Lifethrumylense

2024-2025

It is officially summer in Hobart and actually my first summer on this side of the world. So, technically I had two summers in 2024 and I might have two in 2025 if I get to visit home. Since summer started and I have quite a bit of free time, I’ve been trying to visit new places. I’ve been to beaches, restaurants, parks and walking trails. I think I would get my Caribbean card taken away if I didn’t like going to the beach but wholeheartedly, I feel at home by the ocean. When I’m sitting on a shore my mind is so quiet. I really appreciate that quiet time because I spend most of the day in my head constantly in deep thought. Being at the beach is the most I feel at peace.

I had really low expectations for Tassie beaches, I genuinely didn’t think I would find them beautiful because of what I’m used to in the Caribbean. Surprisingly, all of the beaches I have been to were so gorgeous. The landscape is tremendously different to Barbados but it’s uniqueness makes it spectacular in its own way. The water isn’t as clear and it’s freezing so I don’t plan on ever going in but I can appreciate it from the shore. It was so unusual to see mountains beyond the water and the types of plants close to the shore look like they should be in a desert instead. Despite these differences, I still find myself at the beach whenever I get the chance. So here are my favourite beaches and a few of the adventures I’ve been on this summer.

Howrah and Seven Mile

I’ve been to both Howrah Beach and Seven Mile Beach about twice now. I had an appointment in Howrah one afternoon and I decided to do something fun before I went home. I looked around on Google maps to see what I would be interested in and when I noticed this beach I knew I had to check it on. I walked from one side to other, petting some cute doggos along the way and waving at the old people passing by. I wasn’t prepared for the lack of wind break on the shore so I got a little cold but I firmed it and stayed for a while. I had never seen mussels before and the mountains in the distance reminded me I was in a whole different continent. On my walk back to my car I got lapped by an old man hobbling along the beach which definitely hurt my ego but not enough to stop me from going back.

My first visit to Seven Mile Beach was supposed to be a group outing. Plans fell apart last minute but I still decided to go on my own. That day was one of the first really warm days this summer and the beach was busier than usual. Not the typical Aussie summer packed but it was still busy. This day was my first time ever seeing live clams bury themselves in the sand. I have to get a really good video of it but it is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. I have always loved learning about animals and I pride myself in being able to spit out cool animal facts on the spot but there is something so special about seeing the things I’ve learned actually happen in person. Living in Australia has given me so many of these opportunities because of its rich biodiversity and protection of it’s ecosystems.

Miscellaneous assortment

I’ve put these beaches’ photos together because I am clearly lacking in quantity, I didn’t take my camera with me on most of these trips. Mainly because I don’t particularly enjoy travelling with my camera bag. It’s heavy and most of the time I need to take another bag to fit other items in which some days is just not ideal. It really is a win lose situation because I get to be free and just experience the moment I’m in but then I have no photos to look back on. Then again, I could always visit another time, I actually live here :).

My ‘walk’ from Kangaroo Bay to Howrah

This ‘walk’ was a weapon formed against me that unfortunately won. First of all, I was not dressed appropriately for this walk because I was told most of it would be a boardwalk. A boardwalk in Tasmania is a slab of concrete not even on the beach itself which my Bajan brain could not imagine would be the case. Two hours into this walk my feet were blistered, my body hurt and my friend (whose parents trusted me to get her there and back safely) and I were battling pollen allergies. I knew that we would not be able to walk all the way back so I suggested we stopped to eat and then get the bus back to my car. Did we get lost? Yes, very lost. Did we spend an additional hour trying to find our way back? Yes, we very much did. We eventually did make it back safely and I have a story to tell so that’s a win in my book. I did see some pretty picture worthy stuff and I thankfully took my Sony digi so I was able to get a few photos along the way. I love Galahs and Christmas beetles so I think the pain and getting lost was just a little bit worth it to see those.

I wish I could talk to little me and tell her about all the cool things that I/ we’ve gotten to experience. I’ve always wanted to travel the world and experience new cultures, animals and landscapes. Being able to do that now is so exciting and my expectations have been surpassed majorly. I’m going to try to take my camera with me on more adventures but I’ll also try to have a healthy balance of just being in the moment sometimes. I don’t have a big motivational speech for the end of this post but I will say that sometimes your wishes do come true. Most of the time in ways you wouldn’t have imagined they would at all. I think having dreams makes life exciting and God is good so it’s very likely that your dreams will be fulfilled even if its not in your lifetime.

Just a girl and her camera