Sunshine State & North Stradbroke Island

Life is finally as it should be. Yesterday a new Aussie friend of mine let me
borrow a skateboard and an acoustic guitar. I'm the happiest kiddo alive.

Everything’s okay now. It’s all really challenging you know, traveling around and living together with people with extremely diverse interests and needs. I’m like used to live pretty much on my own, have my own bathroom in my own flat etc. And why is normal hygiene always a big issue among flatmates? Fuck, pardon my language. I seem to have grown into a nagging old freak or something. Probably not that bad, but I can’t wait to be the queen of my own castle again. Won’t be that long though. Just ordered flight tickets to Perth, where I’m going alone to visit some family for about ten days. November 6th – 17th. Lovely! Can’t wait. Even though they got sharks, the surf in Perth is said to be awesome. I’ll go there four days after I come back from our two week trip to Vietnam where we travel as a group. I also ordered tickets to the Harvest Festival in Brisbane – November 18th. Santigold, Dark Dark Dark, The War On Drugs, Fuck Buttons, Dark Horses, Grizzly Bear, The Dandy Warhols, and Sigur Rós are some of the headliners. !!! Anyway. Saw some autumn pictures from Norway earlier today, and I noticed that the only thing I miss except my folks are the colours. Explored more of West End of Brisbane together with my new friend James yesterday, and found a music pub which serves nachos and live music. For my major assignment I have decided to explore how up-and-coming bands in the Queensland area can afford to keep on traveling around playing gigs, record and make music. My main focus will be how new bands work their way up from nothing to become recognised bands that actually get paid and gain profit from their concerts.

Most common, just like for us back in Norway, independent and unsigned bands play gigs for free just to get recognised by the audience. There’s a long way to go – to get acknowledged by the bigger crowds. I’ve been to a couple of band-stand nights already, but I guess there will be more research and digging into the musical environments here in Brisbane the upcoming weeks. Think I’ll place a holdon the AC/DC bibliography at the library. Gotta start somewhere. Now I have to focus on environmental issues faced in Norway and Australia. Minor assignment. Yay. Outside the sun is shining and the city streets are overflowing with kids and families back home on holiday. Tomorrow, hopefully, I’ll go to Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise or Byron Bay. Been trying to get someone or anyone from my class to join me for like three weeks (I seriously can’t believe people can be that dull), and I’m starting to realise I’m a lonely weirdo on this trip. But, now that I got a skateboard to follow me I guess I don’t mind fooling around on my own.

Last week we visited North Stradbroke Island, located in the state of Queensland, 30 km southeast of the capital Brisbane. Wikipedia says that before 1896 the island was part of the Stradbroke Island. In that year a storm separated it from South Stradbroke Island, forming the Jumpinpin Channel. It is known colloquially as Straddie. To get there we had to take a ferry from Cleveland to Dunwich for about forty minutes, and then our hippie bus took us to the other side of the island, up North to Cylinder Beach where we went for a swim in the Coral Sea. Afterwards we went back to near Dunwich for a boomerang and digeridoo workshop.

It’s a jungle out there! Heading for the salty water. Finally.

I’m a crazy tree lover so you can imagine how fascinated I get. The forests in Aussie is far more interesting than the boring Norwegian ones. Last week I climbed one just to get away from everything and everyone, at Kangaroo Point where I live. Trees. Haha. Recorded and made a song of it too. Monkey in a tree, that’s me.

A shame we didn’t go to the other side of the island, Main Beach, where the surf spots are located. Next time!

Since I came to Aussie I’ve been swimming in rivers, hot springs, pools and stuff, but nothing beats the ocean. I almost started crying when we finally got there. I’m too sentimental, I know.

Awesome! Looks just like the woods in Jurassic Park! And there’s baby dinosaurs all over the place! They say Australia has 755 species of reptiles, making it the country with the highest number in the world.

I just love sand between my toes. Sand, sand, sand. Waves, waves, waves. Ah, life. I guess I love my life right now.

Best feeling ever, except from surfing green, sweet waves.

Me and some other classmates at the beach!

Guess the picture speaks for itself. We had fun there body surfing and splashing around for an hour or so before we saw …

A live koala in a tree!!! Unfortunately he or she find herself living in the middle of a street in neighbourhood where you find dogs, cars and other things that would kill you – if you were a koala.

