It was a big day today. My aim was to get to Bunbury, which at times seemed improbable, yet managed to get there in the end.
I went for a swim just after breakfast and then got on the bike nice and early. I managed to meet a nice French Canadian who had a spare map of the area for me as well. I saw that there was an Aboriginal cultural centre on the map so thought this would be a good place to check out alongside ride. In addition to this is many wineries that I thought would also be nice to check out.
It was fairly hot today and the riding was moderately hilly at the start. I stopped after around 35km for a wine tester and to eat my left over bread. After this I then went into the Wardan Aboriginal cultural centre.
The cultural centre was great. It was around 5km deviation off the main road but was definitely worth it. This was perhaps one of the best stops I've had on my ride so far. The local fellers from the Nyoongar nation, of the Wardan (Wardandi) tribe were very informative. We went out on country and went through the traditions of the land, bush foods, medicines, tools, houses (mia mia) and a few other things. We were informed of a dreaming story of the land and the waters along the walk. I've now herd a few dreaming stories on my trip, and they've all bared some similarities and been absolutely magnificent. The overwhelming connection of each story is the understanding of country and how our environment is all connected.
The centre was free of charge. This was a great experience and also seemed to be for many others. It was very busy, having a mixture of foreigners and Australians. The centre is a good example of reconciliation, promotion of Aboriginal identity, self determination and taste of how Australian culture integrating the diversity it contains. The centre contained a cultural room with current conditions of the culture and the little historical culture recorded, yet still being beneficial. The down side to the centre was the fact government didn't even intimate it or even fund the establishment. A private American donor purchased the land and returned it to the Wardandi people.
We finished up at the cultural centre by playing the didgeridoo together and making fire from some local dead woods and plant matter.
When I eventually got into Bunbury the sun had gone down. I rode for about 15minutes in the dark to get there, cycling very hard to make it before it got too dark. I was buggered when pulling in and fortunately saw a big park/football field area to set up my tent. I'd love to sleep in a hostel here as I feel very dirty and couldn't be bothered messing around with my cooker in the dark. I know a hostel would be way to expensive or my budget so the park seems to be my best option. This is an area of my ride I need to develop even more - content with tent sleeping in any and every condition. In order to fit within my remaining budget I need to eliminate the idea of caravan parks or hostels as they will be to expensive. In large towns, or cities, it is particularly difficult as public open spaces become more scarce and having company is very tempting in shared style accommodation.
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