Part 2…Booked two new vacation homes…Filling an 88 day gap in the itinerary…

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The views from the property referred to as Anchorage Waterfront (no relation to Alaska).

We varied from one of our usual criteria in selecting the second property, which is referred to as an apartment.  We’ve always preferred houses, doubles, or condos. 

We’d yet to book a so-called apartment, although we’ve booked several condos. Based on the fact that each of the small number of units is privately owned, it’s comparable to what we’d refer to as a “condo” in the US. The booking is a first floor unit with two bedrooms and two baths, making it particularly appealing to us.

Thus, going forward, I will refer to it as a condo to ensure our readers are aware of the fact that it’s not a single owner apartment building as one may find in many locations throughout the world. 

The living and dining room, although dated décor-wise, will fulfill our needs.

The decision to move halfway through the stay in Tasmania didn’t come without careful thought. Moving isn’t the easiest thing to do.  But this time, it will be different. Between the two locations, we don’t have to worry about the weight of our bags. We can put the less organized luggage into the rental car since we’ll be unpacking later in the day when we arrive at the second property under five hours later.

Here’s the link to the second location we booked in Tasmania.

We’ll pack our big insulated Costco beach bag with ice being able to bring along all perishable food while placing the nonperishable items in a cardboard box. We’ll be certain to rent a car with ample space for an extra box.

The drive across Tasmania in itself will be fun. When we first arrive in Hobart we’ll drive to Penguin from the Hobart International Airport, a 3 hour, 25-minute drive. When we drive to the second house 44 days later, as shown here today which is located beyond Hobart, the drive will be 4 hours 15 minutes.

A fully equipped kitchen. We can’t see the refrigerator but it can’t be much smaller than we’ve had in other locations.

We discovered the following about Huonville from this site:

“Huonville sits on the banks of the tranquil Huon River and is surrounded by fruit orchards, farmland, and the peaks of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. The town makes an ideal base for exploring Tasmania’s far south.

Set low in the beautiful Huon Valley, Huonville is wrapped in scenery and close to some of Tasmania’s most amazing natural places. With the Hartz Mountains nearby, it’s easy to see what inspires the local creative community and nature lovers alike.

For those who enjoy fine produce, the surrounding area produces smoked and fresh salmon, honey, mushrooms, apples, apricots, plums, cherries, pears, wines, and cider– a veritable foodie’s paradise. There’s even a museum dedicated to the Huon Valley’s famous apple growing story, one that continues today.

Take a wander along the main street and Wilmot Road and find shops that sell a range of first and second-hand treasures from old books and bric-a-brac to new cakes and crafts.

The Huon River and nearby D’Entrecasteaux Channel are attractions in themselves and are popular for fishing and boating, high-speed jet boat rides, or maybe just a quiet walk along the foreshore. Huonville is the last major town before heading into Tasmania’s south, so stop, take a look around and stock up for the journey or stay for a longer taste of the Huon.

Huonville is a 40-min drive (38 km) south of Hobart.”

The master bedroom with views of the Huon River with an ensuite bathroom plus a second bath.

A part of the enjoyment of the move will be the scenic drive across the entire island. Another aspect we love about these two locations is the first is located in Penguin Beach and the second, located directly on the Huon River each with amazing views of the water. 

Apparently, there’s a pontoon boat on the property for which we’ll find out details later. How fun would that be, cruising the Huon River in a pontoon, reminiscent of years past when we had a pontoon while living on a lake?

It’s not that we’re trying to relive our past lake life. We both prefer close proximity to water; a river, a lake, or an ocean. I’m a Pisces, not that horoscopes mean that much to me, but I’ve always been drawn to views of the water, having grown up by the sea in California and having a pool in our yard. 

This is the second bedroom in the property. Although we always share a bedroom, it’s nice to have a second bedroom to store our luggage.

Tom and I both owned boats as adults, long before we met and eventually married, another commonality alighting our otherwise mismatched connection. As a single mom in the 70’s and 80’s I owned a twin-screw Chris Craft cabin cruiser often taking my kids, my sister Julie and friends to Lord Fletcher’s on Lake Minnetonka as well as other popular points of interest on the massive lake.

