About fifteen minutes before we reached Port Arthur, the bus driver pulled into the Tasmanian Devil Park. He told me he would pick me up in 90 minutes to take me to Port Arthur. I envisioned the park would be like a small zoo, but instead the park was more like a farm with several enclosures for animals. After walking through the reception area / gift shop, I was directed to the trail that would take me to the enclosures where I could see the Tasmanian Devils as well as other wild birds and animals of the area that had been rescued and were being rehabilitated. I took several pictures of the little devils (they are like huge rats with big teeth and the markings of a skunk and have a nasty disposition) and watched a fifteen minute bird show similar to what you might see at an animal park or zoo. I covered the park in about forty five minutes and found myself waiting for the bus to return and pick me up. If you have a real desire to see the Tasmanian Devil, or you simply want to support the rescue and rehabilitation efforts of the park foundation, certainly stop by the park for a visit. Otherwise, I don’t think you would be missing much if you decided to forgo this attraction.

The bus driver picked me up on time. He said we would be stopping at Bushmill's to pick up some other tour participants who had selected this attraction as an add-on to their Port Arthur tour. I asked the people who visited Bushmill’s what they thought of the place. They told me it was nice but they didn’t think it was worth the additional A$15. When we arrived at Port Arthur the bus driver gave each of us a playing card. He told us to take the card downstairs to the museum and match it to an identical card posted beneath the portrait of one of the convicts who had been imprisoned at Port Arthur. Once we identified which convict was associated with our card, we could then follow the history of that convict’s life at the prison. At each of the exhibits in the museum the card numbers were posted of those convicts who were associated with that aspect of prison life; e.g. the blacksmith shop, the laundry room, etc. After visiting the museum I wandered around the expansive Port Arthur grounds taking in the history of the old buildings and the interesting details of the convicts who were imprisoned at Port Arthur and the people who looked after them. Since the thirty minute boat tour was included with my admission I walked over to the jetty and boarded the boat. The boat tour took us around Port Arthur Bay and the Isle of the Dead (where Port Arthur inhabitants were buried). The tour commentator enlightened us with some history of Port Arthur and educated us about what life was like for both convicts and prison staff. The bus left Port Arthur about 3:30PM for the two hour return journey to Hobart. If you enjoy history and want to learn more about Tasmania’s largest convict settlement, I would say Port Arthur is a place worth visiting.

That evening I walked to North Hobart and had a nice dinner at a family run Chinese restaurant. I don’t recall the restaurant name but it was located on a corner. There was a takeaway counter at the front of the restaurant and a full service area further into the restaurant. The food was excellent and the prices were very reasonable. After dinner I returned to the hotel to do a few loads of laundry. The hotel has a guest laundry located in the basement of the main building. A guest laundry is always a nice benefit for us travelers who like to travel light. I think I spent about A$9 to do two loads of washing and drying. I spent the remainder of the evening re-packing my bag and a bit of time surfing the Internet using the free computer in the hotel lobby. Overall, I enjoyed my stay at the Rydges Hobart. The room was clean and comfortable and the staff were exceptionally pleasant and helpful. If you don’t mind not being in the middle of downtown or close to the harbor, then this hotel offers great value for your travel dollar. I was able to secure a rate of under US$100 per night via a booking on the Internet.

In the morning I would be off to Melbourne.