I woke with a full bladder just in time for sunrise. I grabbed the Nikon and ran up the hill to grab my pics, they were amazing. The color on the Chambers Pillar was so amazing when the sun finally rose and struck it!! It became this vibrant burnt orange, spectacular. Boo rose and climbed the hill which was lovely, we both sat on the bench seat and watched a beautiful sunrise and the horizon awakening. We both heard Marty waking so we headed back to the van to wish him a happy birthday. The girls gave him their homemade cards with their special messages they wrote on the inside, very special. Boo had even made him a necklace out of beads and a shell she painted with glitter glue, Marty loved it but can see that it won't be worn out in public!! So sweet. I cooked up bacon and eggs for my special gift, as well as a bday kiss.... What an awesome bday to wake up and sit outside with a cooked breakfast looking over at Chambers Pillar!! Hope l have just a spectacular setting for mine....
After breaky and gift giving we took one last look at our surrounds and packed up to set off on our way to Alice Springs. We headed off and drove thru the aboriginal community, Titjikala. Another 'dry' community and actually had a beautiful looking cemetery. Driving thru the town l shot a wave out to a few people, but didn't receive one back. I wonder if they hate tourists driving thru and whether we make them feel like a sideshow. That's not our intention, they didn't look happy to see us anyway, so we headed thru pretty quick.
We got out to the road to Alice Springs and in our quickness to set off, we had forgotten to pack food for the girls. Bloody should have known this wouldn't be good. Just as l realized this Meg started whinging she was hungry. I tried to string her out a bit before giving her a muesli bar l found, but of course she wanted more. After half an hour of her sooking and Marty lost it, followed by me, and well, it just went downhill from there. Such a pity seeing it was Marty's bday... :(
We stopped off at Ewaninga Conservation Reserve after Marty and l were shouting at each other and he put the brakes on quick. We were here to check out some rock carvings, well l wanted to check them out. With Marty and l heated, Meg crying and Boo silent, we walked thru the rocks trying to enjoy the scenery. It was beautiful, the rock carvings awesome but aged due to weather. There was a watering hole nearby which had big rocks surrounding it. This was a very beneficial hunting ground for the aborigines back in the day. After finishing our walk thru we got back in the Nissan and made the last 30km into Alice Springs in silence, even Meg. I felt so sorry for Marty seeing it was his bday, and after arriving in town, we ended up letting everything go and made it a great day for the rest. Thank god!!!
Driving into Alice Springs, it feels like nothing has changed too much in ten years, maybe just a bit more bigger and developed. We pulled into the car wash to rid the red dirt from the van then headed to a canvas place to get our awning fixed as it tore in Broken Hill. Then it was off to the golden arches. Yes that's right, McDonald's for lunch it was. So with everyones bellies full we decided it was time to drive by a few caravan parks to find our home for the next few months. Easy right, you'd think!!! We decided on one that had a pool and was good priced but they could only offer a site that was in full sun. Now usually this wouldn't matter too much but this is Alice Springs and we didn't want to be roasting in the sun for the next few months. So we took off and drove past a few others, looked a bit dodgy. Then we thought we'd found another but the site was in dirt and in sun again. So off we headed to the dearest park in Alice Springs, the Big 4 Macdonnell Range Holiday Park. It was expensive at $42 per night, with our Big 4 discount, but after two hours of driving around we were over it. One night then we will talk to the manager about a better price for staying for a few months. The girls were so excited, for one, staying at a caravan park, and two, there was a pool and jumping pillow!!! At 4:30pm we unpacked, opening the door just reminded me how much work l have in front of me in the next few days to clean all the red dirt out of the van!!! Oh well that's tomorrows worries. Anyway, the girls were off to the jumping pillow and that's where they stayed till tea.
We cooked up Marty's new fav meal, caramelized onion steak with veggies then on Marty's request we had a bought custard tart from woollies for his bday cake. The girls sang happy bday to him and then scoffed down the tart. We all had a much needed shower then headed to bed, all b*****ed.
So it was a bit of a roller coaster birthday for Marty, but overall l think he had a good day. I can't believe we are in Alice Springs!!! We have seen some amazing country over the last few weeks and had great experiences. Now for the fun of finding a job cause the kitty is getting low......
Bell Xxx