Long Beach

We only discovered this summer just gone the recently rejuvenated playground down at Long Beach in Sandy Bay, and it's quickly become one of our favourite outdoor haunts. There is a fantastic multi-level play structure, with slides, rope ladders, suspension bridges, tunnels, spinning things, ramps, poles and more. There are plenty of swings, a climbing wall cubby, a balance wheel and it's all surrounded by clean sand and tanbark, tall shady trees, large lushly green grassed areas and flanked along its length by the lovely, and eminently swimmable Long Beach. You can also barbecue your lunch (if you can dibs a spot!) under a large pavilion. The beach itself is clean, gentle and edged with a new cement promenade.



There's an awesome ice-cream shop around the corner, where you can buy a generous single scoop, in a waffle cone, for a measly $2, splash out on a double for $3. They don't have a huge range, but they've got all the basic flavours, and for a two-buck treat, I'm not complaining.

There is a well-paved path running the length of the beach and around to Blinking Billy Point (where you might find an accommodating rock-pool or two) and then to Blinking Billy Beach, another lovely beach, very much quieter than Long Beach (but it's seriously a five minute stroll) but just as nice for swimming and poking around for smooth stones.



Long Beach is a fantastic day out. There is plenty of parking by the playground, always a bunch of kids to muck in with, and it can cost you nothing if that's all you have.

Where: Beach Road, Sandy Bay (left off Sandy Bay Road as you leave the city, just past Lipscombe Larder, but that's another post...!)

Salamanca Market

Lots of locals like to pooh-pooh Salamanca as being full of tasteless crap catering only to tourists, and yes, it's true that there are a lot of tacky souvenirs available, but you just can't beat it for atmosphere.

On a sunny, blue-sky day, the many spreading green lawns, the buskers, the food stalls, and best of all the Hobart City Council mini-tractors that are left with keys in the ignition, kids crawling all over them and the council workers happily turning a blind eye, make a morning spent mooching around the market a very pleasant one indeed. I usually make sure to scrape up $3 for a bag of Oliebollen, the delicious Dutch fruit donuts made fresh on-site at one of the stalls (their tempura mushrooms are also excellent!). For an outing with kids, you've got loads to see, Princess Park just around the corner, the docks a stones throw the other way, and the CBD a stroll away.

There's a reason it's famous around the world. It's noice.


Oliebollen: DO NOT miss out on these.

PS: I've labelled it as pram-friendly, but you have to pick your routes. There is loads of space to park a pram and lay about on the grassed areas, and it's not impossible to meander through the stalls with a pram, even a Hummer like ours, but be sensitive to the fact that you're taking up more space than the average punter, and watch out for those ankles!

Montrose Foreshore All-Abilities Playground

Montrose Foreshore All-Abilities Playground (what a mouthful!) is a pretty cool playground between the Derwent River (good) and the Brooker Highway (less good) in Montrose, north of the city. It's got a cool rope climbing pyramid, crazy mirrors, kid-friendly chimes to play, slide, swings, seesaw... even a fancy wheelchair swing (always swarming with fascinated and non-wheelchair-bound kids). There is lots of space to throw balls, exercise dogs, and a great walking path that runs along the river back up to Glenorchy. Public toilets, plenty of parking, a couple of electric BBQ sites, ducks for feeding along the river's edge, sometimes an enterprising coffee van too! Downside: there isn't any kid-safe fencing + gates so you can't completely veg out...you have to supervise your own children, dammit!

Where: Brooker Highway, Montrose (on the left as you head into the city).

Princess Park

Princess Park, on Hampden Rd in Battery Point, is a favourite city hangout of ours. Nomatter the weather, it is always populated by at least a few kids (more often than not swarming with them), so it's toddler heaven! Three slides, pirate ship, sand, grassy hills, and a stone's throw from the likes of Salamanca, the picturesque streets of Battery Point, Sandy Bay or the CBD...what's not to like? It's a beautiful park with a fabulous view over the water and lots of shaded spots to sit on a warm day and picnic, play and people-watch.

The Market

Hobart's newest art+design market, simply called The Market, debuts next Sunday, April 5, in the Masonic Temple at 3 Sandy Bay Road, Hobart.

I have a small stall there along with my fabulous mum, maker of t'Art bags and Tuff Tedz. I've stream-lined my presentation, so come along and see what's going on!

Where: Masonic Temple, 3 Sandy Bay Rd, Hobart
When: Sunday April 5, 10-3

And it aims to run on a monthly basis, so you'll see fresh rotations of designers and makers! Fantastic!

Australian Mountain Bike Championships

Held in the Mt Wellington National Park, the Australian Mountain Bike Championships last weekend were apparently a sight to behold! Just beyond Tolosa Park in Tolosa St, Glenorchy, the championships spanned both days last weekend, with heaps of jumps, bumps and stunts!

Rectango!

Playing Friday nights in Salamanca Square, just up behind the Peacock Theatre, Rectango is free salsa music that seems to have become a Hobart institution.
We went along tonight, and it was packed. Crammed with Hobart's bright young things, and some not-so-bright-or-young (me, for example, although I had one of the most popular accessories there - a hip-slung toddler. And there were kids of all sizes there. A very family-friendly atmosphere.), the small courtyard backed by a raw rock wall was like an instant party. Beers were being drunk everywhere, though I didn't see any sort of bar per se in the immediate vicinity. Which isn't to say there wasn't one behind a thicket of people that a short-stuff like me couldn't see. We made do with excellent homemade ice cream from Cargo Bar and Pizza Lounge ($3.50 for a huge single scoop - I recommend the caramelised fig!), just down the street in Salamanca Place.

