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A Shit Storm in Tokyo
“Could you excuse me just a second,” I say calmly. But I think the look on my face has given something away. “Everything okay?” he replies. “Yeah, I think I just have to go do a sneaky vom.” It’s so not a vom. “Oh shit, really? You all right?” Fuck no. “Yeah, all g. Just…
Fatherland
It is so cold in Istanbul that it cramps my spine. Hiding my face from the cutting air, I see an old lady chopping painted doorframes small enough for a stove or a fireplace, bracing herself for winter. She is too poor to have the choice of not breathing toxic fumes until spring. Childhood memories,…
A Break-Up Letter to Booze
Dear Alcohol, I’ve been thinking a lot about our relationship lately. I’m not very happy, and no -- it’s not me; it’s you. Most of the time, I am an interesting, composed young adult. But all it takes is a small dose of you, and my hidden feelings are aired out for display. I then…
A Pint of Purpose
The Orkney Tourist Board strongly advises not going to Orkney to see the Northern Lights. It admits that yes, you can see the Northern Lights in Orkney, but if you're visiting purely to do so, you'll most likely end up disappointed. So here I am, in Orkney, for no reason other than to see the…
On Being a Third-Culture Kid
When I was 14, after spending 10 years growing up in three vastly different countries, I moved back to the place I was born: Australia. I was making this move from Germany, where racism was taboo due to its traumatic history, yet its people were still a proud nation with high nationalistic ideals. Even teenagers…
An Open Letter to Forgotten Hostel Friends
It’s a special type of one-night stand. For a brief, shining moment, you’ve met your new best friend: the person you relate to more than anyone else on this earth. By the next morning, you’re halfway to your next destination and halfway to forgetting all about them. Maybe you add them on Facebook. After a…

Astray is a storytelling project centred on travel, place, culture and identity.

We’re run by a team of writers who mostly live, work and play in nipaluna / Hobart. With reverence, we acknowledge the Tasmanian Aboriginal people as the traditional and ongoing custodians of trouwunna / lutruwita / Tasmania: land that was stolen and never ceded. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.