Moving on up to a deluxe toilet in the desert

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August 17, 2007 Ayres Rock
We flew out of Sydney at 9:45 in the morning. It is about a three hour flight. Flying over the outback was amazing. There is nothing but a beautiful reddish orange floor speckled with greenish brown brush. We were able to see Uluru from the plane and what a sight. I remember my Aunt Joann telling me about her visit to Uluru and everything she said was right on. Although it is a huge rock in the middle of the desert, when you actually see it in person Uluru gives off a spiritual peacefulness. It truly is something to see if you are ever given a chance. And when we stepped off the plane, SUNSHINE AND NO CLOUDS IN SIGHT. Finally, our spirits soared even higher.
We were booked at the Campground in a cabin, so we took the free shuttle to our campground. When Mark first said he wanted to go to Ayres rock, I started looking into accommodation and was a bit nervous. Since Ayres Rock is in the middle of the outback and Alice Springs, the nearest city, is two hours away the Ayres rock Resort is the only place to stay for the most part. And being the only accommodation they can and do charge a lot. The average price was about 200-300 dollars a night. On the resort they have about 4 different hotels, a campground, and a hostel type place. Since we were traveling for so long, we really didn’t have the money to spend a lot on the accommodation. We settled for the private cabin with shared facilities, ie using a public bathroom and showers. You know me, I am not down for public bathrooms and showers. There is nothing wrong with it, I just have issues. I was just starting to accept it while waiting in line to check in. After all, the sun was shining, we were in the outback and it might be kinda fun to “rough it”. I gave the reception our name and found myself staring at a blank, confused expression. Oh oh. Turns out, somebody at the campground had moved our booking and didn’t put it back so they were going to upgrade us to one of the hotels. They were very apologetic about it but in my mind I was thinking, YES!!!! Private toilets!!!!!! No need to apologize. So the groundskeeper drove us over to the Dessert Gardens Hotel, and we checked into a room with a bathroom. How wonderful.
The Ayres Rock resort is actually pretty cool, once you get past the prices. Our hotel and the others are all within walking distance. There is only one road that is paved that goes around the resort area, so all the paths take you over the red dirt and through the brush. My white shoes now have a nice red/orange tint to it and I love it. We decided to check out the backpacker area that is equipped with at BBQ area so you can have “shrimp on the Barbie” if you want. Also, they have a rougher, but good outdoor bar area and you get the feel for being in the outback. We had some beers and walked back to our room to enjoy the sunset on our balcony with a bottle of wine. We are headed back to the outdoor bar again, as it is low key, plays country music, and has pool tables and great people. How fun. Dave, Fiona, and Shannon, you would love the bar. Well, I am off to have a pee in my own private toilet and then head for the bar. How great!!! Yeah, I know, too much information, but just remember I could have said more.

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Photos

Ayres Rock
Also called Uluru