It started off at an early hour of the morning, 5 am to be precise, the alarm sounded and although I was excited to get going on our adventure I am clearly not a morning person and the bedspread was calling me to pull it up over my head and ignore the alarm. But no that would be a terrible decision as then I would miss my boat, and if I miss the boat I miss a two week adventure in Tasmania! Hubby, being a total morning person, bounded out of bed and headed for the shower. “OK Mac, time to rise and shine” I told myself.
After a shower I had morphed back into a human, well mostly, hubby woke up the kids and we forced some breakfast down despite our bodies noticing that it was a little earlier than our usual breakfast time. I wanted to start the day off healthy. Adam was like a shadow all morning, literally I could not take one step without him, clearly he was tired and a little nervous. After saying goodbye to her cat (Pumpkin), April came inside in tears, she wasn’t sure about leaving her baby for 2 weeks. She was also the most nervous about the boat trip. Despite the fact I clearly have not let her watch Titanic, she seemed to be convinced that we would hit an iceberg in the Bass Strait and would sink and die! Hubby reassured us all that the seas were having a calm day.
It was a fair drive from the country side to Port Melbourne but we finally caught sight of The Spirit of Tasmania in all her glory, we began to feel excited, well April didn’t “my tummy hurts”, followed by moans coming from the back seat. I had given her some kids calming chewable tablets and she was wearing sea sick wrist bands that work on acupressure. She looked pale, oh no. The loading process to get our car on board was lengthy, like really lengthy. There was a lot of fumes and April looked paler and paler. I luckily (ex nurse in me) carried a sick bag which i handed her just in case. Finally our car was in position and we got out ready to find our seats (we booked recliners $25 extra per person, but it seemed worth it). As we searched for a way out of the crammed car park smelling heavily of fumes April said “I think I’m going to be sick,” I held the sick bag in place and yep she was sick!
A staff member near by asked how long she has been sick for, I assured her my child wasn’t carrying any deadly contagious diseases and she directed us to the lift and up to deck 7 where we could get fresh air, ahh bliss! The fresh air did us all wonders, it was great to see the city sights from the boat and breathe in the sea air. April felt better instantly and her colour returned along with her chattiness. We explored the ship and April commented “I thought it wouldn’t have layers, I thought it would have no roof”. I think the poor child was thinking we were heading across the Bas Strait in a dinghy!
Here we go!
The Spirit of Tasmania has just been all done up, there is a cinema, magic shows, bars, beautiful seating areas, it really is lovely. It was tricky finding where the recliners were, but it was great having our own little section where we could put our things. We watched a great magic show and then headed out on deck again and watched as we sailed through the heads past Point Lonsdale and to our delight we saw a seal playing in the water. Adam insisted on hanging onto the bottom of my dress which he liked to play with and kept flashing my knickers to the world to see (lucky I had pretty ones on). The seas were as smooth as you can ask for, and out in the fresh air I enjoyed the thrill of the ship sailing over the swells. But when we went back inside and the boat swayed I felt my stomach say ‘I am not liking this’. We swayed our way back to our seats, where I felt too sick to even read my book (and here I was thinking I would enjoy some relaxation time). The kids and hubby were fine as I curled up on my recliner wishing we were nearly there (nope still hours to go!)
Recliner area
The kids were great, they played on their devices and played UNO, they snacked and coloured in, April journaled and Adam did his sticker book with help from Aspen. After a few hours my body seemed to get more used to the waves. Hubby got some brochures and we planned out some great sights to see and Aspen insisted on seeing Tasmanian Devils and visiting a chocolate factory. We began getting really excited!
The unloading of the cars was almost as bad as the loading, it took ages, but thankfully as we all sat in our cars waiting to get off people had their engines turned off so there was no fumes this time. Finally we were off the boat and Tasmania here we are. And I am relieved I have two weeks on land!
“The Glanvilles have arrived!”
We headed to our accommodation, the White House Apartments in Davenport. We booked the Upstairs. It is a really old home but all done up and fitted out retro style. The furnishing are amazing and my kids loved the funky chairs and the Lava Lamp.
We were terribly lazy and decided on 2 minute noodles followed by ice-cream for dinner, it was late and had been a long day! The kids thought it was a real treat! Adam thought having a bath in a such a cool retro bathroom was pretty awesome and I even had one too, it was heaven. The kids put a movie on (they have a great selection of movies here) and chilled out before falling asleep. We all fell asleep quickly and awoke to the gorgeous views of the bay and the sunshine. Hubby went for a run, I wrote this whilst sitting on my four poster bed and the girls are playing whilst Adam remains asleep. It’s 8:14 am and life is good with the Glanvilles.
Can’t wait to see what today brings. . . .
Thanks for joining me, love Mackenzie xx
Remember to stay posted as I travel around Tasmania with my family, follow my tweets and Instagram pics @macglanville and follow my blog posts to see what we get up to. Thanks xx
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14 comments
Oh, I have never been on a ferry which carries cars! That must have been quite an experience! I have never been to Tasmania and I look forward to reading about your adventures there! Have fun!
You know what, to my absolute shame, I did not realise you were austrailian until just now.
I absolutely love boats, big or small. The rough weather doesnt worry me at all. I would happily cruise all over the world. #Mg
Oh I wish I could sail the world too, but my tummy doesn’t agree. My hubby loves boats he grew up in North Queensland where they goat boat licences at school.
It sounds like you are having a great time! Tasmania sounds beautiful and the pictures of the cruise ship and the hotel are gorgeous! Enjoy your trip and thanks for hosting!
Mac the place you are staying in looks great. I always feel queasy on boat journeys. From where we live it is pretty quick to pop over to Ireland on the ferry for a weekend (pre child) and the crossing is ALWAYS rough. No matter what time of year it is. As I have got older my sea legs have got worse. I practically crawl to a seat and stay there for the entire journey! Hope you all have a lovely time x #mg
Wow! Your accomodations are stunning! Enjoy the rest of your trip 🙂
The house was amazing! Thanks we will xx
Poor April! Hopefully there will be no more fumes, and you all can enjoy your vacation! Your accommodations look lovely- gorgeous home! Noodles and ice cream for dinner actually sounds perfect to me! Hey, you’re on vacation, right? Do whatever you want, and have a blast! #mg 🙂
What an exciting start to your holiday! My husband & I are the opposite of you guys, I’d be up & having to drag him out of bed. lol Poor April, she must have been so nervous about the boat trip – it’s great you thought of bringing a sick bag. I think the extra money for reclines is well worth it – that looks like a lovely place to sit & watch the sea. The house looks fab. Enjoy Tasmania! I can’t wait to hear more x
Sounds lovely! 🙂 I hope you and your family have the best time and the journey home is better. Looking forward to more photos when you’re back.
The boat looks stunning! And what great adventures you are going to have. Thanks for hosting #mg xx
Bless April – I have sea sickness & the loading bays on car ferries were always horrendous! Still, the boat looks really nice & the apartment sounds lovely. Hope your stay gets off to a good start! #mg
5 am. Ouch. I remember car ferries from when we lived on Vancouver Island (west coast of Canada) – it was a 2 hour crossing to the mainland, loved making that trip. I’ve been admiring your instagram pics…looks like a lovely spot!
2 hours would have been more bearable, we got off the boat 7.30pm it was a long way, but gosh so worth it, Tasmania is breathtakingly beautiful. Glad you are following me on Instagram, thanks so much xx
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