Then we went to learn some more about indigenous dance and music traditions.

Digeridoo. Women aren’t allowed to play, but lucky me has tried one of those back in Norway. The man who led the workshop was carzy good at it, and we were all dragged into the atmosphere and sounds he created with the digeridoo. He demonstrated and played us a song or a story, imitating different kinds of birds, water, humans and so on while he was playing.

Me and some of my classmates. Photo by Henriette Gauteplass Rygg.

Anne Berit in the mood. Instruments used for all sorts of occasions – like dancing traditional dances. We also learnt some hunting and fishing dances, but I didn’t get any pictures from it.

I had to try them too!

Indigenous face paint. Afterwards the awesome digeridoo-man painted all of our faces with clay, the native way.

Our mission for the day. Painting our own boomerangs!

All in deep concentration. Focused. Just like children’s school – we kids loved it!

Then suddenly it started raining, a storm on the way, and I had to finish my boomerang under a table. Photo by Una Brännström Sverdrup.

Photo by Una Brännström Sverdrup.

Me and my crappy painted boomerang. Photo by Una Brännström Sverdrup.

Haha. Then we we’re throwing boomerangs till the storm arrived.

Raining outside, happy kiddo and her new toy. Photo by Henriette Gauteplass Rygg.

Storm. It was raining cats and dogs and cows and whales and what have you. Photo by Una Brännström Sverdrup.

TUNEZ TODAY: FOO FIGHTERS – ONE BY ONE. Been listening to the album on repeat the last couple of days. And to the rest of you readers, I’ll be back with more photos and updates from Aussie later. Love K.

Oslo Queer Festival

I know I should be updating you and telling you all about Brisbane and Aussie, but a late update from Oslo Queer has to come first. Lack of internet makes the situation terribly slow. Aussie is good by the way. I LOVE IT. Anyway, September 1st me and a friend named Annelén had a forum theater workshop at Oslo Queer Festival 2012. It was a great experience and we had a lot of good discussions within our group. We took a closer look at prejudice in queer environments, and people from all over Europe participated. Unfortunately we weren’t enough people to make a real forum-play in the end, but next time we will make it! Heidi (red head in the picture below) finally arrived from Hong Kong to Oslo on Sunday 2, just in time to say goodbye before I got on the same plane going down under. She and a friend had been backpacking Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand for five weeks. Yay!

My fair lady Heidi and her friend Eva outside Blitzhuset.

My precious friend Annelén was happy to be at the festival!

This is somewhere I might wanna go. I dunno yet where I’m heading after Vietnam. Still haven’t got anyone to travel with – I’ll cross my fingers I’ll find someone who wanna go to the South East of Asia!

Suddenly the toilet at Blitz started to mumble and talk to me. That got me thinking. Actually the first thing I checked when I came to Brisbane was if the water in the toilet flushed the opposite way of toilets in Norway. It did. Or at least I think it did. Happy times. I’ll never quit being a kiddo.

Even Smurfs say NO TO NAZI!

Sharing of experience. Heidi passed on her travel books to me, and some Vietnamese and Cambodian money. Lucky me! They got good coffee at Blitz, almost for free!

Martine and Eva. Happy people.

PEOPLE NEED HOUSES. HOUSES NEED PEOPLE. BLITZ STAYS. THE FIGHT GOES ON!

Where we had our workshop!  The Pussy Riot Cathedral – in honor of the amazing russian girls.

Good volunteers recycling all the empty bottles! Miss them so much, these lovely folks.

In the end, life is all about balance. Eva was getting the hang of it.

Martine striking a pose for peace!

Hippies never die – they say.

Annelén always got something dirty on her mind, and I like it.

Cuties outside the Blitz House. That building’s got so much history. I’d like to tell you all about it but time is running away from me. Check the link!

Last goodbye! I’ll update more tomorrow if I get the chance to go to the library again. That’s it for no. Gotta go. Love and light K.

Back O’ Bourke

First night in Bourke went well, we’re staying with a charming family  who runs a restaurant and a motel in town. Just had a nice breakfast with scrambled eggs and bread at their restaurant named Diggers On The Darling. Our house is lying on the riverbank next to the Darling River. Now two girls from our class showed up and we’re off to our first photography lessons. Got my camera with me! Tomorrow I’ll add a bunch of pictures I promise you! Got so many beautiful views to show you. Peace and love from the outback, K.

