The drive was a two day haul. Staying the first night in a small town, Nick and I discussed the possibility of going to see Thor: The God of Thunder as we ate dinner. Nick asked at the front desk of the hotel if there was a cinema around. As there was, a small group gathered and ran across town to make the last showing of the evening. It was one of those movie going experiences for the memory book. We all pumped ourselves up, shouting "THOR: THE GOD OF THUNDER!!!" frequently. We went in expecting a fun, popcorn flick and it provided just that. It was glorious. Chris Hemsworth = new man-crush.
Anywho, the next day, we finished the trek to the Trillby Sheep Station, out back o'Bourke. The massive, silent place was incredible. Due to large amounts of rainfall recently, the vegetation had actually accumulated quite a bit. The place was far greener than I had expected. Meandering into the bush a bit, Toby, Nick, and I found ourselves suddenly isolated from all of the man-made world. We discovered a goat carcass across a tree limb--it appeared to have landed in the tree after flooding. Continuing to wander, we came across several kangaroo. Seeing these incredible animals in the wild was fascinating. They moved with such speed and grace. Beautiful creatures.
We sat on a broken tree, watching and listening to the world.
Each night, the group gathered around a campfire. One night, we all shared personal stories about our lives. Stories about what makes us us. One night, we played a huge game of Truth or Dare--highlights: Aaron danced around making chicken sounds in his underwear; Liisa kissed Kimberly once on each cheek and spoke to her in Spanish, which I immediately followed by taking off my shirt, picking Liisa up, and "serenading" her. The game was hilarious at times, if a bit awkward. But it was enjoyable for the most part.
We slept outside during the trip. The stars in the Outback are incredible. We could see the Milky Way vividly. I took a couple of star shots. I hope they come out. I took a lot of pictures in the Outback. I'm probably more excited about them than any other pictures thus far on this trip.
Ian, our bus driver, was extremely at home out there. He built the fire each night, and he taught us many things. "If you get bit by a snake," he told us, "the key is to crouch on the ground, put your head between your knees and keep bending forward until you can kiss your ass goodbye!" One day, he drove us around the paddocks of the sheep station. He took an old bus off the road in the Outback. And he knew where he was the entire time. We saw gray sands. We saw red sands. We sat in the middle of nowhere in silence, spreading out around red dunes writing letters to ourselves. We entered an old run down property. We saw so much that I will never be able to explain it all. It was incredible.
And throughout the course of the journey, our group grew closer. In the Outback, the cliques broke down. Barriers disappeared. We became a community, even if it was just for a brief time. The Outback was a place unlike any other I have ever been before. It was a magical place. A beautiful place. And I'm never going to be able to explain how incredible the journey out there was accurately, so I'm going to quit trying.
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