Tuesday turned out to be very wet, although we did manage to see most of the Port Arthur historical site before it began to rain.
The main area of Port Arthur is pretty much as I remember but there’s an excellent new visitors centre and a greater number of older buildings including the asylum and the separate prison are now open and provide good historical displays.
As you check in at the visitors centre you are given a card which represents a prisoner. You can then find out about hls crime and punishment. Mine was transported for seven years for stealing a handkerchief but because he was old, he worked on light duties rather than being assigned to work such as breaking rocks or in the sawmills.
It began to rain just as we finished the harbor cruise and the rain set in for the rest of the day. We spent the afternoon driving to some of the outlying historical sites including the coal mines, Eaglehawk Neck, Tesselated Pavement and Remarkable Cave.
We finished the day with a very nice meal (still raining) at the restaurant at the visitors centre.
