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Japan Story
I Cockblocked a Kickboxer in Tokyo
3:32am I am barely five feet tall. He is a professional kickboxer, stocky and red, and a breath away from my face. His furious words land on me as spit droplets. His finger wags, like he knows everything in the world, and I know nothing. He calls me a little girl. “Don’t point at me,”…
9 minRead time
Australia Story
Oceans of Memory
She sits hunched on the edge of a garden bed on Cavill Avenue, carry-on suitcase beside her, head in her hands. The scenery is picturesque: perfectly preened garden, spotless blue sky, sun blazing, the sound of seabirds constant but soothing – at least to any other listener. Inside her head, a storm rages. It wasn’t…
6 minRead time
Editorial
On Regret
Regret is a funny thing. As I edge closer to my mid-twenties, I notice the term ‘regret’ being thrown around a lot. I overhear conversations that include pointed statements like “he’ll regret doing that” and “she’ll regret leaving him”, and when I tell people about my own dreams to turn my life upside down and…
5 minRead time
Spain Story
Walking Away Towards You
When I think of Spain I think of a dog, handsome but dusty, sleeping in the shade of a tangled olive tree, while the sun beats down all around and the cicadas screech. Repeat that scene a hundred thousand times and you will have a passable impression of España. Of course, there are variations. The…
16 minRead time
New Caledonia Story
A Night Out in Nouméa
My host family is kicking me out. I found out today at school when our contact at the vice-rectorate came up to me and said she needed to discuss something.  “But don’t worry,” she says, “you’ll see a new place next week. Oh, and don’t take it personally." I speak to my host that afternoon.…
11 minRead time
Story
I’m Good at Saying Goodbye
After stacking motorbikes and removing helmets, we shuffled into a dimly lit room and sat on worn couches. We didn't mind the red wine stains or the ripped carpet. We smiled at the woman behind the bar, shook her hand, and tried to remember the Indonesian word for evening greetings. Shisha XL was our…
5 minRead time
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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.