one, you will see where it comes from in the next ones Sorry you can’t see the altar better.

There they are in this lovely little window above the locked doors I first tried. Through another glass window to the side, is the baptismal font. Again, kudos to the bishop for having it at the back of the church (as I noted in an earlier blog about Sydney) so that the newly baptized is welcomed into the community, as the process now calls for. Finally, I did get a picture of this statue on the lawn, another rendering of the Madonna and Child, different and rather touching.

So ended my first day in Hobart. Hope you found it interesting.

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