Name: Gareth Thomas Owen
Gar’f (Given Australian name; for the convenience)
age 31
I’m from Groeslon in spectacular Snowdonia, Gwynedd’s mountain region in North Wales. It’s a part of the world unlike any other, and the reason I love to be out in the middle of nowhere. I like to hear the pitter patter of rain drops on a tent top.
I wouldn’t exactly say I get lost easily, but it’s probably true anyway. I worked as a prawn fisherman on a boat skippered by My Mate Cal™ in Mull, played darts (poorly) around the Highlands and found out about the history of whisky etiquette in the Hebrides. If I could read a map I hate to think what would have become of me.
I lived in Yorkshire for a few years, in Leeds, during and after university, where I studied Politics and Sociology, and took up climbing, (Ey-up, luv) and made some important and lifelong friendships there.
In my attempt to populate my life with as many stories as possible, I’ve earned a living many different ways: I was a hotel night porter in Fort William, where I had a vicarious and troubled relationship with a hoover called Henry; a barman on Shetland, where someone told me that it was possible, theoretically, that someone could, eventually, breed pocket sized Shetland Ponies; but the most challenging and enjoyable was building dry-stone walls, a skill I picked up on Cape Clear in County Cork, Ireland, a small island community I was privileged to call my home for over a year.
I’ve lived the past few years in some wild and beautiful places. Scotland and Ireland may have the perfect weather for ducks but I’m Welsh, and you love what you know best. If it doesn’t rain for a few days, I stand under the cold shower in my Sunday best, drinking tea complaining about the weather just to feel normal. The sun always shines in Australia and my famous ginger complexion just doesn’t like it. But you can't have everything.
Favourite books:
Franz Kafka - "The Trial","The Castle","Metamorphoses and Other Stories"
Haruki Murakami -"dance dance dance","Norwegian Wood", "Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World", "Wild Sheep Chase"
John Irving - "World According to Garp" "Hotel New Hampshire", "Until I find You" -
Herman Hesse -"Steppenwolf" "Narcissus and Goldmund"
Mario Puzo "gThe Gdfather"
Cervantes "Don Quixote"
George Mackay Brown "Greenvoe" "Hawkfall""Vinland"
Gogol "The Nose and other Short Stories"
About Me
- Gareth, Anne and Phil
- Going for broke, starting from scratch with nothing at all, not even clothing, we intend to raise the necessary resources, bit by bit, without any cash ever changing hands, to set off on the 25,000km journey from Brisbane, anti-clockwise around Australia, to arrive back at Brisbane. We will discard all our possessions, relying wholly on the kindness of others to provide us with everything we need to navigate around the continent. We work the whole way around, doing as many jobs offered to us as possible and give up every single cent of our wages to Book Aid International. At the end of our adventure we will keep nothing but our footage, pictures and stories. All we've been given, that we have not used, will be auctioned off, with proceeds going towards the promotion of Child Literacy. We will keep nothing for ourselves save the proof that Australians are fair dinkum the worlds friendliest people.
3 comments:
Thats wonderful Gar'f - now I know something about you!
Mandy
Hey my favourite Welshman...missing you and hoping that you find, among your travels, another who also does not like shoes.
Loving you!
gidday gazza,
i hope you are having lots of fun catching sheep but make sure you come to new zealand after where the sheep are even better! i just finished reading wild sheep chase so watch out for those ones with stars on their backs : )
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