Spirit of Tasmania

I'm writing this on the ferry from Melbourne to Devonport, Tasmania. The ship is called Spirit of Tasmania 1. It is the only ferry operating on this line. At Port Melbourne, it took more than one demanding hour in stop-and-go before I got on the ship. But finally we took off, and are now crossing the 300 km Bass Strait to the island. It takes about 10 hours, the sky is cloudy and the sea is as calm as a mirror. This is the daytime ferry, which is cheaper as I don't need a cabin.

There is not much to do on the ship. Mainly snoozing and reading. I'm reading a book I found at an Op-shop (Second-Hand-Laden) a few days ago, titled Discovering Tasmania - The Treasure Island. Tasmania, due to its remoteness (Abgelegenheit), is very different from the rest of Australia. It has flora and fauna not found anywhere else in the world, such as the Tasmanian Devil or the Tasmanian Tiger -- both carnivorous marsupials (fleischfressende Beuteltiere). Page 7 of my book shows an old black-and-white photo of a man presenting a Tasmanian Tiger on his knees -- shot dead. There is no color photograph of this animal because all were killed by Homo Europeaensis. The last one died in a zoo in the 1930s.

The same page also shows a Tasmanian Native - a handsome man with long hair, a spear in his hand, wearing fur and necklaces. The Tasmanian aborigines (arrival 50.000 years ago) were genetically and culturally different from the mainland aborigines (who came later, 40.000 years ago). The picture is a colourized drawing. The native population is estimated to have been around 7.000 people when the Europeans invaded the island. It only took the invadors a few decades to extinct the entire native race.

This island is one of the most beautiful places on earth, the book says. It is cooler than mainland Australia, but Hobart has more sunny days than any other Australian state capital, and summer temperatures range from 14°C to 30°C. The climate is mediterranean and milder than most of Europe. The island is mountainous, good for skiing in winter, and has everything a nature lover can wish for: from highland lakes to fast-flowing streams, waterfalls, huge untouched forests, and sun-drenched beaches. And what did the British invadors make of this paradise, which they originally called Van Diemen's Land until they renamed it Tasmania in 1830? A penal colony (Strafkolonie) -- one of the most brutal and inhumane places on earth.

With all that in mind, I am a little afraid of the "spirit" of Tasmania. And on this ship, I promised myself that if I come across a memorial for the genocided aborigines, or the Tasmanian Tiger, I will lay down flowers and bend my knees in a gesture of sympathy, shame and sorrow. I have to do that for myself. How else could I enjoy the beauty of the island?

And I wonder how on earth it is that civilisation and barbarism go so much hand in hand.