Darwin to Alice Springs

Getting to Oz (6th) has been another culture shock. Leaving behind the rice and noodles and cheap food of Indonesia and Asia generally, to be served a beef pie on the plane to Darwin (delicious) and then experience the reality of having to pay a proper price for your meal.

Oz is now in winter but Up Top (Northern Territories) and here in the centre it is not too cold during the day. The nights however are freezing and we notice it in our tents when our sleeping bags most definitely require the additional liners we were advised to bring with us.

Darwin was a sleepy kind of city and we awoke on the first morning having to find our own breakfast due to a mix up with bookings. This was no problem and for me, egg and bacon was on the cards.

We wasted no time and by 10am were on the road with our new tour guide Mark. He is FAB and gives us so much information about Australia and the Aboriginal tribes of the NT. There are about 700 tribes in Oz with their own languages and religions, and the places we have visited have had numerous examples of Aboriginal art that needed to be described for us. Many have children’s stories behind them that underline a moral or principle of religious belief.

The understanding of the earth and various rocks are also described in similar ways. The Devils Marbles which we visited yesterday were breathtaking and again our guide told us how they were formed and about the Aboriginal beliefs surrounding them.

We have seen some interesting pieces of water while being here. Edith Falls was a great place to swim but we were warned about salties! Katherine Gorge (8th) was a great place to canoe or take a boat. In fact the very first morning in Oz we visited the local river to see salties being fed. Some of them are over 100 years old and can still jump for their dinner!! (Catching pieces of meat dangled from a rope).

We have seen some amazing sunsets too. The evening at Ubirr watching the sun go down sat on the huge red rocks overlooking the plains to the sea was ...!! (Can't describe the beauty). However, we were warned to get off the rock asap after sunset as it took only 10 minutes for the rock to be covered by mosquitoes!

Yesterday (10th) was the longest travelling day in Oz, we left at 5am and arrived in Alice Springs at 8pm last night. We did of course make a few stops at interesting places on the way and last night was a first for many of us as we arrived at Bojangles Saloon for a meal. SUPERB! I had Kangaroo whilst others had crocodile or camel or buffalo. I managed to taste most of what was on offer and it was GREAT!

We have swam and walked and laughed and done so much in a short period of time here in Oz. Perhaps the funniest experience was whilst camping at Daly Waters (9th). Only about 6 people live here but the pub and camping site had about 150 people there. We enjoyed the beer and food whilst being entertained by an old Australian touring entertainer. He sung us Waltzing Matilda whilst wearing a hat in the shape of a house and he then put his live hen on top. He described this chicken as some type of Eagle...He got us laughing and having a real good time.

Thank you to him and the rest of Oz for giving us such a great welcome!