Searching for some space

When you live in a place you never usually stand back and consider it’s defining characteristics. We are told that Perth is the most isolated city in the world. Coming from Denmark on the south coast, this was a very isolated place. I never really took much notice of these characteristics until now. Living in remotes places is just a way of life. This remote landscape gives you a sense of freedom and at times can be threatening. These characteristic of Australia have had a massive influence on our art and culture, which I only fully understand now.

It is only now that I am in Holland living in highly densily populated country that I find myself searching for some isolation. I am finding myself wanting to drive for a couple of 100 km’s and not to see any development. I want to find a forest I can wander about in. I am a little hard pressed to find this feeling of remoteness here in Europe.

Today I travelled 2 hours by train, 1 hour by bus and 1 hour by ferry to the Fresian Island, Ameland. I packed a small pack for the night, with a few nuts and biscuits. I wasn’t sure what type of island I was heading to, so I ate modestly and considered that I might be returning from an isolated island fairly hungry. As it turned out there was food on the island and lots of development. But walking along an expanse of sandy beach for 2 hours gave me that feeling I was searching for.