*~Spring Break 2011 Part 1~*

Spring Break started out on Friday morning when Jessica, Lizzie, Mark, and I caught the bus to Byron Bay. Here we had lunch and hit the ATM before loading Grayhound Australia for our 3 1/2 hour bus ride to Brisbane! This was the true start to our trip! Once we arrived in Brisbane we hailed a taxi to our hotel, checked in, and headed off for dinner. Our hotel room (to save money) was booked for two and the other two just snuck in later. The room was tiny but we made it work...two in the double bed, one on the floor, and one on the chairs we turned into a bed. It might have been small and crowded but we saved money and were only staying for one night. The rest of the night was spent playing card games such as spoons, bs, equptian rat screw and much more! It was a fun night and we were all excited for the next leg of our journey early the next morning.

On the bus to Brisbane! The first leg of our journey

Our first hotel room...we booked for two and squeezed in four!...the room was so small we couldnt get a picture without part of the wall in it haha

We started with two in the bed...but by the end of the night Lizzie joined...the chairs were not as comfortable as she though they would be!

Waking up at 6:30am on a Saturday is crazy! We slowly crawled out of bed and hurried to get up and get ready for our 7:15am taxi. One thing I will never get use to here is the taxi and bus drivers...everytime im in a bus or a taxi I feel like im on a rollercoaster...but we always make it safely to our destination so I cant complain to much. Once we got to the airport we printed our boarding passes, made it through security, bought a magazine for the flight and boarded. We were right on time and the 3 hour flight went smoothly. We arrived in Alice Springs 20 minutes ahead of schedule and the airport was tiny! When they unloaded the plane we exited right onto the runway and walked into the airport...this was the first time I have ever done that before! I felt like I was famous or in a movie! Spirits were high in our group as we found a free bus that took us right to our hostel and getting a local tour on the way! The bus driver was full of jokes and interesting to talk to. Once we got to the hostel we checked in and immediately went to the rock tour company to secure a spot on our Uluru tour. After that we explored and did some shopping! Alice Springs was a lot smaller than I expected but we got some great tips on what places to check out. The reptile center was a deffinate must see! We got to watch a saltwater crocodile be fed a chicken, pet a goanna, hold a snake, and had the option to hold a bearded dragon and blue tounge lizard! I was not going to well with the reptiles but I am trying to stay open minded and fearless on this trip so with the help of Jess and Lizzie I held the snake! Then we headed back to the hostel to rest up a bit before heading to the local bar for dinner and heading to bed early.

Taxi to the Brisbane airport

Made it to the airport terminal...heading to Alice Springs

Our bus to the hostel from the airport

:) we made it!!!

Our hostel

Layin next to a goanna

Saltwater Crocodile

Feeding time

yummmm chicken!!!

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Reptile show

AHHHHHHHHH im holding a snake...I was freaking out...and nervous...but I am living with the fearless motto so I did it :)

            We woke up early on Sunday to get ready for the Rock Tour bus to pick us up and start our journey! Breakfast consisted of two pieces of toast and a lot of waiting around. Our motto for the morning seemed to be “hurry-up-and wait!” When the bus finally did arrive we tried to get comfortable for the five hour bus ride into Kings Canyon! Our first hike! Our tour guide was a very interesting one. He reminded me a lot of my brother…he was outgoing and full of adventure! On the way we saw our first outback tumbleweed and had a surprisingly very green view. I guess when all of the locals kept calling it the Green Center instead of the Red Center like usual they were not kidding! It was beautiful!! Along the way we stopped a few times to stretch, fill up with gas, and use the bathrooms. The first stop was a t a Shell station and everyone was shocked by how many flies there were…we all bought fly nets to wear…it was quite annoying to have flies landing on your face! Another must have on the trip was 3 liters of water…we were not allowed to go on any of the hikes without a minimum of 3 liters! That’s a LOT of water!!

