This morning we were up at 5.15am, to watch the sun rise over Uluru. As we drive, we see Uluru silhouetted against the sunrise, looking absolutely beautiful. It's far busier at the sunrise lookout than it was at sunset yesterday. We stroll along the walkways admiring the Rock and taking photos from various angles. As the sun finally pops over the horizon, an American man near us says "Oh, there it is." Yes, American man. That is the sun. Points to you for recognising it.

As people disperse, we walk up to the top platform. From there, once the sun has risen completely, we see a dingo! It looks rather more doglike than the dingoes we saw on K'Gari, which we later learn is because K'Gari dingoes are the purest genetically, whereas dingoes in the Red Centre are likely to have been bred with dogs at some point.

After coffee and purchasing some fly nets from the Cultural Centre, we set off on the base walk around Uluru.

It always looks pleasingly symmetrical in photos, but it's not as smooth up close as it appears from afar. It also (and I know this sounds obvious) looks different from every angle. Not just in the features of the rock but often in the vegetation that is nearby. It gets increasingly hot in the sun. There are occasional benches in the shade for a rest stop, but we push on until just before the waterhole we visited yesterday. It's very peaceful after the hubbub of this morning's sunrise - we see only 7 people during that 2.5 hours. We are constantly amazed at just how red the earth and rock are. And quite how huge it is, particularly next to just how flat is everything around it.

Pleased with ourselves, we finish before the 11am recommended cutoff time (you can actually walk it at any time if you wish, although they close some paths after 2pm on 36+ degrees days, like today...).

We head back to the hostel for a shower, then to the resort supermarket to buy some cheap eats for lunch and dinner. After lunch we retire to our dorm for a quick recovery snooze. Afterwards, Foxy feels much improved, while I feel supremely groggy (naps don't agree with me!), so we drive to the "Town Square" at Yulara/Ayers Rock Resort for coffee. Caffeine and aircon are restorative and I soon feel up to a quick wander around the shops!

Within the Resort complex is Wintjiri Arts and Museum, which has a few facts on the geological background to Uluru (basics: it's a rock which is stronger than the surrounding materials and is therefore left when what was around it has drifted or worn away. So it's about a hundred million years old), together with some taxidermy bush animals and local Aboriginal art.

A quick dinner of rice and salami before we dash out for sunset! We're already going over the kms limit on our hire car (Lord Mitzy), and we figure we want to make the most of it. After all, how many times do you get to see a sunset totally uninterrupted by buildings or hills, with just one massive red rock dominating the skyline?! As the sun sinks, we drive further around to the other side of Uluru to see the silhouette against the sunset. It's so gorgeous!

Once we're out of the National Park, we pull over on the way back to the Resort for a star gaze in the near total darkness. It's a totally clear night, the Milky Way is a powdery streak across the sky, and as our eyes adjust it seems more and more stars appear.

Finally, we tear ourselves away from the stars and return to the hostel and bed. We've another sunrise to see tomorrow, and we're getting up even earlier!

AB