I was able to dock the boat in a choice spot at the pier, maneuvering the boat easily into a fairly tight spot, tying all the lines using crochet knots. In those days, it was uncommon to see a woman maneuvering a good-sized boat on her own. At the time, I even shocked myself with my independence and skill. 

The Huon River will be another ideal location in Tasmania, located in the southern end of Tasmania while Penguin is located in the north.

The property has a pool and possibly a few chaise lounges. 

The Huon River heads out to sea in the south, another ideal placement for our visit to this beautiful island. At this point, I’m amazed we even found these two properties while dealing with an on and off wifi connection, the outrageous heat on the days we found them, and the speedy and generous response from the two owners, more than willing to work with us.

Yesterday afternoon, I busied myself logging all the information into our spreadsheet in a few separate worksheets; one; the “travel Itinerary” basic expense page estimating the total costs for each of these bookings including rent, rental car, transportation to and from, fuel, dining out, groceries, entertainment and miscellaneous and, two; the financial end on the rentals on the “Deposits Paid” tab including total rents (in US $), deposits paid, date paid, balances due and the dates the balances are due.

Once we arrive in Tasmania, we’ll share more details about the island, the properties, the locations, the cost of living again on the island, its people, its customs, and more.

The dock in front of the property. Gee…maybe there are a few fishing rods we can borrow!

It’s one more cog in the wheel of our continuing world travels. Now, with only one gap to fill for March 13, 2017, to April 22, 2017, prior to sailing to the US for a short stay to visit family and friends, arriving in May 2017, we can sit back and relax knowing a substantial portion of planning for the next 20 months is almost complete.

In these next 12 months, we’ll begin to map out plans for the second half of 2017, hopefully stretching out well into 2018 and beyond. It’s a continuous task that fortunately, we both find to be pleasurable, providing us with a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment, and, of course, excitement!

Thanks for sharing the ongoing journey with us!

Photo from one year ago, September 25, 2014:

There were no photos posted on this date after a long and annoying boarding process to get on the ship in Vancouver, the longest we’d experienced to date. Due to all the delays, we had no time or WiFi access early enough in the day to post other than a short blurb. No sooner we were in our cabins, it was time for the muster drill, and then, our 8:00 pm dinner reservation. Rough waters commenced no more than an hour out to sea.  More on that is upcoming. Please click here for details.

Part 1…Booked two new vacation homes…Filling an 88 day gap in the itinerary…

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View of Penguin Beach across the street from the new house we booked in northern Tasmania. Today’s photos were copied from the owner’s listing on VRBO.

Choosing a location to fill a gap from December 3, 2016, to March 1, 2017, was challenging. In the Southern Hemisphere, where we’ll still be at the time, that period is during the high season, summer holiday, when kids are out of school and families from Australia travel to relatively nearby locations.

Should any of our readers be interested in renting this lovely property or learning more about it, please click here for details and pricing.

Many Australians stay in the South Pacific when they go on holiday to save both time and money and to get to warmer climates readily available on many choice islands during the cooler seasons.

This is comparable to travelers with families in North America who tend to stay on the continent and in the Caribbean when they travel as a family during school breaks whether winter during the Christmas season or summer.

Ah, a spacious living room with views.

As we perused many locations in the South Pacific during this time frame, we were stymied, having the most difficulty we’ve had in the past. Prices topped the charts, far exceeding our budget, which in extreme cases, we’re willing to adjust if absolutely necessary.

However, this gap didn’t represent a scenario that drove us to be willing to stretch the budget when we have bigger fish to fry in the future when we travel to a new continent in 2017, after leaving the US for a visit.

Another issue impeding our success in finding new locations has been the realities of a slow Internet signal we faced in Australia and now again here in Fiji, as it jumps back and forth from online to “limited” many times per day.

Fully equipped kitchen with an average-sized refrigerator (yeah!), an oven and a microwave, and a dishwasher! 

In the past week, Mario has worked hard to resolve these issues and it has improved considerably although still presenting problems in the afternoons the perfect time for us to do research after I’ve completed the daily post.

After thoroughly scouring HomeAway with no luck, using the link on our site, we clicked another link on HomeAway’s page (at the bottom), VRBO, a popular site owned by Homeaway as well.  

