I Didgeridoo; you can too!

Lots of things come to mind when I think "Australia".

Kangaroos. Crocodiles. Giant spiders. The Great Barrier Reef. Wild and rugged land that can be both breathtaking and incredibly inhospitable. And the deep, beautiful culture of the aboriginal people. 

After our Hong Kong course finished, I met a man named Darren. He has lived in Kenilworth (the tiny town about 2 kilometers down the road) for many years and I am very glad that myself, Colin and some of the other staff got to know him. He was trained by a aboriginal family to make didgeridoos. Didgeridoos are the very unique wind instruments that aboriginal tribes used in ceremonies. Today they are still used in ceremonies, but are also used for recreational entertainment. It is a tube shaped instrument that requires a strong set of lungs to play. It is said that playing helps with asthma and snoring.

Here is a picture of a didgeridoo being played in a traditional ceremony.

Darren has his own workshop behind his house. We have spent many hours there in the last week.

He has made over 10,400 didgeridoos. Here are a few of them.

Darren also teaches others how to make them. I decided to go for it.

I first had to pick a branch from a eucalyptus tree. Termites have hollowed the wood.

Picking the branch is a bit of a gamble....you never know what the wood under the bark will be like.

Next, the bark must be stripped from the branch.

This can be hard work and produces quite a few blisters!

This is Darren, our didgeridoo master. After the stripping of the bark, the branch must be sanded.

In the meantime, other friends were making boomerangs! Darren cuts the shape out and we burn our own designs into the wood. We also got lessons on how to throw them.

Back to the didgeridoo....still more sanding...

And more sanding...

Darren then used a tool to carve some designs I suggested into the wood.

This was followed by still more sanding.

The wood must be covered in a thick coat of lacquer. This keeps it from splitting.

Darren has 4 sons. They had a great time playing soccer with Colin and our friend Caleb.

After the lacquer dries, the burning takes place. This brings out the design carved into the wood.

Here is the finished product!

The didgeridoo requires quite a lot of practice to be able to play well. So far I have been able to produce something similar to how a cow with an upset stomach sounds...

Colin has had a lot more success. :)