            Once we arrived in Kings Canyon we started our 3 hour hike. The weather was perfect but unexpected. Instead of it being scorching hot like you would assume the desert is like, there was a slight breeze and overcast. This was amazing and prevented people from overheating on the hike. The hike and the views along the hike were breathtaking. We could see for miles out into the green outback. Our tour told us that even when it’s all orange and there are still trees and shrubs they are just brown and yellow instead of green. He kept emphasizing how lucky we were to be able to witness the outback at this unique time! Another interesting fact I learned was that the soil and rock is naturally white but turns orange because of the high amounts of iron that it causes everything to rust. Towards the middle of the hike we got to go down into the Garden of Eden! This is a very important spot for the Aborigines (the Anangu as they like to be called). This huge waterhole was often used by the men for bathing before ceremonies. We all went for a quick dip in the waterhole to cool off and have the experience to swim in a desert! It was beyond beautiful!

Heading off for our hike at Kings Canyon...the flies were horrible to start with so as silly as we look...fly nets were a must!

The start of our hike!

The views and the rock was beautiful...really indescribable

Part of the trail that leads down to the Garden of Eden

Swimming in the waterhole...IN THE DESERT!

Group shot at the canyon

After the swim we wanted to dry off before wearing our clothes again so we walked around in our swim suits and tennis shoes...i felt like i was five again and at the camp ground!

Silly picture...our guide Scott jumping off of the canyon lol

            Right when we got back to the bus it started to poor down rain…keep in mind we are in the desert and it’s raining! On our way to the bush camp sight we had to stop off on the side of the road and get some firewood. We all pitched in a tore down some head tree branches and tired them to the top of our trailer. Then it was off to our bush camp sight. It took awhile to get there and by the time we did it was pitch black outside! We set up camp and cooked dinner all by the light of the fire. Dinner was cooked by our tour guide over the fire! It was a new experience for me but the food was delicious! We had chilly, dapper, steamed vegetables, and roasted potatoes! Luckily the rain didn’t reach our camp site until after we ate. So camp was set up in the rain. We had a small shelter we could sleep under and we put up tarps around the side to keep the rain out…then we all gathered our swags and sleeping bags and went to bed!

Collecting firewood to cook dinner

Our bus and all the firewood!

Bush camp...this is the shelter we slept under

eating dinner by the fire :)

warming up by the fire!

setting up our swags

time for bed...hope all the creatures stay away!

all tucked in for the night :)

            In the morning on Monday we had to get up bright and early 5:30am! I slept pretty well listening to the storm all night was relaxing. Breakfast was tea and toast again, all cooked at the camp site. We didn’t waste any time getting back on the road! We loaded everything up and headed to Kata Tjuta for another hike! It was still raining outside but it didn’t ruin our good spirits. The best thing about the rain was the fact that we got to see waterfalls on our hike! This is a once in a lifetime experience and it was quite the site! To respect the Anangu people and their beliefs we were only allowed to hike through some of the rock. Today the Australian people really respect the Anangu people and their land…it hasn’t always been that way.

wrapped in a towel to stay warm...it was a little chilly and rainy

view during our hike

Kata Tjuta

part of our trail during the hike

Yippppyyyyy

Group shot!

            After the hike, while battling the flies, we had a sandwich lunch and then headed off to Uluru! We couldn’t see Uluru for quite some time because of the rain and clouds but as soon as we saw the outline of the rock we all were excited for our first hike on this beautiful and sacred rock!

            Before we went for our hike at Uluru we went to the Culture Center to learn more about the Anangu people and Uluru. We were not allowed to take pictures here but I bought a painting from an Anangu woman who was sitting in the shop painting. I felt very lucky to be able to watch her paint the story on a canvas and also be able to learn how to read the painting so I can tell the story to others.  

            The first hike we did was the Mala walk. This was a short walk that took about an hour with Scott telling us stories along the way. It was very interesting to learn about how the Anangu people used to live and survive on this land…as well as how they use the land today. The information that the guides know and are allowed to share with tourists is called “childrens business”. This is because the Anangu people are very protective of their knowledge. They have a pyramid system of knowledge. Children’s business is shared with the children and the white man can also know this knowledge. Men’s business is only shared between the Anangu men who have proven themselves and are high enough in their rankings. Women’s business only shared between the Anangu women that have proven the knowledge to be a women. There were also a lot of places at Uluru that we could not take pictures of. These were sacred grounds that we are privileged just to be able to see them.

