10:31.356N 138:22.049E - The Torres Straight Islands
Irene IV - World Adventure
Louis Goor
Tue 13 Sep 2022 09:38
Irene IV ploughs her dauntless way through the rolling waves leaving the
Coral Sea and the Pacific Ocean behind and entering the Arafura Sea, one of
the many seas of the Indian Ocean. The SE trades continue to push us along
on a broad reach and our favorite port tack, with expedient winds of 18-22
knots, rewarding us with an average speed of 8 knots. We left Thursday
Island yesterday afternoon, Monday, 12th September, at 16:30, having cleared
out of Australia with ease at the local customs office.
On our way out of the bay, surrounded by the Torres Straight chain of
islands, we passed a new friend, Douglas, from Seattle, on his small classic
yacht, Lone Gull. As the name suggests, he is sailing solo. He has travelled
from Seattle to Thursday Island, via Hawaii and will sail on to South
Africa, having picked up a friend in Darwin as a handy crew along the way.
He did not clear into Australia so he could not leave his boat. We asked did
he need anything from the supermarket. He requested bread, tortillas, and
beer. We obliged, adding an addictive packet of Timtams for good measure.
Timtams, made by the Arnotts biscuit company, are classic Australian, right
up there with Vegemite and meat pies! They come in many guises, with
caramel, butterscotch, white chocolate, mint, and more, all slathered in
gallons of thick chocolate. They are more addictive than heroin! Douglas
gleamed with delight, both with the supermarket fare and with some humans to
chat to.
Most of the rally yachts are clearing out of Darwin. We decided on Thursday
Island, as it allows us to arrive in Indonesia a little sooner, giving us
more time to explore this aromatic group of countries. I think we made a
good decision. In Mackay, the Whitsundays, and Cairns, we experienced a
one-sided view of Australia - the more white, Anglo-Saxon version. In Cairns
we saw the wealth and the poverty of Australia. The extraordinary light
show, fireworks display, and concerts, freely available as part of the
Cairns Festival, the well-appointed esplanade, the up-market malls, the
groomed street landscaping, the free entry to the art gallery and botanical
gardens points to a wealthy nation looking after its people. Australia has
rich mineral deposits, silver, and gold, it has climates that allow every
conceivable fruit and vegetable to grow, an extensive and very good wine
industry, sheep stations, cattle ranches, affording it very little reliance
on other countries. In the supermarkets, 90% or more of the products were
home produced or grown. On the flip side, we saw indigenous Aboriginal
people on the streets, destitute, often drunk, angry, fighting, sad and
depressed. We spoke to two Aboriginal women we met outside a soft
furnishings shop; they were looking for work and had been for weeks. They
were constantly turned away. This in tandem with reports that the country
was crying out for more workers in the service industry. Draw your own
conclusions!
On Horn Island (Ngarupai) and Thursday Island (Waiben) we experienced a very
different Australia. We anchored at Horn Island, one of the Torres Straight
Islands at the northern most tip of Australia, because it offered us a more
sheltered night's sleep. It was Sunday, 11th September, and we hoped to
visit a church, to say a prayer, for Arnaud's sister, Ketty, for Jack
deBromhead and for Queen Elizabeth II. Fortunately, we came upon a shed-like
building, with a small cross perched atop its corrugated iron roof - we had
found the Holy Family Catholic Church. Inside was a charming, simple, and
welcoming church with wooden pews and kneelers and a tablecloth covered
table for an altar. The sacred heart light burned bright and red allowing us
to send our prayers to loved ones the world over.
Horn Island, even on a Sunday, is teaming with activity and industry. We
learned that fishing and pearling are the chief industries here. We saw
evidence of a tourist industry of sorts, with multiple holiday cottages,
hostels and the one hotel, Wongai Hotel. Horn Island, with a flat
topography, has the only airport in the region. The airport offers an
airport transfer via a very glamorous bus to a much less glamorous ferry to
all the other islands in the group. The first thing that struck us as we
strolled along the generous footpath, aside the wide concrete Miskin Street
road, was the indigenous Aboriginal face of the peoples of this island. We
stood out but were welcomed. Here we met a proud people, allowed to live a
fulfilled life, amongst their own families, on their ancestral lands,
supported, along with other Australians, by a maternal government. The
supermarket, IBIS, Islanders Board of Industry and Service, is run by and
for the locals. All the cashiers and store staff were Aboriginal. All were
delightful, friendly, and happy. It was very refreshing after our Cairns
experience. We dined at the Wongai Hotel, amidst locals and a handful of
drop ins like us. The bar/restaurant doubled as a bookie and gambling
lounge, the room was wallpapered with posters saying that service would be
refused if a patron is "confused", "slurring words", "unsteady" or
"aggressive", "It is uncool to serve an underage person"! The staff hailed
from Equator, Hungary, and mainland Australia. The fish and chips were
delicious!
Next day, we moved the boat across the bay to the bigger, bustling Thursday
Island. The pride in their land is unmistakable. "Welcome to Thursday
Island" emblazoned on a large mosaic, depicting scenes from the island's
past, was our first encounter. Having tied up the dingy on the jetty, we
walked up to the town. Historical references are everywhere, in sculptures,
wooden and steel, in quotes embedded in the pavement and in the
architecturally beautiful Gab Titui Cultural Centre on Victoria parade. The
quote by E. Bani, a local elder, that struck us all was, "The past must
exist, for the present to create the future."
In the cultural centre we learned that the previous week had been a week of
celebrations, in honor of the Torres Straight flag. The flag was designed in
1992 and is a source of great pride. The flag is loaded with meaning. The
green stripe at the top and the bottom symbolizes the land; the blue band
across the middle signifies the waters of the renowned Torres Straight; and
the black line separating the green on each edge and the blue in the middle
represents the Black Torres Straight Island people. The white five-pointed
star in the center of the blue refers to the five major island groups and
the white "dhari" (traditional headdress) surrounding the star is a symbol
of Torres Straight islanders and their culture and ceremonial dance.
Our time on Thursday Island was short. We managed a walk up the hill to the
lovingly restored Green Hill Fort, a wander around the town, a visit to the
Gab Titui Centre and the art studio of Rosie Ware, an award-winning local
textile designer, plus a post office stop to post our last postcards from
Australia, ending with lunch at the Torres Hotel. The Torres Hotel claims to
be the "Highest Pub in Australia", meaning the most northerly. Since our
mother lives close to self-proclaimed "Highest Pub in Ireland", we had to
partake! Again, we were greeted with gambling and load music, but this time,
very mediocre food.
Sadly, recycling is not part of the infrastructure of these islands. All
rubbish is lumped together. Unfortunately, plastic waste was apparent along
the shores and beaches. Hopefully the Australian government will step in to
help change this reality in the near future. As Greta Thonberg has
repeatedly pointed out, the richer nations of the world need to redouble
their efforts so that the poorer nations can join in the global effort to
avoid catastrophic global climate change and mass extinction.
We were happy with our short sojourn on these remote islands but ready for
the 8-day passage to another land.