Ayers rock / Uluru: what an incredible rock it is!

I first saw Uluru in sunset, Sunday evening. The first time I have heard of this place was about 8 years ago, in one of the travel magazines I used to read. I remember thinking that I will never get there: Australia is so far and even if I do get there, the rock is so far from anywhere else. But that Sunday I was standing there in front of this piece of rock and I was simply amazed. It's one rock! It's so big!
Of course I wasn't alone there. Thousands of tourists shared the experience with me. But who cares, with beer in one hand and a camera in the other I stood there and appreciated the sight.
The next morning we woke up early (surprising?) to watch the sunrise over Uluru and its less famous neighbour, Kata Tjuta or the Olgas. The Olgas are another interesting piece of land. They were also created when the area was covered by an inland sea, like Uluru, but they are made of a mix of small stones and other things. The Aboriginals nicknamed them pudding rocks because of the bizarre texture. It is interesting that the two phenomena (and Mt. Connor - another neighbour) are so different in the geology even though they were created more or less the same time and same environment.
After sunrise we hiked in the valley of the winds in the Olgas, a nice walk between the domes (the Olgas consist of 36 domes or peaks). It's surprisingly green over there, and in fact the whole area is a botanical garden compared to the SA outback.
Later this morning we visited the Aboriginal culture centre. Following the visit I decided not to climb the rock. I was disappointed as I really wanted to do it, but they ask people not to do it because it's a sacred place for them. I don't find it really justified because it's a natural site and they can't own it, but I thought that they were fucked up so much by the white man so I don't want to add to that personally. Instead I took a helicopter flight to the rock. I am getting to used to helicopters, it's fun! It was really short but it was lovely to see the rock from another angle.
Of course in the evening we went to see the sunset over Uluru again (from a quieter spot this time) and in the morning we had pancake breakfast during sunrise in front of Uluru. It's a very touristy thing to do, but who cares, all these sunrises and sunsets are so beautiful.
Our morning hike, for those who decided not to climb the rock, was around it. You walk for about 2 hours in close proximity to the rock and you can't stop admiring this creation of nature. Around it everything is totally FLAT. The track around it could be wheel chair accessible! And in the middle - there is a huge rock.

That evening was the last night of the tour. I decided to swag again, as it wasn't cold. The campfire was huge (we collected the wood ourselves!) and lots of beer was consumed around it, and the spaghetti Bolognese prepared by Glen was fantastic.

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