One of the reasons for a stopover in Hobart - apart from seeing the sights - was to catch up with an old school friend whom I have not seen since the day we left school in December 1967! She went to Canberra to Uni while I stayed in Sydney and our paths never crossed again.

But as luck would have it, another schoolfriend had Jo McGlynn's details and I emailed her a while ago to see about getting together after all this time. Finally a few days ago I had given her the exact dates we would be in Hobart hoping that they would be fine for her.

She emailed back that there was a party on the Friday night at friends and a dinner out on Saturday with more friends and we would be very welcome to join everyone.

I think I would have passed Jo in the street without recognising her - her long auburn hair is now short and white but she is still slim and with the same reticent character I remember from school. But I could still see her from schooldays in her expression and way of talking!

Dinner at friends' house around the corner was a welcome for some Italian visitors and a lively affair. Thank you Paul and Katrina for having two complete strangers to your home. We had a lovely night. Next night it was Katrina's birthday and so with some other friends we met at a restaurant at North Hobart for a great meal and more terrific conversation. Again thanks to Paul and Katrina and Julia, Ann and Dagmar for including us.

In two days and nights Jo and I filled each other in with our lives for the last 47 years, looking at old photos and remembering school and schoolfriends. Thank you Jo for your hospitality - I'm so glad to see you again after all this time.

So Hobart this time was a social whirl! But we fitted in a trip to the celebrated Salamanca markets on the Hobart waterfront. A nice way to fill in a day with lots of individual - and high quality for the most part - craft vendors as well as some excellent food produce.