Wednesday, October 17 2007, 9:35

"Roadkill...that's what Australia is all about"

So said Tim, incisively commenting again on what makes the sunburnt country tick, as John and I gave him the highlights of our four day holiday in Tasmania last week. We flew into Hobart's tiny airport after work on Wednesday and took a cab through the darkness to our home from home in Sandy Bay, a shortish walk from the centre of Tasmania's capital, Australia's second oldest city. A quick poke around John's map of Tassie that evening gave us a rough itinerary for our four day stay.

First stop the next day was to pick up our chariot; no sooner had we picked up John's mum and sister than I backed it into a lamppost - luckily there was already a dent on that bumper, that's all I'm saying. Getting out of the city and driving off to the Tasman Peninsula confirmed our first impressions of the island state - it's as everyone told us, just like England! Where mainland Australia is mostly pretty flat and arid, Tasmania is mountainous and lushly green, with all sorts of familiar trees brought from the mother country to break up the eucalypt monotony. It was a joy to drive along through this kind of verdant panorama, stopping at Eaglehawk Neck to stretch our legs, and then at the Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park where we got up close to these cute critters as well as Tasmanian roos, pademelons, cockatoos (all in the photos), before zipping over to historic Port Arthur, Australia's largest penal settlement, for Britain's hardest crims. There's not much left considering it's only been there for 150 or so years.

On Friday, John, his mum, and I drove out of Hobart in the other direction, toward Mount Field National Park, through more undulating countryside, with patchwork fields to left and right, and sheep nibbling disinterestedly from time to time, and snow-capped mountains in the near distance. Mount Field itself rises 1.4km above sea level, but we didn't go up that far. We did drive high enough to see massive tree ferns replaced by swamp gum forests and rainforest, and finally a snow-swirling alpine forest that John and I gleefully jumped into. The first snow I've seen since January 2006? Anyway, I didn't fancy driving any higher on an untarmacked road in a snowstorm, so we turned round and walked through the tree ferns at the foot of the mountain to the impressive Russell Falls.

Everyone had told us so much about the Salamanca Markets on Saturday that we had to go, although I think tourist tat looks the same everywhere, really. We had much more fun at the Moorilla Winery a little further up the Derwent River, but then there was a fair amount of alcohol involved, and delicious food at hand to make it seem less of a binge, and served by such colourful characters!

Our last day was all about heights. Mount Wellington looks down on Hobart and is the backdrop of so many excellent pictures. Although only 1.2km above sea level, I actually drove us up to the top of this one, and when I could only see sky to the right of the road as we wound up the side, I started to get a bit jittery. Nothing but a small fence and a firm hand on the wheel to keep us plunging over the edge to our bouncing deaths. The view from the top was dumbfounding though - I've never been up so high in my life! Continuing the theme, we drove a couple of hours to the Tahune Airwalk in the Huon Valley, a metal walkway 40m above the ground, allowing you to stroll through the massive swamp gums, the tallest flowering plants on the planet. Even at 40m above the ground, we were still only halfway up the trees...

John and I have decided we need to go back to see Launceston and Cradle Mountain, but considering we only had four days, I think we got a lot done; and despite all the driving over and around the roadkill, most of the animals we saw were alive and well :)

Photos from Tasmania on their way

Wednesday, October 17 2007, 9:37

A little from column A, a little from column B

I woke up with a hangover this morning. That's not so very unusual, but the guilty event was a little bit of culture. One of the best things about Australia is how affordable great food is, and last night we went to The Bentley on Crown Street to show John's family just how great it can be. Not content with your average slap-up meal, we got comfy for an eight course degustation menu, each served with a different, complementary wine.

Each course was no more than a few mouthfuls - our tapas-style starter was a tiny glass of cucumber and herb gazpacho, a single spoonful of cured mackerel with preserved lemon and caviar, and a tiny sandwich of chicken liver parfait and pomegranate. It was a slight effort to make every mouthful last to get all those different flavours, and they just kept coming.

Seared yellowfin tuna with harissa, air dried chorizo, squid ink and smoked mussel. Now I don't usually force shellfish down, but I made a special effort for this sucker, nestled on a bed of jamon crumbs. Mmm. Tasty!

Jerusalem artichoke custard with new seasons garlic, soy and borlotti beans. John's favourite course, but not mine. A grey blob of goo that teetered on the unpleasant side of bland.

Steamed bar cod and emulsion with jamon and chives. Picture a small slice of fish covered in pea-green gravy with bits in, but a lot nicer than it sounds ;) I think it was at this point that our very knowledgeable sommelier poured John his glass of rose, only to have it lifted by some random off the street and confidently quaffed. Gobsmacked? I think so.

Venison sausage with honeycomb tripe salad and horseradish. The sausage was sublime; the horseradish mousse a delicate suggestion of its usual sharp flavour; the tripe salad was better than expected, but I did wolf it down in case I tasted something I didn't like.

Roasted duck breast with samphire, oyster mushroom and kohl rabi. Gorgeous. The duck was extra-special, while the samphire was salty and reminded me of studying King Lear. Mushrooms were, as ever, vile. I let Tim snaffle mine.

Epoisses with maple syrup and capers. There was a mixed reaction to the cheese course, although I thought it was great. A tiny dish of softish cheese that tasted rather than smelled stinky; a bit too salty/rich after a few mouthfuls, so it was lucky that's all there was. Loving the capers.

White chocolate and apricot ice cream and fizz. Exquisite. Down the hatch in no time, with lips smacking in pleasure after this sherbetty confection.

And that's your lot. The wines varied from riesling to chenin blanc of Stellenbosch, something light from Greece, rich reds, something Frenchly white from Macon, and a sweetened Austrian riesling to finish. No wonder we were all smashed by the time we left. Heartily recommended!!

Saturday, October 27 2007, 9:51

Election fever

John Howard is up for re-election next month, and so every other day we're getting this poll and that poll telling us that geeky Kevin Rudd is going to get a landslide. The Reserve Bank is about to put interest rates up for the sixth time since the last election, at which Howard's Liberal party claimed that rates would be kept "at record lows". Howard, who came up with core and non-core promises (presumably he doesn't tell you which is which until after you've voted), yesterday said voters should ignore those "record lows" adverts from 2004 because they only ran for two nights, and he didn't make that claim personally. What a weasel!

Speaking of despicable insects that make irritating whining noises, I've been bitten by two mosquitoes this week, and I'm not impressed. I noticed the first one, stuck in me like a dart, moments before I dashed its brains and my blood all over my arm. So the bite swelled up like a golf ball and I've been struggling not to scratch it for the last few days. Luckily this election's a lot easier to ignore.