If you can't find a comfortable pozzie in the square to listen to the music - there is, after all, a lot of loud mingling to compete with - we found the acoustics to be excellent at the top of Kelly Steps!

Where: Salamanca Square, down the arcade off Salamanca Place
When: Friday nights, I think through February only, but don't quote me.
How much: FREE!!!!

Boronia Beach

Boronia Beach in Kingston is a hidden-away gem of a place. I call it the secret beach in my head. About a 10 minute walk from Kingston Heights, down a long
set of steps and along a bush track, you round the bend and see through the trees this glorious little cove that transports you to some remote Greek island!


We went with the clan on a 30-degree day the other week, and although it was for once a bit busy with a few other families, there was such a nice vibe that we were happy to share out little paradise with others. Emerging from the cool, crystal clear water onto the clean sandy beach embraced by tall shaggy bush and totally out of sight of civilization is enough to make you fling your arms wide and sing "I'm aliiiiive!" Which I did, unashamedly.

Where: Walk from Kingston Heights, Kingston.

TMAG

TMAG, the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, has had something of a serious facelift since I was a kid. It's now a very contemporary, lively and exciting place to visit. There was a stunning exhibition about Tasmania's indigenous people, the old faithful natural history section, but with some fresh new animal pelts for petting (see photo) and a fantastic and interactive Antarctic exhibit, complete with drawers full of taxidermied antarctic birds and a big slab of ice to touch! There is a scale model of Mawson's hut which I could've spent all day peering into. See bottom left image. Or better yet, go to TMAG and peer in yourself!



There is also a discovery centre for the kids, and its heart is in the right place, but I look forward to it receiving a bit more attention in coming years. There are some very exciting looking artist's models of future plans for the museum, so I think it's only going to get bigger and better. The museum shop is also new (to me, anyway!) and was a pleasure to browse through with some gorgeous books. The courtyard area to the side of the museum, near the Bond Store, is a lovely open area. It's just a great, easygoing place with a relaxed vibe and will become much more of a hangout as my son gets older.

Where: 40 Macquarie St, Hobart
Opening hours: 10am -5pm daily (excluding Christmas day, Anzac Day and Good Friday)

MONA FOMA

The Museum of Old & New Art's Festival of Art and Music - MONA FOMA - took place last weekend in Hobart. We went to see one exhibit, Discordia, a collection of amplified electric guitars and a flock of finches co-existing in sweet disharmony. It was fantastic...surprisingly peaceful and meditative. You moved quietly around the room, beautifully set up with a sand island and horizontally stood guitars, and the birds moved in response, alighting on the miked up instruments and creating unique hymns. Kids loved it too!

Where: Discordia took place in the Long Gallery, in the Salamanca Arts Centre, where there were also a number of other exhibits.

The Taste Festival

The Taste Festival, formerly the Taste of Tasmania, is an 8-day event spanning the end of the last year and the beginning of the next (that's Dec 28-Jan 4 to you plebs!). It's a mix of food stalls highlighting the produce of Tassie that has now been well padded out with art installations, short cinema, roving comedy, concerts and loads of free events. There are also the Sydney to Hobart yachts in dock which hold more interest to me now through the eyes of a fascinated toddler than ever when I was a kid myself.


Among the fun stuffs was the Mercury Kidz in the Park, in St David's Park yesterday - the highlight of which for us was the petting zoo. I fell in love with the jersey cow and the piebald donkey. Turkeys you can keep. Ugly buggers! There were performers too, such as George from Playschool (who I secretly wish I could've seen. I could so happily work on Playschool. Except for the whole not-living-in-Hobart bit of it. Maybe Andy Muirhead and I can do a Tassie version.)(If I knew him, that is.)

We missed seeing George from Playschool because we went over to the Cenotaph for the Hobart Kite Festival, which was a brilliant afternoon out. The Tasmanian Kite Club, or Kite Association of Tasmania, or whatever they called themselves, were selling $3 hotcakes: simple black or orange plastic kites, that were idiot-proof and great fun to fly. Loads of families with picnics, kids and old coots in suspenders (think Uncle Jessie from Dukes of Hazard) flying kites, a stunning blue sky and the panoramic view of Hobart, the bridge and the mountain. What a perfect afternoon!

Glenorchy Library Toddlers' Rock 'n' Rhyme

The Toddlers' Rock 'n' Rhyme at Glenorchy Library is a delight to attend, and easily the best of these I have had the pleasure of participating in! The Children's team just happen to be an extremely affable bunch of folks who clearly get along well and enjoy each other's company. Led by Phil and accompanied by Lynn (retired but still devoted, with her trusty guitar) and various other children's team members, the session consists mostly of songs and nursery rhymes with the occasional story and lots of enthusiastic audience participation. The dancing at the end is a bonding, energetic climax!

Where: Glenorchy Library, Terry St, Glenorchy.
When: 10.30-11.00 every Wednesday morning, recommencing Jan 14, 2009.