Travelled around five hours out of Alice Springs to Kata Tjuta National Park to visit Uluru (Ayers Rock) at the beginning of a four day tour. Visiting 'The Rock', which is central to Aboriginal culture, turned out to be a great start. Witnessing the sun setting on the rock was amazing, watching as it slowly changed colour with a glass of champaign in hand. The following morning, we also saw the sunrise over it but somehow this did not seem quite as dramatic. We also got up close to Uluru and were able to walk around its perimeter the following morning which was pretty good as well. Walking other parts of Kata Tjuta was also pretty stunning - as were the other places we visited such as Kings Canyon; Finke Gorge; Palm Valley and The Olgas. We got to climb up quite high at times, sometimes getting really near the edge and carefully peering over the precipice. During this trip (along dirtier tracks and 'gravelier' roads) we also saw a little more of the local wildlife in their natural habitat including horses and donkeys; big lizards (my name for the particular species we saw) and dingos - even budgerigars (wild budgies?). We didn't come across any kangaroos however, well apart from on my plate in the form of a steak (medium rare). I also sampled some camel burgers and camel sausage which I thought were very tasty although somehow I don't think Billy-Boy would have approved (otherwise, my father is a kind and tolerant man).
Well, now comes the hard part of the odyssey - five nights in Sydney......