We’ve found it easiest to peruse one site at a time rather than jump back and forth trying to figure where we left off when there are often 1000’s of options listed in a single area.

We always keep the table set for the next meal, inviting the preparation of good homemade food.  However, there are many restaurants in the area some we may actually try.

We chose to spend three months in Tasmania after hearing such glowing reports on our last cruise and on publications online as to its beauty, its people, and its wildlife. As an Australian island, with manageable visa requirements, wifi, and the ability to shop for foods at various local farms, this is an ideal location for us.

The challenge was totally predicated on finding a property with water views, wifi, and a fully equipped kitchen.  A few days ago, Tom expressed a great idea. Why not take this gap, dividing it in half into two six week segments and stay on two distinctly different areas of the island? 

I loved this idea. It would give us an opportunity to casually explore the island from two entirely different home-based locations. We could travel the north portion of the island at our leisure and then, be close to the capital city of Hobart, the most popular tourist location on the island.

The private house has three bedrooms. Note the flat-screen TV on the wall. What a treat!

We’d been turned down by several property owners who didn’t want to “tie-down” their property with one renter over the entire summer holiday making it unavailable for possible “regulars” who’d yet to book at this distant future, willing to pay premium prices for the short term rentals during peak season.

The task was challenging, breaking it up into two options, Group 1 and Group 2, the north and close to Hobart, respectively. After days of research with the WiFi on and off, we both vigorously spent the past few days on a mission. We narrowed it down to eight options at the VRBO site. 

I sent Tom an email with each listing and together, albeit slowly, we reviewed all the pluses and minuses of each property, finally narrowing it down to a mere three properties, one in Group 1 and two in Group 2. 

The sunrise over Penguin Beach. Can’t wait to see this in person! Then again, we’re not wishing for time to pass quickly. We’re very content where we are now in Savusavu, Fiji even on the seemingly endless rainy days, still continuing yet today.

Contacting each listing owner separately with basically the same verbiage, except for the variances in dates between the groups, we heard back from one last night, after which we booked it paying the deposit at the Australian version for vacation rentals, Stayz, a secure site. 

Later in the evening, we heard back from a second but decided to wait overnight for a possible proposal from the third owner. Alas, early this morning an email had arrived with the third proposal. After once again reviewing each of the remaining two options, we decided on the third, accepting by email and shortly later, paying the reasonable deposit once again at Stayz.

Both properties are confirmed and we couldn’t be more thrilled. Today, we’ll share the first location with a few photos, a single-family house, located in Penguin, Tasmania.

We couldn’t be more excited knowing that penguins actually wander about the beach. Here’s a quote about Penguin from a site describing areas of Tasmania:

“Penguin

Penguin is a picturesque seaside town with a pretty esplanade, scenic walking trails, great coastal drives, and a quirky collection of penguins on the street.

Sitting on the edge of mighty Bass Strait, Penguin takes its name from a nearby penguin rookery and it’s obvious this town dearly loves its little feathered friends. There’s a 10-foot penguin that makes a quirky photo opportunity, while the real thing can be seen each night at Penguin Point.

On Sundays, Penguin hosts Tasmania’s largest undercover market with more than 200 stalls selling food and wine, woodcraft, and second-hand goods.  The coastal road between Ulverstone and Wynyard is a beautiful scenic drive with sweeping ocean views, great picnics spots, and clean beaches for seaside walks and fun.

Look out for the expansive wild garden that blooms year-round between the road and railway line and explore one of the many walking tracks across the Dial Range, with stunning views over Penguin and the north-west coast. There are plenty of eateries and places to stay.

Penguin is a 15-min drive (17 km) east of Burnie.”

Those who have followed us these past years know how this location is suitable for us and how much we’ll love our time spent in Penguin.

We’ll be back tomorrow with Part 2 and the second booking in Tasmania, where we’ll be closer to the capital city of Hobart. At least while we’re still housebound in rainy weather, we’ll be busy logging the new locations in our spreadsheet and updating the itinerary. Stay tuned.

Photo from one year ago today, September 24, 2014:

One of the last photos of Vancouver as we began to make our way toward Hawaii on a cruise on the Celebrity Solstice. For more details and the final Vancouver post, please click here.