Tazmania 2017 | It feels good to be warm and dry

My friend Jane once said, wisely, that if we are talking about the weather then we've run out of things to say and it's time tp hang up. So...briefly...we left Calgary as the cold and snow hit on Friday, Santa Cruz on Monday as severe rains approached dangerous levels and have since destroyed homes, and arrived in Hobart to 22 degrees and wind. Its not tropical but it's warm. At 7 am the sky is clearing and we are hoping for a warm day in Hobart...if we can figure out our right-hand drive, five-speed manual transmission Hyundai. Age is catching up to us. It's not as easy as it once was. I have to pull myself up and out using the handle bar and leverage myself down by hanging on to the window ledge! In the future we should consider an SUV  or maybe a car and driver!

I will be challenged to describe our room here until I get the photo thing figured out. We are atop Knopwood Hill in Rob's airbnb. The house looks variously like a hilltop Okanagan feature home from Western Living magazine and a post-earthquake container ensemble from Christchurch. I think its fabulous. Surrounded by forest and overlooking the expansive harbour at the mouth of the Derwent River,  all the exterior walls are glass and many of the interior ones so that the views are in every direction. We meld into the landscape. A semi-structured gulch surrounds the multiple decks and outdoor living spaces attracting birds, and this morning, a wallaby who came by for a drink.

I am sitting at the centre of a cross. The kitchen, along one short arm, features a 10-seater stainless steel bar counter, a long built-in casual bench seating area-- grey suede with mauve and yellow cushions--and three mongrels. Behind me is a central iron stove, and the living room: large comfy suede couches, a big screen tv, glass all round. Doors lead to one of the many teak decks. Outside,  seaside villages stretch below along the shoreline. To my right and left are the long sides of the cross. The mid-spaces are open seating, tables with chairs for dining, bookshelves, and more sliding glass doors leading out to more comfortable spaces. The floors alternate between teak and painted cement. There are five bedroms in total and ours is on the back side. There are drapes in some rooms but they were open in our bedroom and bathroom. There's nothing out there but nature. Truly a retreat. The downside? Everything is a bit tired. And the decor is definitely not Roche Dubois. There's a nasty gravel road to get up here, and although we love the naturalness of it all, it's a 20 minute drive into Hobart.