People of Penguin celebrate 150 years of township

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Today, five hundred people waddled down Penguin's main street to celebrate 150 years of township. The crowd, adorned in penguin masks and suits, were in good spirits. The great penguin waddle was run by the Penguin 150 committee, the first event as part of their yearlong festival celebrating the charming town's milestone.

Transcript

00:00Waddling, flapping, squawking and a whole lot of laughing.

00:06This northwest Tasmanian town lives up to its name, today celebrating 150 years in true

00:11penguin style.

00:12Squawk, squawk.

00:13They're waddling.

00:14We're at the waddling age and so we're fitting quite well with the waddle.

00:20I volunteered to make the masks, originally it was only going to be 60 and then it was

00:26upped to about 150 and I ended up making 184.

00:31Settlers first arrived in 1861 but Penguin wasn't proclaimed a town until 1875.

00:37In terms of population there was still only 300 people approximately when the town was

00:43proclaimed.

00:44It's been more of an evolution than a revolution.

00:47They were drawn to this coastal haven for its abundant timber and rich farmland.

00:51Nowadays it's become a tourist destination, famous for its bins, bollards and looming

00:56giant penguin.

00:57It's a small community of roughly 3,500 people but it has a big heart and these locals really

01:03embrace their identity.

01:05If only the people that named the town of Penguin understood that in the future and

01:09in 150 years time the people of this town and the people that live in the surrounding

01:13areas would come to actually represent the penguin.

01:17I think that's the most exciting thing, looking around and seeing all the people that have

01:20come today in their penguin outfits.

01:21I think people aren't afraid to be a little bit silly and get out there and enjoy themselves

01:25and that's what it's really about, just enjoying yourself in the moment and having such a good

01:29day.

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