The climb to the top of Uluru is often closed for safelty reasons...35 people have left the rock dead from climbing to the top...that doesnt could the number of people who later died from injuries acquired during the climb



I would never climb to the top of Uluru because of these reasons...the Anangu have been trying to get ride of the climb but the arguement is that its a huge reason tourists come to the rock...if people were more educated about the issue the number of people climbing the rock would dramatically decrease



Uluru is an amazing rock with lots of caves and caverns

The Wave Cave

This area was used as a kitchen by the women

cave art...it is a little hard to see because for many years tour guides came into the caves and sprayed them down with water running their hands over the art and destroying it

            When the hike was finished we all sat around Scott and he told us about the history of the Anangu people. We were able to ask questions and hear a lot of different stories that will be useful in my presentation and paper on Uluru. When we were on our way back to the bus it started to down poor again. We are in the desert and it’s raining…and to add to the rare weather, we get to witness Uluru with waterfalls! Scott got extremely excited and we all began to run to the waterfalls that Uluru was creating. We got to watch the waterfalls grow and by the time they were hitting the ground we were drenched! The beauty is indescribable and no picture could ever do it justice. This has been by far the best experience on my trip to Australia! The water was rushing so fast at some places that it was spraying us hard enough to push us backwards…we had to hold onto the railings. I loved it!!

It was amazing to watch the waterfalls grow!

the caves were the best place to take a shower!

This waterfall was huge!

group shot

Uluru is such an incredible and sacred place to visit and seeing it have waterfalls is indescribable...the pictures can never do it justice

            After the waterfall fun we drove to the sunset lookout. I was a little disappointed that we couldn’t see anything because of the clouds but I was still super excited that I could see Uluru at this rare moment. Next stop was our camp. This time we stayed at a campground however, it was still raining so we had to cook dinner under a shelter and then set up our swags and put tarps up again to keep us as dry as possible. Most people still got soaked, but I was perfectly dry in the spot that I picked! This was the first time we got a warm shower and it felt amazing after being cold and wet for the majority of the day.

Tuesday March 15^th

            We all woke up around 5:30 am again in order to make it to sunrise! This time we packed up camp and loaded the bus so we could take off. Once we got to the site we made breakfast and sat around watching sunrise over Uluru. The rain had cleared and the clouds were starting to move away so we could see a little bit of the colors during sunset but it was still a little cloudy. None the less a sunrise over Uluru is always beautiful!

BSU group with our tour guide

the entire tour group at sunrise

            After sunrise was over we drove to the base of Uluru again for our last hike around the base of Uluru. The hike took about an hour and took us almost around the entire base. There were a lot of caves, boulders, and different colored rocks to see on the hike. Scott didn’t go on this hike with us because it was suppose to be an individual hike but I did miss hearing all of his stories and learning about the different sacred places around the rock.

the rock formations and different colors amazed me

a map of the walks around Uluru...this is where we are!

more caves and caverns...the amazing this is that none of the Anangu people have ever climbed up Uluru and have never explored anything besides the base of the rock

            When the base walk was done we were on the road again. This time we were heading back to Alice Springs. I was a little sad to say goodbye to the rock but also excited to move to the next chapter of my Spring Break.

            On the ride back we stopped off at a few gas stations to fill up with fuel and get some food. I love the culture here and how laid back everyone is. We could walk right into the gas station without shoes on! (I did this because my shoes were soaking wet from the waterfalls and base walk) We also stopped at a camel farm for a quick ride on camels. It was a lot of fun but also a little painful bouncing around on the camel’s back!

            To end the Uluru adventure on a good and fun note the two tour buses had a friendly race back to the airport and Alice Springs. Along the way we threw random food items at the other bus and of course they threw stuff back…while passing each other on a two lane road. Scott was having a blast and the whole group was getting in on the fun. (Don’t worry it was safe…the road was straight and there were no other cars for miles…when a car came along we were on the right of the road…well…the left side of the road to be 100% accurate).

            We made it back to Toddy’s Backpackers hostel just in time to shower, do some laundry (our wet clothes smelled terrible, and rest up a bit before heading out for dinner with the group.