Australia June 2013 - Visiting Squid: Part 7 (and The End)

Saturday 29 June

Up early as usual, then hung around drinking tea until Woolworths was open at 8 to buy supplies for the weekend, and more urgently, bacon for breakfast. After that we had a fry-up and Squid started slowly getting geared up for appearing at the Derby Races in her official Boab Queen entrant capacity. Pete made some burgers and, after a short food-free interval, we had burgers for lunch. 

Just as Squid was fully dressed and made-up, with fascinator and sash at the ready, she received a text: "Races Cancelled"! 

The Boab Queen entrant

Pete with the Queen

Boab Queen entrants, so looking 
forward to making their speeches
We decided decided to check this out: by going to the racecourse. And indeed the races had been cancelled - due to the overnight rain making the going too soft. However, the associated activities namely drinking and 'two-up' were 'brought forward' and so still went ahead.

The Boab entrants were still due to make speeches, but no-one seemed to know when. When, suddenly,  they were asked to give speeches, no-one was really listening, as the drinking had started in earnest. But Squid did us proud with her brief peroration!
It was also supposed to be Mad Hatters day, but due to the fact that the original date had been cancelled, and that many of those who had decided to dress up had not heard that the whole event had been brought forward due to the lack of races, there were few mad hats around. The women had made the best efforts, the winner having a very large and realistic boab tree on her head. Wino, a long term Derby harriet, came second with the mad hatters tea party on her head. Almost any child with a hat got a prize....

The two-up ring

Then the 'two-up started. There was a ring set out, no minors allowed near it. The 'tosser' holds a little piece of wood holding two coins, whilst the crowd made individual bets with another person as to whether it will be two heads or two tails. The tail better holds both stakes, say the two $10 notes whilst the tosser tosses the coins into the air. If it is two of a kind the winner takes both notes. If it is heads and tails then the coins are tossed again.  very simple, but it is banned in most Australian states except on Anzac Day, and here in the Kimberley only at the races. It went on for hours!

After three and a half hours of steady talking, and drinking, I was sufficiently tired and bored to go home, leaving Squid and Pete still standing up. About 6pm I got a call from them to collect them and drive them to the Spinny (the Spinifex Hotel) to eat. It was full to bursting and exceedingly loud. As the restaurant was fully booked Squid and I slipped across the road for a kebab, Pete just stayed at the bar. As I couldn't face yet more standing and drinking I headed back home for a long dose of watching Wimbledon.

   Sunday June 30

Striding out on the drier bits of the marsh...
There seemed to be no rush in the household to get up, especially as Squid had a hangover. So no action before midday! We then, quietly, went to the Windmill Cafe for lunch and, feeling we needed some gentle exercise, drove to the dinner tree (so-called as it was where the cowboys stopped for lunch en-route with their cattle from Myall's Bore - aka the longest trough in the world - and the jetty for shipping the beasts out) for a short walk on the marshes.
We walked along the sandy tracks on the edge of the marsh, and back on the gooey, clingy mud. there was so much sky as the tide was out, and the 'beach' looked endless. However there was a depressing amount of cans/bottles/broken glass/wrecked cars strewn all around the low vegetation on the marsh edge.

We headed back about 3 to begin slow preparations for the Sunday roast beef and Yorkshire puddings dinner with Dags and Kerry and their two children. A delicious and genial dinner, topped off with rhubarb and orange crumble.

..and the wetter bits of the marsh

Monday July 1 

Perth at sunset
Pete left at 4am to drive back to Broome - so I didn't get up to see him off! My flight out to Perth had been re-scheduled to 10.40, so plenty of time for relaxed breakfast, re-packing and long farewell to lovely Squid. We had had such fun, and I had begun to feel (sort of) at home in Derby - I loved the sense of community amongst the people I had met at the various curious events that take place there.

Once we took off I had good aerial views of Willare and my remote camping spots as we flew down to Broome - we had to stop there to refuel as Derby's tanker had broken down. With no cloud at all I had fantastic views over the coastal sandy beaches and low red cliffs, and then later the inland wilderness with parallel dunes and then rocky terrain with artistically twisted stream patterns looking like trees in winter.

I landed at Perth through smoke from some localised fires, left my suitcase at the airport, and took the bus to the centre. I walked around the centre before fighting my way through roadworks to reach the riverside, just as the sun was going down. In the gathering gloom I headed again through Kings Park to Nev and Trish's house. Here at last I met Squid's friend Felicity, just back from working for MSF in Sudan, as well as her two brothers Tim and John. What a joy to join in to a lovely family meal for my last evening in Oz.

Tuesday July 2

The house gradually emptied as they headed off for work. I left last at 9am with Felicity, who was off to register at the nursing agency, as she needed to earn some money after her stint with MSF. I walked back to the city centre via a different route through Kings Park, dodging the joggers, and enjoying the otherwise peaceful woodland. It only remained to have a coffee and take a taxi, and I was on my way back to the UK.

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