This is an excerpt from my creative writing portfolio Coloring Necastle. The premise behind my piece is that an instance at Newcastle reminds me of an adventure I've had studying abroad in Australia. Through the primary colors of green, red and blue, I aim to give Newcastle a little more color. Enjoy.
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I catch a whiff of something familiar in the damp Newcastle air. The smell becomes more prominent as I continue in the direction of my exam room. The rich, earthy aroma of wood burning permeates the air. A small bonfire becomes visible as I turn the corner by the Aboriginal Learning building. Tendrils of smoke float toward me, beckoning me. I pause a moment and breathe in. The natural scent fills my lungs.
The evening sky opened up in front of me as my eyes adjusted from the harsh lighting of the bus. My night vision filtered in the stunning celestial display; the one perk of sleeping outside. For that night, I was roughing it more than this city girl had ever imagined. Setting up camp in the bush land of the Northern Territory with only the fire light to guide my way was a little more “Outback” than I was going for.
The tour group quickly unloaded the firewood we had collected from the side of the road. Within a few minutes, our Wonder Woman of a guide had a roaring blaze going and began to make preparations for dinner. The delicious meal of chili con carne and roasted vegetables was made over the ambers of our fire pit. I could barely see my plate and instead blindly shoveled the food into my mouth. The little sandwich I’d eaten for lunch seemed a distant memory.
After the rumblings of my stomach had been calmed, the next obstacle of the night appeared. I’d never gone camping without a tent so the concept of sleeping in a swag was foreign to me. What I thought was supposed to be an individual-sized rustic shelter ended up being just a canvas “body bag” with a thin mattress for comfort and a head flap for protection. I was in the backwoods; there are wild animals out here. I didn’t feel too safe. Not to mention there were mice huddling on the outskirts of our camp, waiting to investigate these intruders.
I layered on all the clothes I had packed and snuggled into my sleeping bag. Gazing upward, I located the Southern Cross constellation nestled next to the streak of stars that formed the Milky Way. What a sight! I took a deep breath of the cool air. A strong bonfire scent penetrated my nostrils, and I was asleep within moments.
At one point in the night, I jolted awake, wide-eyed with terror. I told myself it was nothing, but my body was on high alert. I knew I hadn’t dreamt the small tug at the top of my head flap, a slight scurry near my left ear. I was petrified to roll over because I feared that I would come face-to-face with a mouse. I normally wouldn’t be afraid of little field mice but tonight was different. I was on their level; I was invading their home territory. My senses still prickled; I couldn’t sleep. Instead I attempted to think of something else, willing my mind back to the events of earlier that day and not of the impending attack of more mice.
It had been a long day of moving from one spot to another. The bus had picked me up at the ungodly hour of 6 a.m. I had hoped that I could catch some shut eye before the first hike but I knew that was futile. (I have very strict conditions in which I can go to sleep: it must be completely dark and completely quiet.)
So instead the early morning hours were spent staring out the window, watching the same salt bush pass me by every other kilometer as if the landscape was on one continuous loop. I switched my focus to my left and immediately envied my new travel partner’s bobbing head. I looked back at the road and waited to spot the annoying Outback shrub.
The hike through King’s Canyon was breathtaking. I had stood as close to the edge as I dared, just making out the little car park where I had begun my adventure two hours earlier. The red of the rocks was a sharp contrast to the blue sky above. A surprising dose of green was present as well in the form of a desert oasis termed the Garden of Eden. It was there, leaning against the trunk of a large tree, that I symbolically ate an apple. Although I wasn’t suddenly struck naked, I couldn’t help but wish that a past lover (the Adam to my Eve) could have experienced this trip with me. Looking up, I didn’t expect for that same cloudless covering to transform into the night time display that would catch my breath.
The sound of scampering feet had hushed but sleep still evaded me.
I smirk at how cranky I can get with little sleep. I wonder if the cramming for the three exams I have today will render the same attitude. I glance at my watch and continue walking to class only to be engulfed in another kind of smoke. The girl in front of me is anxiously smoking a cigarette as she shuffles down the sidewalk. I grudgingly fall in to step behind her until there is a break in the oncoming pedestrian traffic.
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Cheers for now,
Kim
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