week three | hobart, tasmania

Oh Hobart, you have my heart you adorable little thing. As a bit of a fan of our Mary, most of the first day was spent doing things I’ve heard a little about. First off the bat was a meander through the seriously fantastic Salamaca Markets. They have a stall for just about anything and it was so much fun to rug up and walk up and down chatting to people and tasting all the samples. Not only are the markets plentiful but they are also right in the middle of an area that provides all the coffee shops, art studios and bookshops a gal could need on a blistery Tassie winter day.

This weekend was a gifted trip from Qantas’ in honor of the second annual MOFO festival, (Thanks Qanta’s!) the light show that brings life into the city for a couple of weeks each winter. The whole atmosphere was buzzing and as the sun set massive beams of light shot up from all parts of the city into the night sky.  Dark MOFO also meant that the bars were absolutely crammed packed, and the three that we drank at were hot as hell and wild as any hidden Melbourne rave or neon Bangkok club.

As part of this delightful little prize holiday I also got the opportunity to visit MONA for the first time. It’s superbly done, as only ten trillion dollars could do, and probably now one of my favorite places on earth. If you have any sense you’ll book your flight there right this instance. 

It’s also incredibly easy to get at MONA, which is actually quite a way out of Hobart itself. I enjoyed learning that part of the MONA experience is the boat itself, which leaves from the main dock in the center of town. You have two options, the first is the classy sounding VIP ticket that is wine and nibbles inclusive or the general ticket that gets you the ride there but nothing else. Because of our wine induced escapades the night before J and I opted for the general tickets and a couple of coffees as we snaps some pictures and enjoyed the friendly sheep and cows (you need to see it to believe it.)

I could probably write for days about MONA itself, however pretty much anyone else would do a more eloquent and thorough job of it. Instead I’ll just say that it’s top of my list for museums (art or otherwise) in the world. It was cool as hell, interesting a fuck and avoided all the main issues I often have with modern art museums by providing ipods that lead you around and provide a little background and a lot of interpretation. Another interesting development is because MONA is so hands on everyone seemed to be interacting with the artwork and getting some really creative pictures which at the end of the day means art was actually creating art. Essentially the most important thing anyone could do with artworks themselves.

So go to MONA, go to Hobart and if you can make the trip a little longer and explore a little more of Tas itself because my feeling is that Hobart is only just the tip of the iceberg.

TRIP RATING: 3/5 LIGHT BEAMS