Mid-winter festing

My favourite Tassie festival, over again. This year, friends made the trip down from the north to stay and join us at the Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival. Friday night's burning man ceremony was awesome. After the long and tedious preamble last year ("Let me tell you a story...", a very long one that will go for about 40 minutes), it was refreshing and positive to have a woman from the local indigenous community welcome everyone to country, encouraging us to take care of the land we depend on. Then a horde of flaming arrows flew at Big Willie and up he went, to the great delight of the crowd.

I had been looking forward to trying a rabbit pie from The Princess and the Fatman made with sustainably farmed bunnies from Geeveston, and it did not disappoint. Absolutely delicious. Then a pork bun from Fat Pig Farm and some hot mulled Willie Smiths cider. And I simply can't go past Lady Hester's sourdough donuts, oh my god! As always the event is so well organised, with all the basics sorted, like enough seating and toilets, friendly staff keeping the place clean, easy parking and plenty of fire barrels to warm up by. Add the music, costumes and generally jovial atmosphere, what's not to love. Bring on 2019.

Dover Seafest

The sun shone and the crowds turned out for Dover Seafest on Easter Saturday, the first one in 18 years apparently. We took the dogs down for a couple of hours and met lots of friendly locals and visitors who came up for a pat - or even a selfie. It was a lovely outing, with busy food and drink stalls, entertainment, kids activities and of course water based action including rowing and sailing. The queue for Masaaki's Sushi was huge (as usual), so we had a pale ale from Devils Brewery and a delicious burger, followed by a good old flake cone from Huon Valley Soft Serve. Then we all had to go home for a lie down, especially the dogs, who were all patted and cuddled out.

Gong xi fa cai

Happy lunar new year to our Chinese friends and colleagues! Last Sunday, Huonville was host to a performance by members of the Chinese Community Association of Tasmania. In the river foreshore park, we were treated to traditional Chinese songs (from the young lady in pink below), Wushu martial arts and of course, the famous dragon dance. A cute-as-a-button four-year-old girl stole the show as she practiced her martial arts moves in a striking red outfit.

The group decided this year to take their traditions out to rural and regional areas in Tasmania, partly to share the celebrations and partly as a rehearsal for this Sunday's big festival performance on Parliament House Lawns. Red envelopes were presented to audience members who could answer some basic questions about lunar new year. I won a red dragon decoration for saying the traditional new year greeting in Mandarin. Well, kind of. As above.

Tasmanian Writers Festival

I'm so glad I booked tickets to some sessions at this year's Tasmanian Writers and Readers Festival. On the Friday evening, I caught Ashley Hay in conversation with Tasmanian writer Danielle Wood. I'm currently halfway through her book A Hundred Small Lessons and I really enjoyed her previous book The Railwayman's Wife. It was great to catch up on her life and writing. Many years ago we were in the same creative writing class at college in Bathurst in NSW. That small class included a few other notable writers like Charlotte Wood, and I guess others who are 'just readers' like me.

I read Caroline Baum's memoir Only earlier this year after hearing her interviewed on the 'So you want to be a writer' podcast. It was a wonderful book. On the Saturday morning of the festival she was interviewed by Stella Prize winning Tasmanian author Heather Rose. I found myself recalling parts of her book, nodding along, laughing, learning a lot and the hour passed just too quickly. Following advice from Valerie Khoo and Allison Tait who host the Australian Writers' Centre podcast I mentioned earlier (one of my favourites) I also just hung about at the festival a bit, went to some networking drinks and chatted to some interesting folks over coffee in the breaks.

One small gripe - when it came to the 10 minutes allocated for Q&A with the author at the end of each session, most of the 'questions' weren't (questions that is). Instead, they went something like this: "I've just finished my memoir and my daughter..." (cue personal life story lasting several minutes). No question in sight. To her great credit, Caroline Baum managed to respond to all of them with an insight about her own writing as if an actual question had been asked. This drives me crazy at conferences too. Please respect everyone's time and ask a succinct question so that we can hear more from the person we came to hear, not you! Gripe over.

