Port Arthur Prison

 The prison at Port Arthur housed inmates that were not model prisoners from mainland Australia.  We started in the large, well appointed visitor center.  Our ticket came with a thirty minute harbor cruise where we circled the small island that served as the burial grounds for both prisoners and the people assigned to run the facility.  It was a nice way to view the facility from the water.



Back onshore we took a tour of several of the buildings.  Some just had walls remaining although it was apparent where the rooms were and others are close to their original shape.  We toured the commanders house which was a nice house for the time period.  Probably the most sobering facility was the insane asylum.  The prisoners were not allowed to talk and were constantly watched.  On Sundays, their one day of rest, they attended chapel.  Each prisoner had a standing ‘cell’ with walls between each of them so they could only see the minister.  








We had a quick bite to eat before heading out.  We stopped at a bottle shop and the adjacent grocery store to buy a couple of things to fill in our stock for dinner.  On our drive we stopped at a house that had gone crazy for dwarfs.  A turkey completed the display.





We drove through ‘Doo’ town.  The normal looking houses had adopted cute little names all containing doo in their names such as Doo I and Dr. Doolittle.  It was a charming way of making a very normal little community a little special.

We stopped at the Blow Hole.  What started as a cave turned into a blow hole when one end of it collapsed.  I’m sure the height of the waves is dependent on whether it’s high or low tide, but when a big wave comes in you definitely get big splash as it hits the rocks.



Tonight we snacked on cheese and veggies for a light dinner while we watched my new favorite show, Muster Dogs.  It’s all about training dogs to work cattle, sheep, and even chickens in the first year of their lives.  It’s available on Netflix and I highly recommend it.

Tomorrow: Hobart

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