Our last full day in Barraba was spent having an early morning weeding session, followed by a trip to the Tamworth country music festival with Andrew. As I previously mentioned, a lot of people here in Barraba seemed dubious about the festival and weren't too bothered about it, despite this, everyone insisted that we must go! So we did! We arrived on the main street in Tamworth to be surrounded by people either dressed in cowboy hats, rind stone boots and leather, or dressed in a strange outfit! The main street was full of country singing buskers aged between 5 and 95! Some were really good, and some were not so good! The problem was, each act was about 10 meters apart from each other, so generally it just sounded like a lot of noise. Then there were acts on in every shopping centre and pub. We went for a drink in a few of the pubs, partly to help us get through the day, and also to see some of the artists who have previously performed at the hotel in Barraba. The music in my opinion isn't too bad providing you don't listen to the lyrics, which can be on the simple side, including lines such as, "I eat when I'm hungry and sleep when I'm tired" and "I love my horse but he's left me!"

Other exciting sights were the animals we have seen today, including a load of cockatoos we nearly ran over, a deadly snake, a rooster in a mans mobility scooter basket, dressed up dogs, wild kangaroos, bees and camels wearing hats. Although it was maybe not our usual scene, the atmosphere was really nice, everyone was very friendly (or maybe just really drunk) and it was good to see everyone country dancing on the street.

We returned to Barraba for a lovely meal cooked by Denay. We leave in the morning for Byron Bay so are intending an early night to prepare for our 21 hour bus/train journey!

Barraba and it's residents have treated us so well. When we first stepped off the bus two and a half weeks ago we were unsure where on earth we had landed! But we have all grown to love the closeness and friendliness of the community here. We feel we have really seen a different side of Australia how the local country folk live. It has been a good step off the beaten track and such a contrast to Sydney. There, everything we needed was conveniently located. Sometimes in the depths of the city it would feel like you could be in Manchester, then you would turn a corner and be at the Sydney harbour or 10 minute from a beautiful beach. Barraba however was the complete opposite, isolated in the bare hillsides with only basic conveniences within a one hour radius. Both were incredible places and we will treasure the memories we have in each location in their own ways.
Working in Barraba has been a great experience to see more of Australia, meet some great people, and also to appreciate our jobs back at home to realise what we are good at! I don't really think we are cut out for a farmers lifestyle just yet!

But, we have already been in Australia for four weeks and are raring to get back to the coast and a more vibrant town. I am sure it will be the polar opposite of Barraba but as everyone tells us, we will hopefully have a lot of fun there!

Amy x