Hobart sings in winter

Last Saturday, our little community choir from Franklin performed three pop-up gigs as part of the Festival of Voices in Hobart. We took the bus into town and sang in the lovely Wild Gallery in Salamanca, on top of a red double-decker bus parked at the Brook Street Pier and in the IXL Atrium behind the Henry Jones Art Hotel.

It turned out to be a glorious winter day in Hobart and aside from the fun we had singing, the hanging about at Salamanca Market and walking between venues was such a treat. David drove into town to meet me afterwards and we finished up the day with cocktails at Rude Boy and dinner at Restaurant Schulz at the Polish Club. A very long and happy day out "in town".

 

Le Weekend in Cygnet

The French flag flew on top of the Cygnet Town Hall. The car park opposite featured a collection of old and new cars from the French Car Club of Tasmania. The town was draped in blue, white and red. From baguettes to berets, it was all there. Le Weekend Cygnet is such a great idea for a town with a French history. With our (Swiss) dogs in tow, we strolled around town, stopping every few metres to chat with locals and visitors. But the highlight was a relaxing couple of hours spent at Pagan Cider. The dogs were allowed (no, welcomed) inside the shed to hang out with us on the cool cement. French films played and cider flowed. We had a very tasty lunch from the Tickled Rib food van and a couple of blueberry and quince ciders. Just a terrific afternoon. If you like the sound of it, Le Weekend continues tomorrow!

Small Farms Expo 2017

We love going to the annual Huon Small Farms Expo out at Ranelagh. We don't have a small farm, just grow a few veggies and have a few chooks. But it's great to look at all the equipment, livestock, seed and feed available and think, "maybe one day". This year there were some great talks from experts, about everything from fencing (how to keep wallabies and possums out, and let your resident wombat in without him destroying your fence) to value-adding to farm produce (in this case, a potato grower who now supplies potato salad to the major supermarkets and makes real vodka from potatoes). Have a listen to this interview with Mark Jessop from the Huon Agricultural Society on ABC Radio's Country Hour about it: he did a great job of explaining why it's such a popular event for people in the valley and beyond. And have a look at this lovely little video from Harcourts Huon Valley showing a drone's eye view of what it looked like on the day.

#BeBoldForChange in the valley

Our local business enterprise centre hosted a dinner at Home Hill Winery for International Women's Day on 8 March. How lucky we were to have a panel of speakers of this calibre tell their stories and provide realistic and practical advice for other women in business.

From left to right:

Frances Bender, executive director of ASX-listed salmon producer Huon Aquaculture. One of things she talked about was the impact of technology on women's lives, now that the ability to work from home allows many the flexibility they need to continue in their careers.
Diane Tompson, managing director of the Powercom Group of companies. She said it was important to "just ask!" if you don't know something and to put your hand up for roles and opportunities even if you don't believe you are the perfect candidate. Chances are, that person doesn't exist.
Adriana Taylor, Commissioner of the Huon Valley Council. Adriana mentioned the existence of "two glass ceilings" - one that can be overcome, and one imposed by women on themselves.
Rosie Martin, speech pathologist, founder of the charity Chatter Matters and 2017 Tasmanian Australian of the Year. One sage piece of advice Rosie had when asked if she had any regrets or things she would do differently was "start earlier!" Good point...

Panel moderator Polly Venning did an awesome job of asking insightful questions that got everyone thinking. And you can't beat Home Hill for beautiful surroundings and great food and wine. Who knows, it may become a feature on the annual calendar.

The day the ice cream ran out

The first day of this year's Taste of the Huon festival dawned damp and misty. But by mid-afternoon, we were hungry and headed to Ranelagh to sample some of the tasty things on offer. Blueberry cider from Pagan Cider. A pork empanada for me and a corn bun filled with pulled pork and ranch sauce for David. Some of the 'smallest pancakes in town' a.k.a. dutch Poffertjes with icing sugar and cream. And an ice cream sandwich: two biscuits filled with salted caramel crunch ice cream. All delish. Unfortunately for the stallholders, it wasn't terribly busy, but we had a very pleasant time indeed.