Australian outback – Back O’ Bourke – that’s the place. Here they just call it paradise and I can see why…

HAPPY!!! Kangaroo and it’s alive! At least it was yesterday. It almost got hit by a huge truck as it tried to cross the road.

Me posing and playing with shadows.

Going down under

Last Monday I hit the road first by train, from Asker to Gardermoen. There I managed to get through the pass ports, drop my luggage at the right spot, find my classmates, and I even got onto the aircraft in time. Amazing. Been so stressed up I’ve hardly slept the last week. Now my entire world is turned up side down, and I finally find myself down under.

At Heathrow Airport in London I had the worst American pancakes ever. So glad I didn’t get sick or threw up on the plane. Anyway, after 40 hors of travel all of us – 16 girls and 4 boys, got pass the security guards at Brisbane Airport. In Hong Kong I saw the most beautiful sunrise ever, and I even got it on tape in 16:9. Hoho! We had a chill hangout there for like 6 hours, and experienced China for the first time. Lost in translation.

China is NICE. Living the dream! Could not upload more photos ’cause of the horrible internet connection.

The passed week I’ve not had any thrustful internet connection, and truth is that in Australia it’s horribly expensive. Right now I am at a shabby motel in Goondiwindi in New South Wales. Last night we were out on a local pub and it really was a good time. Guess we all got to know each other a little better. Hilarious! Had so many wasted laughs… Norwegians. Stupid Vikings. In an hour or so we’ll hit the road again heading for Bourke and the Australian outback. There we’ll stay for a week living with local host families. I’m really excited. Aboriginal culture, boomerang workshop, guided tours through the landscape, and outback bugs. One of the nights we’ll sleep under the massive sky and the Milkyway. The star constellations are insane. So up side down. Everything. Can’t wait to get out there. Tomorrow the lessons start, and photography is the first thing on the menu. We go by bus, a hippie-like small one managed and driven by two chill teachers from Griffith University. On our way out here yesterday I saw the phenomenon road kill. Dead kangaroos in countless numbers. The usually get hit by trucks in the morning hours. Makes me sad. Luckily I think I saw some alive ones too, and some wild goats. Now I have to go, and hopefully I will find some internet access in Bourke, and give you guys a better update. I’ll add some pictures just to get my folks at home really jealous – when I come to my host family. Gonna live together with Anne Berit, a cute friend of mine. I talked to my mum the other day and the temperature back home says 7° and there’s snow in the mountains. The last week I’ve shopped a 2nd hand vintage hat, and Australian classic, a Stetson, and three beautiful summer dresses. Second hand heaven is named Vulture Street, West End, Brisbane. HEART. Fuck, so happy I found that area. Wish my girls could have been there with me. Miss them so much. Right now I’m skyping with my homies back in Tomrefjord. Love and light K.

Bye bye Norway

Caught in a turmoil, makes my head spin.

Akkurat nå må jeg skrive på norsk. Ord kan ikke beskrive. Reisefeber!!! Skal straks legge meg og late som jeg sover i litt under fire timer. Sjukt at jeg reiser ifra alt og alle. Ikke en dag for tidlig! Blir godt å savne hjem!

Meg og en kompis!

Had to write some Norwegian… And then I’m suddenly on my way! Can’t wait to update later. Internet ain’t faithful and is probably ditching me again any second. Gotta be fast – My plane takes off from Gardermoen Airport 0750. 8 hours and then…. I don’t know really. It sure gonna be a big adventure. Heathrow first, then Hong Kong and finally Brisbane. 40 hours travel. Cross all my legs and fingers I wont get my period or catch a cold during the flight. Fuck, such irritating things tend to haunt me – especially when I’m up so something. Had my ups and downs today freaking out a bit and stuff but I think I’m all good to go now. Crazy…. Tomorrow I’ll be long gone. AWESOME! Now I just have to say goodbye to my friends. -Cry me a river jus like Dustin! Fuck, again. Pardon my language. Cupid is stupid. I get so sentimental. EMO. But it’s all good. It’s really all good… Love K.