Travelog: Neighborhood Landmarks

Hello everyone and welcome back to Tiro Finale for what is a rather eccentric entry into the Travelog. How often would you find yourself living close to both a tank and a historical sail ship? Short of living near a military museum or base, such a statement would be almost unheard of. Nevertheless, that is exactly what I found just lying around my neighborhood which was something I certainly had to check out.

More specifically, the tank was an out of service Leopard AS 1 Main Battle Tank while, the ship is a full-scale replica as we would see in a bit. Throughout my travels, I have had the opportunity to see several tanks but, never this close or even one this (relatively) modern. The first thing that really stood out to me when looking at the Leopard was its size, or lack thereof to be honest. I was certainly expecting something larger and bulkier but, the Leopard strikes a surprisingly sleek silhouette. It looked wide enough to accommodate being driven on roads too.

The fact the Leopard is still an active service duty tank in many countries just adds to the further intrigue of this display. Upon closer inspection, it is clearly an exhibit as it sits on a carefully laid block of concrete. But for those just driving past for the first time, I have no doubt the Leopard would certainly raise a few eye brows and questions.

The Leopard was donated by the army and set in place as both a landmark and tourist destination of sorts. While the latter half of its intentions may not have truly worked out, it is no doubt a pretty epic landmark to have.

Part of me wonders how functional this Leopard is but, I have a fair suspicion that only the outer shell is intact with much of the rest of the insides either gutted or out of commission. Perhaps the engine may have still worked when it was first put in place but, that too could have seized up over years of non-maintenance or if measures are put into place to disable it from functioning.

Not too far from the Leopard tank, just across the street in fact, is the HMS Lady Nelson, a historical ship that served many exploration missions in the early 1800s. Officially designated as an Armed Survey Vessel, this is just one of the many storied vessels employed by the British Government during its colonial era. 

While it may look small, this ship is actually a full sized replica of the original vessel which unfortunately met with an untimely doom together with the rest of its crew. The full sized replica was commissioned back in 1986 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the proclamation South Australia as a colony. 

Located right next to the visitor's center, there is also a plaque which details briefly the history of the Lady Nelson. The reason the Lady Nelson replica looks to be in such good shape, is because it was recently restored in 2011 when there was significant damage found in the original wooden body. This has since been replaced with fiberglass and steel.

While it may look sea worthy, this replica is very much destined for the land. However, there is a functional replica that is located in Tasmania!

A historical vessel and a modern day battle tank, I doubt any of my future places of accommodation would be able to best that duo as a neighborhood landmark anytime soon. Which leads to me to wonder, just what sort of wonders will I explore next? Stay tuned to Tiro Finale for all of our Travelog updates. Until the next time, thank you so much for reading and have yourself a wonderful day ahead!