THURSDAY – DECEMBER 19, 2013
BOTTOM LINE:
Flew to Tasmania
Explored Hobart and
packed
BACK STORY:
Morning came much too
soon, but with a 7am shuttle ride to the airport we were up and running.
Because of the
construction around the airport, travelers could only be dropped off at the
international terminal and had to hike to catch domestic flights a good
distance away. Thank God for suitcase
wheels!
We were booked to fly
on Tiger Airlines. When I had booked our
flight in September, my confirmation from the airlines noted that I had “no
baggage” to check in. Knowing that would
not be the case, I went back into the booking program and could not make any changes
to the itinerary. I made a copy of the
confirmation, circled the notation figuring we’d deal with it at the
airport…WRONG!!! We were informed that
because we didn’t contact their “call center” at least 4 hours prior to our
flight we would have to pay an additional $450 for our bags!!! Hello?
Our two one-way flights cost $176.
Why does a glitch in the airlines software program become the passenger’s
problem? Bruce asked to speak to the manager on duty. We paid $75 each for our bags and headed for
the gate.
Luckily we only had
one-way tickets with Tiger Airlines.
They not only seemed very restrictive with luggage…weighing all carry on
pieces and charging for anything in excess, they closed all check-in counters
45 prior to take off (no exceptions), and there was to be absolutely no carry
on food or beverages. All snacks, food & beverages were offered after take
off for a charge. No one seemed to be buying anything. Thankfully we have Southwest Airlines at home
that allows two free check-in suitcases, and tosses out free snacks and humor
to anyone that will accept it!
With all of the airline
rules we were surprised that no one asked for our identification at the
counter. I passed the agent our
passports and she politely refused saying that she didn’t need them.
The same thing happened
going through security…no one asked for our passports or our boarding
passes. They used the conveyor belt scan
and that was it. Computers didn’t need
to be taken out of backpacks…nothing!??
No homeland security there!
Our flight was 55
minutes to the Island of Tasmania. We
landed in Hobart on the southeastern tip of the Island. We paid a shuttle service a round trip fee to
take us to our hotel and then transfer us to the airport next week on the 25th
(yes, Christmas Day).
The co-pilot to the van
was about our age and returned to work after retirement. He missed the brain stimulation of people
contact. He was very eager to share his
knowledge of historical facts and was very interesting, I might add. A great
welcome!
We arrived too early
for check in so we left our luggage with the hotel and ventured off to find
some lunch and a bank. Most hotels
charge a 1-2% fee if a charge card is used for payment, so we needed cash.
As we cut through a
lovely shaded park I noticed a wall of old head stones. I’m guessing that there
had been an old cemetery at one time on the site that was near the water. Perhaps over time the sea waters washed away
surrounding soils and eventually the plots.
Anyway, it was a neat display and worthy of a photo.
A grouping of old
restored wharf buildings had become the home of eateries, pubs and small
businesses. We grabbed some salad and headed to a nearby park to find
shade. The weather was predicted to be
104 degrees Fahrenheit with tomorrow forecast for rain and 76 degrees.
 |
| Hobart's historic cemetery face lift |
Our afternoon was spent
repacking for our tour that leaves at 7am tomorrow. It is a five-day/four-night tour of the
entire Island which is a little larger than the state of Rhode Island. The
company transports, educates, guides, feeds and accommodates the
travelers. They use large vans that have
to carry baggage so backpacks are limited in size. Luckily our return nights
stay is at the same hotel and they graciously offered to keep our suitcases for
us in a locked/secure room for free!
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