In the morning I wanted to pick up some more
garbage at this place because the comments on WikiCamps said it was pretty
littered, but when I went out to get more wood for the fire, I saw just how bad
it was and knew that I couldn’t do enough and I felt discouraged.
Because it had been so cold, we were slow to
start, but Jojje was cranky. He was a
little rude to Marco, who had a habit of being the last person ready to
go. As it turned out, he was cranky
because he and Gwen were going climbing that morning and they physiologically
NEEDED TO TOUCH ROCK, OMG. We were not
invited, but instead were dropped at the center of town.
The irritation lingers, even though the PMS came
and went, because in that moment I experienced it with those accompanying
emotions. All I can do is apologize for
sounding so negative and cynical. I can
be a bitch.
So Marco, Joe and I sat on a bench near the
community center, watching a small crowd of Aboriginals sit in the lawn near
the grey and pink cockatoos, who were grazing peacefully. Isn’t that funny that birds graze like cows?
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| Cockatoos, grazing peacefully |
We found the library, where we got charged up and
used the internet. Part way through our
time at the library, I suddenly could smell us all. It had been a while since we had showered and
between squatting to pee and sleeping, eating, and playing in the same clothes,
we all smelled a bit ripe! We were
looking forward to a night in a hostel that night.
Joe did some research on Alice Springs, which he
found out was the city in Australia with the highest crime rate, most of which
was attributed to Aboriginals, and a big portion of it was linked with alcohol. I remember back in the USA when Breena came
home from Australia and she made a comment about how the Aboriginals were
hugely alcoholic and thinking, wow, she has turned into a racist. Sadly now that I have seen it myself, I see
where the statistics come from.
Australia is weird for this. On one hand, the white people seem to have a
rather racist outlook and still use language like “blackfella.” On the other hand, there really does seem to
be a major problem running rampant. You
take a race that is one of the oldest in the world, you rip them out of their
cultural context and throw them into a “white man’s world” that is entirely
different from their way of life for thousands of years, and the white man
somehow still expects them to behave in a way that the white man behaves—valuing
money, consumables, and status over community, stories, and connection to the
earth. Even I have a hard time
understanding it sometimes.
I honestly don’t even know how to express my
regret for being part of the race (or at least the Western world) that expected
sudden assimilation to something so entirely different. And I don’t know how to express or prove or
in any way stand behind the theory that Aboriginals are more vulnerable to the
negative outcomes of alcohol. Walking
around the streets of Alice Springs I would see old Aboriginal men walking
around barefoot yelling obscenities at no one and think to myself that in my
culture, a good way for someone to climb out of the pit of mental illness is to
go to a counselor, get some therapy, and start afresh. Sadly this treatment makes no sense in the
context of Aboriginal society because mental illness makes little to no sense.
Bah. I
don’t think I can say anything more because I can’t find a solution myself or
even a right way to express it. I think
I will just leave it and remain sad for what has been done to a culture, a
people, and a way of life.
Anyway, those are just some thoughts for you on
the subject. :)
Eventually the two came back for us (though I
would not have minded some more time to zone out in the library without
them). We found our hostel, got checked
in, and started the showering process, one-by-one. As soon as Jojje showered, he mumbled something
about needing to get some errands done and took off. Joe sat out on the porch and listened to some
music. Marco was taking a nap and Gwen a
shower.
I don’t remember why I broke down, but I
did. I remember feeling itty-bitty about
something, as if I were the smallest person in the whole world. Joe comforted me and we gathered up wallets
and purses and went out for a walk, hoping it would end in a place to eat. I felt a bit better. It was nice to feel connected to Joe
again. Dinner was surprisingly
expensive.
We bought some wine on the way back and found
everybody back in the dorm we were sharing with a couple of other dudes and we
all had drinks together. Joe and I were
tipsy, but I think Jojje was modestly drunk, since he got really into this
dancing game Joe made up. He was
rhythmically stepping on the places where the tiles meet and Jojje was dancing
along wishing he knew the rules to this dancing game. It was pretty funny.
We eyed this British boy who was in the top bunk
above Gwen. He was very obviously into
her and they murmured well into the night and she was softly giggling and
turning on the feminine charm. I think
had she been in a room that was NOT filled with the four mates she was
traveling with, there would have been something going on.
We were all glad to be sleeping inside for the
night, especially since the night before was so cold. Marco especially had been too cold to sleep
for a decent amount of time every night.
He was looking forward to sleeping with the heater running all night.
Unfortunately, Joe had the top bunk in the corner
by the heater and didn’t really think about the fact that Marco was so
desperate for a warm night, so part way through the night, he turned the heater
off. Poor Marco woke up cold. Joe felt so guilty.
In the morning we ran some errands: grocery
shopping, post cards, lunch, and a memory card for Marco (that we spent a lot
of time chasing down). We got out of
town by early afternoon, and after getting lost a couple of times, we found the
alley road down behind the sign that said “Welcome to Alice Springs” and parked
at the end of it, right next to the dry river.
I think the rivers in the center of Australia ONLY run during
particularly intense times of the wet season.
We got out of the car and started to hike towards
the place where we would be rock-climbing (yes, they decided we were allowed to
join them this time, so very gracious).
The flies were terrible. Have I
told you about the flies in the Red Center?
It’s not that there are tons of them.
Compared to summer in Idaho or something, the quantity is about the same. It’s just that in the Red Center, they go
right for your eyes. They’re sticky,
meaning that unlike normal flies that will be scared off by a wave of the hand
before beginning the attack again, the ones in the middle of Australia land on
your lips and nose and eyelids and just crawl around and stay there. They don’t really shoe away. It is surprisingly disturbing.
So the flies were unpleasant as we walked. Gwen had bought this rosemary stuff because
when everyone warned us about the flies in the Center, they told us to use this
rosemary cream stuff. It seemed to help,
but for only ten or twenty minutes. Even
waving branches and grass constantly around your body was not fully
effective. As a neurotic human being,
there were times where I had to bury my head in my arms, breathe deep, and calm
down. I’m totally normal.
The climbing was pretty good. Marco went first of the three of us
“non-climbers” (because apparently you have to breathe climbing in order to be
part of the elite club) and actually did really well. He didn’t have great technique, but he made
it up the rock anyway by just powering through it. He is built well.
Joe and I sadly did not make it up the rock. It was a little disappointing, especially
since Marco had made it up just fine. I
may have gotten smug when Jojje seemed surprised that I had good technique for
a “non-climber.”
 |
| Reeeeeeeach |
We packed it up after not too long, out of
over-heating and distress by flies. We
packed up and got on the road.
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