The Road Trip Part 2
On, on to Carnarvon Gorge
My uncle was the first to wake up in the morning. He decided to take a walk and see the sights of Roma as well as the sunrise. He is a farmer from Zimbabwe so I think he still operates on farmer time so this seems like a normal thing to do. The rest of us woke up and made teas and coffees to keep ourselves warm as it was a crisp wintery morning.
Breakfast was whatever we wanted to throw together and then we started packing all the supplies back into the car. We then drove around Roma taking in the sights and since we had seen the biggest bottle tree the day before we admired the architecture. Queenslander houses have such captivating designs that you can’t help but like them. We also had to stop at a shop to pick up some “undies” for my uncle as he had forgotten to pack some. The guy is truly the buddha of the family. Then it was on to another shop for more stuff and more supplies. I just kept quiet through all this. Who would have thought the advice from the great stoics would come in handy for this? Admittedly we had a short drive today so we could hang around Roma for a while but when we finally got on the road it was nearly lunch time so we would have to break out the snacks soon.
The drive was uneventful and only broken up by distant sightings of kangaroos until my aunt decided to put some music on and went for Robbie Williams Live at Knebworth. I listen to heavy metal these days but Robbie was what I had listened to as a youngster because that’s what my mom liked so this was exciting. I was eager to hear some great pop bangers as he is a brilliant performer and would bring some energy to the car.
Well, that didn’t last long as my uncle decided to turn up the volume. My aunt then started complaining that it was too loud for my gran who is hard of hearing — so there’s not much too loud for her. My personal opinion was to turn that up to 11 (this is a reference to the film Spinal Tap by the way, not the actual volume) but again I just kept quiet. After 5 minutes of arguing my mom was the voice of reason and we were plunged into silence again but fortunately we were not far from our destination — Takarakka holiday resort at Carnarvon Gorge.
My aunt had planned this trip but as we all know sometimes travel isn’t comfy so the only accommodation she could get was a sort of semi-permanent tent. A structure with canvas walls that had 5 beds and a fridge. Not much space for all the supplies we had brought but it would do. It seemed our accommodation was getting smaller and smaller as the journey went on. The pressure would be building in this space for sure, but fortunately or unfortunately, if you wanted the explosion, nature was here to ease the pressure. Kind of. If you haven’t been to Carnarvon Gorge, I highly recommend you go. It’s nature at its finest.
Also, I saw kangaroos up close! Let me remind you that this might be a weird family experience but we also came here to see the great Australian wildlife and the Gorge provided that in spades. Ok, before I get carried away we did ask for a bigger…um… tent but unfortunately, they couldn’t give us one due to the bat problem they had at the back of the site. Bat problem was an understatement because at around 6 p.m. roughly 10,000 flying foxes appeared overhead! Yeah, a bat problem indeed. Although the nightly bat swarm was probably the best show we could have asked for.
That first night my uncle set my aunt off as he decided to clear some space at a tree stump so he could cook unobstructed. He set about cutting away some small branches. Twigs would be a more accurate description now that I think of it, which my aunt did not like. I thought this might be the thing to set off the explosion but as I said before, nature was there to keep things cool. You can’t get upset when you can take a walk around the campsite and just chill.
We spent the weekend doing the walks in and around the Gorge. My gran being 84 couldn’t do the longer walks even though she tries to still get out there. It is hard seeing that as she seems so ready and capable. I believe this is something the other members of the family especially my Mom and Aunt are grappling with. She represents our mortality and the fact that we can’t control everything. They don’t realise it and to quote the ancient Cambodian proverb they are “same, same but different”.
On our last day there, my aunt, uncle and I did a longer walk into the Gorge, which was a life-changing experience. There seem to be a lot of these happening these days but my uncle and I found ourselves walking back together without my aunt which provided us time to get down to some serious philosophizing. Discussing life, the universe, and everything against the backdrop of the Gorge was a fun way to while away the late morning. He is the most level-headed person in the family. I enjoyed the time I spent with him and we shared something simple but important. Level-headed discourse and the tranquillity of nature.
This road trip wasn’t easy and it did expose some aspects of my family that I don’t fully comprehend but at the end of the day, we are all approaching life from different angles. They aren’t perfect but nobody is and I think had we gone somewhere else things may have come to a head but the peace of nature eased the tensions and we got through it.
I wasn’t expecting to do a second part of this story but 1 or 2 people seemed like they wanted a conclusion so how could I let these kind internet strangers down? I’m still new to this writing thing and hope that this reads well…is that even a thing? Anyhoo if you have made it this far thank you for reading. Any constructive criticism is welcome.
