Team A

Our running was broken up today by a surprising immersion into another world.

Patricia Floyd and the other artists of the Yinjaa Barni Art Centre in Roebourne, Pilbara warmly greeted the runners and each held the Torch.

Patricia, Alicia, Maudie, Donna, Chena, Aileen, Dawn, Clifton, Marlene, Alery, Tyler

Alicia

Aileen

Donna and Koden

Patricia receiving the Certificate of Appreciation

We were drawn into the working area of the artists where they generously shared stories about the richness of their art and lives.

Firstly, we were deeply impressed by their simplicity, then step by step we uncovered the deep creativity and huge output of these extraordinary artists from this Pilbara area.

The art from these members of the Yinjaa tribe is regularly displayed in exhibitions around Western Australia, Sydney and only last year The Pilbara - Antica Terra Pulsante – Ancient Land Pulsing was exhibited in Venice, Italy. Two artists, Maudie and Clifton Mack travelled with the exhibition to Italy.

A piece of Clifton's art.

Maudie with one of her paintings, Pretty Colour Snake, painted many years ago.

Maudie is a ‘Traditional Owner of Country’ and in earlier years was a keen runner herself.

“It is not art, it is my story.” - Clifton Mack

Elke Lindner from Germany was impressed by Allery’s devotion to her painting and was grateful for an explanation on how a painting evolved. For this painting, Allery was inspired by the colour combination of a common tree of the desert also growing outside the Centre.

When Pansy Sambo held the Torch, she mentioned that she was one of the four people from the area to run with the Olympic Torch when it travelled around Australia before the 2000 Olympics. We were very excited when she offered to escort us to the Roebourne Visitors Centre to see the Olympic Torch exhibited and even more delighted when we could hold it.

Pansy holding the World Harmony Run Torch today and Olympic Torch in 2000

The route the Olympic Torch took around Australia.

The Information Centre was another gem of information and colourful people. It was a former gaol and is now transformed into rooms displaying local history and another area for creative work.

We moved from one cell with iron chains on the floor to another room, the home for the Roebourne Gaol Art and Craft Group. Each day, different artists come to work here on anything from pottery to needlework.

Hillary

Val

Margaret

Finger puppets even with a ‘Swagman’

We left with the feeling that these groups of mainly women are achieving something individually and together that most of us are looking for … a place to express ourselves in a harmonious community.

Quote from the brochure for the exhibit Antica Terra Pulsante:

"One does not visit the Pilbara, one is immersed in it."

Kim-Ahn, Simon, Khanh, Xuan-Anh and Vinh

– Elke Lindner (Germany) and Nishima Knowsley (New Zealand)

Team B

Personally, my least favourite running companion is strong wind. Especially for a tall runner, it is almost impossible to find rhythm or balance, the components of the flow that make running so enjoyable. Today my 'friend' was the strongest it has been on our entire journey – sometimes from the side, but for the most part, confrontingly head on. It was always at you, like an over-eager opponent in the ring. In the face of this perpetual buffeting it is almost impossible to find any personal space, there is no room to think or savour the surroundings. All one's focus is on just edging forward.

Today our team ran 84 km from Roebourne to Whim Creek. It was flat, dry, hot and windy. We loved it.

Here, the dry is shaped by water. Most of the rivers we pass are sand-dry –

yet the remains of trees carried on the flood-tide, arrested by the bridge pylons, hang suspended above the gasping river bed. Inexplicably, one of the rivers coming from the same distant hills as all the dry ones, was flowing beautifully!

During one 5 km run I was accompanied for the entire distance by two frisky cattle trotting alongside, inside the fence-line. The whole way they kept looking across at the Torch, pausing only when they reached the support van for photos.

Meg and Kathleen stopped at the roadside with their mum to hold the Torch and wish us well. They are holidaying here for a break from the snow of their southern Victorian home.

So much in the area revolves around the mining, processing, transport and export of iron ore.

With China's gigantic appetite fuelling a massive economic boom and 20% of the area's population employed by BHP Billiton, everywhere you look there are trappings of the industry – every second vehicle on the road a 4WD with flashing light, mile-long trains of ore passing regularly,

monstrous vehicles carrying monstrous machinery, helicopters flying overhead – and Australia's busiest commodities port.

Australia's first iron ore shipment was from here in Port Hedland in 1966 – now 100 million tonnes of iron ore departs its homeland from here each year.

Also shipping from here is another essential natural resource: salt.

Dampier Salt has one of its main facilities here, where salt is evaporated from the ocean water in ponds, then harvested, stored in enormous stockpiles and shipped all around the world.

Most of the salt from here is used in the production of plastics, glass, detergents and chemicals.

We are most grateful to Sherryle and Kylie of the Port Hedland Caravan Park, who somehow found space for our team despite being very heavily booked at this holiday season. Thank you for your kindness!

– Prachar Stegemann (Australia)

Team C

After a good night's sleep, we drove into Karratha for some media engagements at the Shire of Karratha buildings. We were interviewed by Maggie from Pilbara News and by Bella from ABC Radio.

After the interviews about the Run we all got a chance to hold Millie, a Kangaroo baby (known as a 'joey') that had been orphaned and had now a new home with Maggie, her new mother. All the runners had their photo taken with Millie with no exception!

Thank you Maggie and Bella!

We then went out on the road to do our miles for the day in the scorching heat. We had our hottest day from the beginning of the run and had to put up with a very strong headwind.

We did our 80 kilometres with smiles on our faces and ended the run with a great watermelon feast, hosted by our Russian team member Misha Kulagin, in honour of his son's birthday.

– Runar Gigja (Iceland)

Editor's note: Please note that our team may be out of range ofphone and internet coverage for the next 2 days, so unless an unexpected connection appears, our next report will appear on Saturday12 July. Meanwhile, why not enjoy the reports from previous weeks of the expedition?

 

If you would like to place a link or a write a story about the World Harmony Run on your website, click here to Link to Us. We'll be happy to place a reciprocal link and list you on our Friends Online page.

 

---

Team Members:
Prabuddha Nicol (Australia), Kritartha Brada (Czech Republic), Nishima Knowsley (New Zealand), Edi Serban (Romania), Runar Gigja (Iceland), Iva Nemcova (Czech Republic), Prabhakar Street (Canada), Sandro Zincarini (Italy), Nataliya Lehonkova (Ukraine), Prachar Stegemann (Australia), Misha Kulagin (Russia), Dima Lehonkov (Ukraine), Angela Muhs (Germany), Veeraja Uppal (Australia), Miro Pospisek (Czech Republic), Elke Lindner (Germany), Standa Zubaty (Czech Republic)

Harmonemail:
You can send a message to the runners or read the messages.

Gallery: See more images!

< Australia 8 July

Australia 10 July >