Blogs from Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia, Oceania

G'day from sunny Alice Springs! We arrived here at lunchtime yesterday after an action packed few days along the Oodnadatta track. We set off from Leigh Creek fully stocked up and having caught up with the family having got some scarce mobile reception. Our first stop was Maree and a very relaxed set up then off to the pub for a meal on Craig after he had a nice little win on the pokies then back for more beers around the shed fire. The next morning we explored the train ruins at the old Maree station and brushed up on our Ghan Railway history which Tim was happy to help with. Then off to William Creek supposedly an easy 209kms. The first stop was to look at Lake Eyre which is totally dry at the moment ... read more

Alice Springs I arrived in Alice Springs (Northern Territory) roughly one week ago. After an amazing and comfortable train trip on The Ghan I was ready to take on the outback. It's hard to imagine that anything like this town can sustain itself out here, but luckily I arrived at the perfect time of the year; 30 degrees, wind and actually a bit of rain. A local guy I spoke to on the train mentioned, that untill a few weeks ago, Alice Springs had had 42 degrees dai ly with only a few millimeters of rain. Pretty rough! I got off the train and got lured into a bus belonging to one of the many hostels here. The hostel was called "Annies Place" and I must admit that this is probably one of the best hostels ... read more

We left Uluru early on Tuesday morning and drove about three hours to Kings Canyon. Another one resort place in the outback. We drove out to the Canyon in the afternoon and did the creek walk which is just about an hour. The next morning, Wednesday, we were up and out to start the Canyon's rim walk by 7am in the morning. This is a 6 kilometer walk which they suggest takes around 3 and a half hours, and they don't let anyone start this walk after 9am because of the heat. They advise you to take one and a half litres of water per hour of walking, but we couldn't carry 9 litres between us so settled on 4 and a half litres. It is a strenous climb to start, but once up at the ... read more

The reference to Alice Springs airport as 'dinky' means "small & cute" in British and should not be interpreted with any demeaning connotation by American speakers.... read more

Ok I really didn't mean to sleep till gone 11 but I did. Fortunately last night the hotel left me a birthday card and a big plate of fruit. Our breakfast! We booked an afternoon tour and we got a taxi into town to have a walkabout before getting the bus. The town is very small and very poor. We bought a couple of things of Aboriginal design and a thimble, and of course the book "A Town like Alice". Then we boarded the bus. The population of Alice Springs is between 25-26,000. First stop Anzac Hill with tbe war memorial which was originally for WW1 soldiers. Later this was updated to commemorate those who died in WW2 and Vietnam and Iraq. Then on to The Telegraph Office which was the original town. The town was ... read more

Its been 30 years since I immigrated with my parents and three sisters from South Africa to Australia. We have all grown up, married with children and have a great opportunity to return together. Planning this trip has been an enormous task, ably undertaken by my brother-in-law. He has somehow been able to sqeeze in every state in South Africa, all our birthtowns, our holiday spots and catching up with relatives, plus more. Concerning though is the planning around what physical preparation is required to visit South Africa. Are there immunisations, prophylactics and other precuations required? I lived there for 16 years and apart from the usual immunisations I was not sure I really needed anything. In comes the Travel Doctor! Always err on the side of caution when travelling anywhere. As a nurse I advise ... read more