Home away from Home

December 2004 was when I first set foot in Australia and life has changed for the better since then. Within the first 2 weeks of moving into this country I realised that I would have to spend Christmas under the moon and the stars, not for the lack of a house with a roof, but because we were going camping over the holidays. My first reaction was that of shock because I had never done that before and secondly I was still forming my first impressions of Australia and staying in the Outback didn’t quite excite me after watching all those documentaries about the most dangerous animals and reptiles that live in this country. One side of me wanted to experience the adventure (I shall call her Freak) and the other side (call her Meek) was very apprehensive about the whole idea. Freak convinced Meek knowing that there would be more people, so she had nothing to fear. That’s how we set out to shop for our camping gear. We found most of it at Big W.

When we had just paid up for all the outdoor kit, we met one of my husband’s friends who had done some hardcore camping the week before. Once he knew it was going to be my first, he narrated all the experiences he and his partner had to go through. The part that scared me the most was when he told me that I wouldn’t be able to attend to nature’s call for lack of toilets in some of the semi-deserts. That was when Meek took over and started overpowering Freak. We had committed to friends and had invested in all the necessary gear, and here I was having second thoughts about it all. I tried convincing my husband that he should take me to a big city such as Melbourne or Sydney since I was new to the country. None of my pleading worked and as much as Freak was suppressed, she had to come out.

It was a Saturday morning and we were to meet up at a friend’s house before setting out in 3 different cars. All the sightseeing and trekking we did on the first day was pretty exciting until we had to find a place to camp the night. Once again Meek came out with a “I told you so” look on her face. I had to confirm and reconfirm with hubby and the friends that the spot we would choose would definitely have toilets and bathrooms. It was as though I had not realised the importance of that part of the house until then. After considering sea shores and salt lakes for camping overnight, of course to my horror, around dusk we settled on a decent camping and powered site. The receptionist let us choose the place where we wanted to set up our tents. We chose a corner close to the boundaries of the site. We set up all our tents and began cooking dinner. I must say that was one of my best outdoor experiences of fine dining and enjoying. We set up our own bonfire and had the stereos of our cars surrounding us tuned to an Ipod. We had riotous fun that night dancing to old and new Bollywood numbers, while enjoying the moonlight and the warmth of the bonfire.

At the end of the 4-day trip, I was more than happy for Freak. Meek had disappeared without any trace and she promised not to show up again. Now, every Christmas (which is summer downunder), I wait for an opportunity to camp so that I can get away from routine and also appreciate the beauty of nature better. At the same time, it also makes me realize how grateful I should be to simple luxuries such as having a bed and a T.V., without which life almost seems to stop on a normal day!