Wow! I'm Australian and I didn't know a lot of this stuff! Thank you to you all.

And McGrath: We hve t'spk like ths so as not t'frightn off th'kngaroos (tmd crtures).

Folks may be interested in a tragic update to the Van Diemen's story. Port Arthur is now a museum prison that attracts lots of tourists (you can take ghost tours at night etc). In 1986 a disturbed man went on a killing rampage there and shot about a dozen tourists, rangers and canteen staff. In Australia, Port Arthur is now known as the site of the most horrific and tragic massacre.

--Callie