French Island: numero uno

French Island first:

Where do I have to start?

Maybe on this point… 

Anything you should know about the Island: “Some people call it the outback island or the other island. What you can find here is the world biggest koala population (about 1700 koalas) over 250 different species of birds and about 400 different orchids. This is only an example about the number of different animals, trees and species around this place and should tell you a story about the wildlife on French Island or the outback island.” On French Island, you can’t find a McDonald or kind like this. There is only one shop on this island and its open when it’s open (only a “Tante Emma Laden” like we call a little small shop in Germany).  3/4 of the Island is a National Park what’s obviously the reason for the big number of species. On this island you can’t find any electricity or internet connection or a water pipe to the main land. Everything you need to life has to come from the island. So we have here a water pump to get water from the ground (only for watering the plants and showering because of the sea around, the ground water is really salty) a solar panel to get energy for the water pump and electricity and a lot of batteries and tanks to store these. The answer about the question: which water we are supposed to drink is: rainwater. Filtered rainwater and its really tasty!

At this point maybe some people are asking themselves why he is on this island and why he will stay such a long time at this place? The answer is quite easy, 'cause: I like! My flat member Caroline and her sister Steffi have been to this island couple of month ago and both of them were talking about the interesting farmer and his view of life. Caroline said: “That’s a guy you have to meet. He is a very spiritual person and has in many of these points the same opinion as you Jan and he believe in similar stuff”. That’s the point where I decided to come to this island when I am in Australia. So after Melbourne I thought I will stay here for one or two weeks and that’s it. I planned to make the great ocean road afterwards and go to Adelaide. But it comes like it has to come and I am still here.

I think I will write lots about this island this place and the spirit but today I will tell you something about a standard day when I am working here.

First of all the farm is an old prison. My room is a cell and there’s the beginning of the day. Did you ever wake up in a cell of a prison but you’re free? That’s the feeling here around. That’s the second thought when you wake up after the first: “dam I am in a prison”. Free to open this cell door, free to eat and drink, free to meet all the people here around. That’s a present, that’s wonderful, only little people recognize this but I do. I am free. Enough of this bullshit philosophy, I get my breakfast in a big room. There is place for almost 50 people or more but at this time we are only 6 persons. Bob, the mechanist and man who knows, does and did everything, a UK guy around 60 smart and a really good egg. Marc, the guy who runs the farm and Melinda his friend or partner or ex-wife, however. And two other female wwoofers from the UK. Amy is a cute 24yr girl who traveled almost her whole life. The last 4 years she lived on a crew ship and saw a lot of interesting things and she is a very open-minded person who is willing to learn everything. I teach her juggling, playing the guitar, climbing and some German words. She was a “beauty queen” and worked in Melbourne to make the persons nails and give some massages (I have a German friend called Corinna K. she’s really similar in this point, maybe you will read this now). But if you would now see Amy, you can’t imagine that she was a beauty queen. Oh she’s pretty but now she looks more like a hippie but that’s not bad :). Beka is also from the UK. They didn’t know each other before they come here. She changed her life after coming here as well. When she said “Mum there is anything wrong with us when we stand up and feel sad. Fell like: I have to do this, I have to be pretty, I need this make up or is this jeans better or that? And all these people here are so happy every day. There might something be very wrong in our life if they are all the time happy and we’re not.” So that’s Beka and yes, with this, she’s really right. To wake up and say “good morning how are you” and to get a “couldn’t be better” is the most normal thing. And that’s all about “all about love”. Having a breakfast in this conditions in the sun couldn’t be better. If you wake up and be happy to meet the happy people at breakfast is like a movie about golden eggs and milk out of lucky happy cows where everything is bright and healthy. Sounds very funny and yes it is, it is all about love. After breakfast (this is 8.30 o’clock) I have several work to do. For example: planting, weeding (unkrautjaeten in german), collecting sticks for the fire, shoveling shit and build a compost, watering, digging holes, clean the roofs (one of my favorites after shoveling shit, really to shovel shit makes you strong. And funny things are around in my head if I am doing this. I played a card game, Happy-Family (Quartett in german) in Italy some years ago and it was a joke, because this card game was about dog shit. Values like shit drop-high or weight or smell are available on this game, and the cow shit could be a very powerful joker shit drop-high 1,60m weight 10-20kg (who out of you can get rid of your pounds that fast??) and smell, aaawwsome, oh this is funny, talk about shit in a public plot yeah that's fun!! ). Back to the roots, one can train oneself every time to have fun. Fun to stand up, fun to meet every day the same people, fun to shovel shit. All this stuff I am supposed to do till 1pm. After that I will cook my or our lunch (eggs, eggs and eggs, you can’t imagine how creative I can be to combine eggs with…). After lunch is fun time, it’s happy time. Yes happy time is all the time but now I can do whatever I want. But this is something I will write later. I can watch a movie tonight and I don’t want to miss this lucky spectacle.

Miss u all, hugs and kisses back home and to all my friends where ever you are