Ayers Rock (Uluru)

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Tues 31st Jan
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Up at 6:30am for a 10am flight to Ayers Rock (Uluru) for 3 nights. No flight or baggage problems this time and the plane wasn't anywhere near full. Arrived at Ayers Rock Resort around 14:30. Flight was only about 2h 15m but there is a time difference from Perth of +1.5 hrs - weird or what!

Ayers Rock Resort is a small gathering of 4 hotels, a camp site and a "town centre". Basically it exists to accommodate visitors to the various tours around Uluru and Kata Tjuta. The town centre consists of a few souvenir type shops, coffee shop, small supermarket, tour & information office, bank and a few other small retail outlets. The whole place is quite modern and very clean. There is a medical centre, police station & fire station and just one circular road called Yulara Drive. There is a free bus every 10-15 mins around the place although it is small enough to walk round when not too hot. We can use the facilities, restaurants etc of the other hotels if we like.

Weather is a beautiful 36C and not a cloud in the sky. The swimming pool is lovely, water is a great temperature and we are in a lovely room, ground floor, where we can sit out at the pool side and have a drink. All drinks and food (and everything else too) are quite expensive but I suppose we expected that with such a captive audience.

In the evening there is a big open style bar with a great guitarist/singer playing all evening. There is also a BBQ area where you can buy your meats etc and then go cook it yourself on huge BBQs. You can help yourself to as much salad stuff, baked potatoes, corn on the cob etc as you like. We didn't envy the guy who had to clean the BBQs later on). We didn't eat there but probably will on our last night here. Further, there is a free kitchen where you can coma & go as you please & cook your own food if you want to buy it from the supermarket. There is also a burger/pizza/fish & chip bar which is what got our custom this evening!

Wed 1st Feb
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Had a full breakfast at the hotel, very good and managed to smuggle enough for lunch out also. Well it was expensive!

We went on a little walk around the resort and bought a few souvenirs, then went back to the hotel. Then out to the pool for blog writing and sunbathing.

Iain started with a cold on our last day in Perth and today is streaming - typical in hottest, driest place in Australia! So far Sylvia hasn't caught it but we haven't ruled it out yet. We suspect that the changes in temperature and air-con have something to do with it. Nevertheless he isn't feeling unwell, just that it is annoying! Talking of annoying, there are many flies here (and some other insects). Much more so than in Perth. The flies particularly are annoying and quite persistent little sods!

In the evening we went on the "Sounds of Silence" outing. We were collected from the hotel at 6:30pm and two coach-loads were taken to a very remote area, down a red dirt road. We were met by a waiter who led us to an elevated area where there was a young guy playing the didgerydoo. In fact the lady at the hotel's burger bar had already told it it was likely to be her son Dwayne playing, and indeed it turned out to be so when Sylvia asked him. All were given a glass of champagne, continually topped up by the waiters and canopes of kangaroo, crocodile, salmon and various other things. We wathed the sun set over Kata Tjuta from this spot and then we were taken to a dining area and seated at round tables (each seating 10 people) under the stars. We were served a beautiful meal and lots of quality wine. Then an astonomer guide told us all about the various starts and constellations. We could see so many more stars than at home and could the the Magellenic cloud, jupiter, Venus etc. It was quite awesome, a wonderful experience and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

AFter a few wonderful hours we returned to the hotel a little after 10:30pm where Sylvia joined in with some people dancing to the live music before we retired to bed.

Thurs 2 Feb
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Our last day at Ayers Rock Resort today. In the morning we went for a camel ride which was good. It was just us two and a guide who was very friendly and knowledgeable. We rode into the desert for about 45 mins. After that, not much to do except laze about and later pack up again ready for the flight to Alice Springs tomorrow and then on to Adelaide.

A pretty quiet place, Ayers Rock, not a lot to do here aprt from trips out and the 3 day stay was enough.

So far on our travels we have met some lovely people, not all Australian. Here in Ayers Rock we met a lovely couple from Brazil. Everyone seems so happy and friendly, they all want to talk to you and find out where you are from, where you have been and where you are going.

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