First impressions of Hobart

While it has only been about two weeks since we moved to Hobart, so far we have absolutely loved living in this city. After first moving to Tassie two years ago, where we spent a year in Launceston (and to be honest, found the transition pretty difficult), to moving to Burnie a year ago (which was a much smoother transition than the previous year), to now living down south in Hobart, I have found this new part of the world to be extremely beautiful and calm with its natural surroundings, yet also busy and exciting with its city life. While we loved our time in Burnie and could easily see ourselves moving back there at some stage in the future, we are really looking forward to spending some time exploring a bigger city.

When we were looking for somewhere to live in Hobart, we wanted somewhere that was a bit further away from the city so that we could have some peace (as well as space for Moose to run around), but not too far for Dave to travel to work. We were extremely lucky in finding a place in beautiful Blackmans Bay, which is about a 15-20 minute drive from the city. It is so lovely being able to live in a calm and quiet area, which is walking distance to the beach, and has a number of bush tracks and coastal walks nearby. Given that I work from home, being able to have this beautiful surrounding has really made the transition a lot easier.


Compared to living in Burnie, where it can be hard finding variety in places to eat out, we are very grateful to be spoilt by so much choice in Hobart. Whether we want to walk down the hill to get dinner by the beach at Blackmans Bay (so far we've had meals at The Beach Restaurant and Jack Loves Red, both of which were delicious), drive 5 minutes to Kingston Beach to grab a drink or a meal at The Salty Dog, Beachfront 32 or Robbie Browns, or venture into the city for an endless choice of cafes, restaurants, bakeries and patisseries, there are so many options available to us. The fact that there is so much choice for a lunch or dinner out on a Sunday is definitely a positive compared to the north-west coast, where you would struggle to find much open on a Sunday.





I've also been loving the array of classes available to me at the gym that I recently joined. I decided to sign up to Unigym in Sandy Bay, and while it is a 15 minute drive away, the fact that I can now do body attack classes again made the decision a no brainer (this was my favourite class to do when back in Sydney, and I'm so glad I'm able to get back into it again now). There is such a great atmosphere and energy at this gym, and whether I'm doing a body attack class, body pump class, HIIT class or spin class, the instructors are all really lovely and enthusiastic, and I have been absolutely loving each visit there.


Something else we have noticed is the abundance of churches in the area. We have visited a couple of churches so far, and I am sure that we will have no trouble finding a church with great teaching and fellowship that isn't too far from home.

I have to say, the only downside I have noticed so far in Hobart is the variety and uncertainty in the weather (and I'm sure that by July or August I will definitely have noticed this even more as I'm bundled up in my down jacket, beanie, scarf and gloves every day). Having spent the past year on the north-west coast, where the weather was much more mild than it is down south, I think the extremities in Hobart's weather might be a bit of a shock to the system this year (good thing we've got reverse cycle air con in our place).

Given that my first impressions of Hobart so far have been very positive, I am really looking forward to exploring more of this city in the coming year, and hopefully more years to come.