I sent the Premier a personal photo and waited for a reply

September 22, 2021 â€" 5.32am

I sent a complete stranger an intimate photo of my hopes and desires last week. I knew I was exposing my vulnerabilities but there you go. Sometimes you have to take your chances. Now I am going to share my story with the world.

I confess I sent the Premier of Tasmania Peter Gutwein an uninvited photo. It was of a big, red boat, one of the Spirits of Tasmania. Last week one of the fleet was parked at Garden Island in rehab (the less technical name for dry dock). You know it’s a party boat, right? You get on at Port Melbourne, you knock back a few glasses of wine and the next thing you know, you’re in Devonport.

The Spirit of Tasmania berthed in Sydney is torture to those wanting to know when they can travel to the island state.

The parking of the ferry, in full view of Sydneysiders, was tantamount to torture.

It was clearly there to tease, to remind us of nights on the water with the moon rising, the early arrivals in Devonport queuing to manoeuvre out of the hull, the sheer glory of visiting Table Cape amid pardalotes and pademelons (I know nothing about either birds or wallabies, but they are both Tasmanian, so I’m going to assume they were the wildlife I saw on that magic day in December 2017). Just me, my spouse, a lighthouse in the early light and animals all around.

Tasmania is beloved as a holiday destination, but the question is this: when will we know if we can go? How long before there are guidelines on who can visit? Why won’t Peter answer my messages? I’ve even resorted to calling his work wife repeatedly. Should I send her my double-vax certificate? I know she showed everyone in the office my private photos, so I no longer care what else she shares.

Holiday hope is dead in Australia. Now, say the experts, people are organising their holidays at the last minute. Where once we booked months in advance, now we are settling for snatching a break between lockdowns. But the last-minute thing, that’s just not possible with Tasmania, particularly if you want to go to sleep in Port Melbourne and wake up on the other side of the strait. I check my emails. Still no message from the Premier. I recognise I’m using my privilege as a journalist, but I’m doing this as a public service on behalf of all Australians. At least it’s not a blind trust.

Tourism researcher at the University of South Australia Freya Higgins-Desbiolles says the glory days of cheap, easy travel for Australians are gone.

“If you wanted to go to Bali, you had a choice of flights and everything was laid out for you.

“We are entering a whole new era where everything we took for granted â€" about ease, about the right to travel and the economics of it, will go out the window. Everything we took for granted will be harder.”

Harder? In that brief moment of glorious hope between Barbecue Guy and Limo Driver, I ducked over to Western Australia to the Kimberley. I’d planned to do it earlier and COVID cancelled on me. But this was my time. The spontaneity of it cost me an arm, leg and wallet, but I didn’t care. When I got home, I decided to book Tasmania in the hope my luck would last. Bruny was all but gone and my love boat only had two single-bed cabins left for my preferred booking night, but I locked them in. All booked up and nowhere to go. Still no response from my main holiday man, so I started calling anyone who could gauge the Premier’s mood.

Even Tourism Tasmania’s CEO John Fitzgerald is keeping things close to his chest. He says accommodation forward bookings show travellers are already planning their summer holidays in Tasmania. Yes, yes, I know. Then he says: “This is a strong sign of confidence in Tasmania, our businesses and the tourism industry which look forward to welcoming interstate visitors in coming months in line with public health advice.”

What public health advice? Which months? I promise to get tested before boarding, after arrival and in one of the galleries at MONA. It could probably pass for an artwork.

In my email, I asked the Premier how Sydneysiders should prepare themselves to deal with the heartbreak of cancelling the only cheerful thought in their minds, breakfast at Jackman & McRoss. No answer. I knew I should have asked about Black Cow instead. The Premier is a Lonnie man.

Can I bear to think of another January passing where I won’t get run over by rampant echidnas at Mount Field? Or prove to myself that I can get past Marion’s Lookout without raging vertigo?

Still no answer in my inbox. I thought State Daddy Mark McGowan had no interest in whining east coasters but Peter Gutwein is even harder. Will we be forced to holiday at home? Again. No reply.

Finally, there’s a ping. It’s a reminder from one of those annoying booking sites that I have to pay the rest of the deposit. Making that payment will be a triumph of hope over experience.

POSTSCRIPT: I spent a week trying to get an answer from the Tasmanian Premier. Finally, an answer! Here is his response in full. I knew most of what he’d say but three sentences from the end, there’s a magic number. I think he’s saying Tasmania will be open not long after December 1 when he expects 90 per cent of his state to be vaccinated. If you know and love Tasmanians, assist the national holiday plan by taking them to get jabbed. See you at the Marrawah pub on New Year’s Eve.

From the Premier: Tasmania’s tourism industry is world-class and one of the pillars of our economy, and there is no doubt that tourists from across Australia are attracted to the stunning experiences and locations we have on offer.

While we would normally always welcome travellers to our shores, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the game, and we make no apologies for our strong border restrictions that have been successful in keeping our community safe.

However, with our vaccination program continuing to proceed well, we are looking ahead and preparing to live with COVID in a careful and responsible way, informed by Public Health advice.

We’ll be aiming to get 80 per cent fully vaccinated by Melbourne Cup Day on November 2, and 90 per cent by the first day of summer on December 1. This is where I want our state to be so that we can confidently open up for Christmas and summer.

Currently, we have border restrictions in place with NSW and Victoria and with Victoria and NSW releasing their reopening plans, we will consider these and provide further detail on Tasmania’s plan in coming weeks.

This will be based on public health advice, and we look forward to welcoming travellers from NSW and the rest of the country to enjoy our unique Tassie experiences and lifestyle once it is safe to do.

Jenna Price is a visiting fellow at the Australian National University.

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Jenna Price is a visiting fellow at the Australian National University and a regular columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter, Facebook or email.

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