Monday 3rd June
Today we were
not restricted to boat and computer.
We set off in
the morning, on the dear little ferry, Australia Fair, for a Thursday Island
adventure.
The adventure
mainly consisted of walking quite slowly up and down the very hot streets, in
search of a chandlery. (Slowly
because….it is very hot, and also because Pete’s foot is causing him lots of
pain.) We didn’t find a chandlery, but
we did find a fish wholesaler with a ute full of beautiful big painted crays.
They were
destined for mainland restaurants, not for 2XS but we did take time to admire
them. Some local lads from Horn Island
had caught them this morning, free diving.
After this we
spent a bit of time in the pearl shop, chatting to the people in there and
trying not to gasp too visibly at the prices.
THOUSANDS of dollars for a single pearl on a thin gold chain… Rusty had warned us, and had, very gently,
tried to tempt us to buy some fresh from the Escape River farm.
These were
harvested from the farm the day before, and very pretty they were. (I am very lucky; I already have pearls,
black ones, and big white freshwater ones which Pete bought for me in Vietnam.)
The pear shop
people told us how very expensive it is, on these islands. Average rent on both Horn and Thursday is
between $12000 and $16000. Gasp
again!! Do people earn enough to pay
such exorbitant amounts? Well maybe
yes…there are lots of government-generated jobs. For example, the person who has contracted
out to clean the public toilets on Thursday Island (and there are very few…)
gets $100,000 per annum…
Housing on
Thursday Island sometimes looks like this:
But very often,
to our surprise, also even more often like this:
Very expensive real estate!!
Our next stop
was the hardware store, Pete’s spiritual home.
He happily wrangled some gas fitting bits, as a safety measure if ever
we should manifest another scary leak, while I sat on a pile of lumber in the
shade and played Words With Friends on my iPhone.
And then, of
course, the nice cool Torres Strait Island Hotel, where we had a $12 meal –
mackerel and chips, all very nice thank you Pete.
We wanted to go
up to the Green Hill Fort but Pete couldn’t manage the walk on his acheyfoot so
we got into a taxi and paid a happy $7 (the cheapest thing thus far on TI) to
be taken up to look at the view, and the big guns which were installed in the
1890s to protect Australia from the fearsome Russians, should they decide to
come and invade up this particular narrow channel. The guns up close look very big and
impressive, but Pete pointed out how very hard it would be to aim and fire and
actually hit a target out there on the water…
We took photos
of the view, as you do…and there, in the far distance, nestled against Horn
Island, are some little dot-like boats, one of which is – 2XS!
The Ibis
Supermarket is directly below the Green Hill Fort, so we gently ambled down and
then did our thing in the shop, where we were very good for the local economy.
It is Mabo Day,
and a bit of a holiday. The bank, council
chambers and post office are closed but school is in, and the shops are open as
normal. We asked everyone if there was
any sort of celebration planned, and most people looked bewildered and said
that sometimes there is a bit of a march, a few speeches, some dancing. But maybe not today. My last stop before the ferry wharf was the butchers
shop, where I found a very timid and discreet poster advertising festivities
from 4-6. A very shy and gentle man putting
up lanterns in the park, his face totally spiked with shiny piercings, confirmed
that there would be a bit of a march, a
few speeches, a bit of dancing. But
4-6 was too late for us; Australia Fair was awaiting.
The other thing
we have achieved today is – we have made our own brew of insect repellent:
Equal quantities Dettol and baby oil with 1
teaspoon of teatree oil added for every 400 mil of mixture.
I bought a
squirty bottle and very happily mixed up a powerful spelling brew as soon as we
got back on board. The ghastly little flies
which have made 2XS their home aren’t paying any attention so far but we have
HIGH HOPES!!
We are hoping to leave tomorrow. Pete is studying the weather maps and forecasts and I think all will be well. We will probably stop at a few islands - Preservation Island, for one - so that we can eat our veggies before customs come and confiscate them. Then we can buy some more in Seisa - we are SO good for the economy.
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