Its a hard life but someones got to do it

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Hello to all my travel fans (a but hungover today will explain more later!)

Just finished the best 7 days of my life, seen many things that I will probably never see again and met cool people. This is a very very very long Blog. Photos at LinktoPhotos

We'll start with Day Uno (1) - Tues: Was picked up by the tour company at 6.45am from Adelaide. South Aus is the wine capital of the world and we drove through lots of winerys in Clare Valley. It reminded me of Surrey with the green fields and hills. Drove further into the Flinders Ranges and had lunch at a gorge, saw Yellow footed Rock Wallabies, called because they have yellow feel, live on the rocks and are wallabies! Got chatting to the other 8 people on the bus, all really friendly and got to know them over the course of the whole week. Kept driving (there's a lot of driving by the way!) further into the ranges and climbed a hill and saw some aborignal drawing lines (rock art). Then went to a look out and saw one of the best sunsets ever. All along the road were Kangaroos, red and grey. Some with little Joeys (aah). Gets a bit hairy when night draws as thats when they appear. Spent the night at Angorichina (Angor-rich-na) in dorms. Its gets very cold during the night over here and boiling during the day.

Day 2 A early morning wake up call at 7am and shivered my way to the bathroom! In the morning I went for a bike ride through the gorges with the rest of the group. Got up some speed but the roads are dirt and all ridged so you bounce along, ended up with muscle vibration. Drove along the Ooandatta track and usually you pass 2 cars coming the other way. This time we saw 120, due to there being a charity rally going through the outback. I was sitting at the front of the bus and was holding on for dear life while we were sliding around. Stopped on the track at Lake Eyre the worlds largest Salt Lake. It wasnt that full and we drove 12m below sea level. I think I saw it when I flew into Sydney. Ended up at William Creek which has a population of 2. We spent all night in the bar and stayed up til 2am sitting around the camp fire. In the bar people leave things and it gets stapled to the wall. If I had been thinking about it would have brought out my Aston Uni card (not going to need it any more). Spent the night in a swag and looked at the stars

Day 3 Another drive along the track, this road isnt on my map! Went to Coober Pedy which translated from Aborginal is 'White Mans Cave'. It;s the most bonkers place in the world. It's an opal mining town and is where 80%!o(MISSING)f the worlds opals come from. Everyone lives in caves drilled out of the hillside as It gets up to 55 degrees during the summer. Inside the caves it's 22 degrees all the time. Had a tour around a made up house. People build extensions on their houses to keep mining for opals. You only need a little bit to make a lot of money, so if Surrey doesnt work out you'll find me at Coober Pedy! I got a piece of potch which is opal that is worth nothing as Opal is the birthstone of October. Went to the breakaways where Pitch Black, Thelma and Louise, Priscilla Queen of the desert and Mars:Red Planet was filmed. Amazing scenery, and it does look like a world away. Theres a dog fence that goes all the way to NSW and its to keep out the dingos, doesnt look much but dingos cant jump. Spent the afternoon chilling out as the temperature got up to 30 degrees. In the evening went to an underground bar, had to walk through a sandstorm to get there.

Day 4 Left at 6.50am in the morning to get to Uluru. Had a 720km drive and it took 10 hours. Our aim was to get camp set up and watch the sunset which we did successfully. Us and every other tourist in the world. We had our beers and saw an amazing sight. Uluru changes colour as the sun sets and we saw the moon rise from behind it. Been waiting 3 years to see this moment and it was better than I could every imagine. Words can not describe the sight

Day 5 Woke up at 5am to see the sunrise and get a good spot. Went to a place where you have Kata Tjtuta on one side and Uluru in the distance. We were the first group there and not many tourists go there as they go to the main spot. Absolutely amazing again and the sight stopped me remembering that I was absolutely freezing. Drove to Kata Tjtute to do a 7km walk around part of it. People think that Uluru and the national park is in the middle of the desert but there is vegetation all around it. Came back from the walk and started a game of cricket, which I have discovered I can't play! Then went to the cultural centre to learrn more about the place and why the aboriginal people dont want you to climb Uluru.

Day 6 Another early start got to the National Park at 6am just as it opened and parked up and had a fried breakfast. Had a baby dingo sniffing around trying to get some dinner. This sunrise wasnt as good as the other one, but you could see the colours more clearly, it wemt from a dull red to a bright colour that constrasted well with the blue sky. Then went and did the base walk, just under 9km. Took just over 2 hours to do. Got some more close up pictures but you cant take photos of certain parts as it is a sacred area. I didnt climb as I think it is disrespectful to the people and goingn against their wishes. After lunch drove to our final accomodation at Kings Creek Station, part of the largest cattle station in the world or Aus (cant remember which!). Chilled out again there with our beers and bundy and cola.

Day 7Last walk of the trip - The Rim walk at Kings Canyon. First part is called Heart Attack hill as a lot of old people try to climb up 120m and have a heart attack! A bit scary near the edge and we did a group photo of all of use lying near the edge looking 120m down. Left there and headed on another dirt road. Along here we saw lots of wild camels, they were introduced in the 1800s as horses couldnt cope with the heat so explorers switched to Afghan camels. You can round one up for free and they are being sent back to Afghanistan! Drove up Stuarts highway (the road between Alice and Adelaide) and stopped at Stuarts well to see Dinkee the Singing Dingo, unfortunately he wasnt there so didnt get to see him howl. Arrived in Alice at 3pm and met up for a meal and drinks with the group and guide at 7pm. 2am this morning I came back to the hostel. The drinks were quite cheap 4 pounds for a double vodk and coke. Woke up this morning and realised how much Ive spent! Still a bit tipsy now!

Overall the trip was the trip of a lifetime and anyone who comes to Aus should do it (I went with Groovy Grape). Saw places wouldnt be able to see by myself and leant so much about the land. Met strange and eccentric people and saw a part of the real Australia and not just the touristy side. Would do it all again in a flash and its been the highlight of my trip so far and probably will be at the end.

Hope everyone is well.
Karen

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