March 19, 2026

TASMANIA has always had a meanacing sound to me, probably because of the famed Tasmania Devil!  So it was a nice surprise to find such a lovely, friendly place. Hobart is the capital of the island state, and is Australia's second oldest city, blending colonial history with dramatic natural scenery. The population of greater Hobart is roughly 250,000. The city sits between the sparkling Derwent River and the towering slopes of Mount Wellington, making for a picturesque waterfront.

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    Harbour view from atop Mount Welligton ( from web)

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    Mount Wellington on our way out of Harbour, with fog finally clearing

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    Odyssey in Port

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I was suppose to go on a bus excursion to the top of Mount Wellington when we arrived on the 16th of March, but the fog was so thick our bus driver changed the route, to take us to other city sights. We went to the top of two former signal lookouts, on either side of the the Tasmania Bridge, so we got a good view below the cloud cover of the whole harbour. The Tasmania Bridge now closes to traffic everytime a large freight vessel needs to pass by, due to an accident that occurred on January 5, 1975.  A bulk carrier vessel, the Lake Illawarra, collided with several bridge pylons causing the bridge deck to collapse onto the ship below and the river.Twelve people were killed, including seven crew on the Lake Illawarra and Hobart was cut off from it's eastern suburbs. The ship wreck still remains in the River today, as it was safer to leave it. The bonus of this excursion was we got to go the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens.

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I also enjoyed the Victorian architecture of the homes and buildings in the town.

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XI'AN, CHINA - WALLED CITY

By Pat Patrick • September 15, 2026
Xi'An, China has been on my must do list , for awhile. The story of the Terracotta Army has fascinated me, since I first heard it. What I didn't know too much about, was the actual City of Xi'An and the walled inner City that remains today. It was built from 1370 to 1378 during the Ming dynasty on top of the older Tang dynasty foundations. There are 9 miles of City walls, they are 39' high, 45' to 50' wide at the top and 55' to 60' at the base. There are four main gate towers and the only draw bridge restored is at the South Gate. There are 98 ramparts, watchtowers, battlements and a wide surrounding moat. It one of the oldest and best preserved fortifications in China .

MORE CHONGQING & Strange Signs

By Pat Patrick • September 14, 2026
After our Panda watching we went to Erling Park for some good city views. Green space in Chongqing is rare, it is truly a concrete jungle with a few planters and trees smattered in along the sidewalks.

CHONGQING ZOO - PANDAS

By Pat Patrick • September 14, 2026
The 21 Pandas at the Chongqing Zoo is t he largest grouping of them of anywhere we have traveled in China. We were all excited to see them and were up and on the road by 7am. They are super popular and morning is the supposedly the best time to see them active. It was another hot and steamy day, but less brutal than yesterday.