When we first set out on our trip a friend thought it fitting and funny to put an Aussie flag on the roof of my car... tightly fastened with sticky tape! "It better make it out of town, or I won't be happy," he said jokingly. After our goodbyes, we set off on the road heading north. After a while we looked at the shadow of the car as we drove... No flag! Geez it really didn't make it out of town!
After a few hours drive we finally arrived in Geraldton, only to discover the flag was still there!! Only a bit bent over! God we laughed... and took a few photos for our friend who had kindly made this flag our mascot for the trip!
Over the next few days of travel, each time we arrived somewhere we'd check the roof and sure enough the flag was still there. Only now it was beginning to fray slightly. It has traveled from Lancelin, though Kalbarri, Shark Bay, Carnarvon, Coral Bay, Exmouth and Karijini National Park in the Pilbara of Western Australia.
Then on day 2 of our stay in Karijini, we looked up to our flag but alas it was gone!! Only the stem it was attached to remained!! What a sad moment it was! It had traveled with us for around 1800km across Western Australia, and I never believed it would last 5km out of town back home!
Not that it really signifies anything in particular, that the flag lasted that long but you could look at it as a symbol of our Australian spirit. It became battered and frayed from adventure and travel, the excitement of a new area but it survived long and strong.
Though the flag is no more our spirit for travel lived on and we finally made it to sunny Broome. We are staying for here for a while now, but we're definitely going to keep with our new tradition and the roof of my car will bare the Aussie flag again on the next leg of our journey.
Thanks to Ruth Annesley from Where ever the road takes me.. on 20/06/2006