Today was a completely different story. I was on volunteer duty with the Huon Valley Dog Walking Association, checking parked cars in case there were dogs left in them. Dogs are not allowed at the event, so sometimes people unaware of this bring them and then decide to leave them in the car while they pop in for a while. And just like kids, dogs left in cars when the sun comes out can die very quickly. It was sunny and hot and the crowd was huge. The sea of cars stretched off into the overflow paddocks. The queue for the ice cream stalls was long. By 2pm one ice cream maker had sold out and the others were making a killing! There was even a queue for the free sunscreen.

Wooden Boat Festival 2017

The organisers of this year's Australian Wooden Boat Festival (held every two years in Hobart) must be happy. It was absolutely packed when we visited this morning. The super-mega-enormous cruise liner in port at Hobart must have just offloaded its entire passenger load onto the docks. So. Many. People. We had a quick look at some beautiful boats, large and small, but couldn't cope with the crush and made a rapid escape. Next weekend, it's Franklin's turn, when the St. Ayles Skiff Regatta returns to the Huon. Come and join in the fun.

A long day in the sun: Cygnet Folk Festival 2017

I made very good use of my day pass to the Cygnet Folk Festival early this month. It was a scorching hot day, requiring lots of water and the odd ice cream. I started the day with a ukulele workshop with Tiffany Eckhardt - so much fun!

I caught a few numbers by the Nourish Women's Choir in St James Church then Johnny McIntyre and his band in the Scout Hall, then trekked up to the other end of town to see Bill Jackson and Pete Fidler followed by (the day's highlight for me) Jaron Freeman-Fox & The Opposite of Everything from Canada in the Willie Smiths Cider tent.

Then it was off to Loongana Park, where I sang with the Little Boat Choir of Franklin. To be honest, it wasn't our best gig. We found it hard to be heard with the mic setup and the crowd in the big park... but never mind. It was our first time at the festival and it was great fun. 

After a bite to eat, it was back up to St James College for The Lost Clog, a Lithuanian singing group which was both interesting and a hoot. On my way back to the car I stopped in at the Supper Room above the Cygnet Town Hall to see a 9pm gig by Tiffany Eckhardt and Dave Steel, and I'm so glad I did. They had terrific lineup of songs and it was a beautiful way to wrap up a day full of music and joy.

Mid-winter feasting

Work done for the week and gumboots, beanies and thick, woolly socks on, it was time to head to the Huon Valley Mid-Winter Festival at the Apple Shed in Grove.

A feast of local produce awaited. Red Brick Road scrumpy cider, a pork bun from Fat Pig Farm, a hot cider from Willie Smiths, some goat chilli with corn chips and sour cream, a Lady Hester sourdough doughnut with rhubarb and whisky jam and a McHenry sloe-gin chocolate from Cygneture... oh my god. All superb. The burning man ceremony was a hit with the crowd again, and with glowing fragments of straw streaming into the crowd I was reminded of a recent article by Sydney broadcaster James Valentine on why a festival like Dark Mofo could never happen in Sydney. Put simply, too much OH&S getting in the way of common sense and good fun. We managed to miss much of the musical entertainment this year, but we did take a walk through Woolfzinger's Cider Show Alley, where I heard a young fellow say, "Mummy, does that man have eyeliner on? Are those real eyeballs on the back of his head?"

This is one seriously well-organised event, as we've come to expect from the teams at MONA and at Willie Smiths. We've had a lot of rain and that morning nearby Huonville saw some of the worst local flooding in 20 years, but the not-quite-Glastonbury level mud was tempered with truckloads of mulch and sand. We didn't have to queue long for anything despite the big crowd, there was plenty of seating, all undercover, well-organised parking a short walk away, good-humoured staff keeping the place clean and loads of fire barrels to stand around to keep warm... just amazing. It was brilliant fun - again - we'll be back next year for sure.