Family stuff, as they say. One such was a wonderful visit to my second home in the Netherlands. Utrecht is one of my favourite cities in the world. Thus year I had the chance to take my young nieces to visit and explore the city.
Our first meal in Utrecht
Of course they had never tries Dutch food so day one, meal one gad to be traditional ‘borrelhapjes’. To be honest, the wee one can be a touch fussy, so bar snacks offered the widest opportunity for something to be OK. Butterbollen. Kaarstengels. Loaded fries. Loempias. And the best baked apples ever. We ate, we collapsed.
For anyone planning a visit, I’d recommend the Strowis. It’s a workers collective run hostel. Clean. Quiet . It even has a garden…but no sharks.
We stayed in a shared bathroom twin in the attic. Showers are large and clean and there are plenty of loos on each floor. There’s a kitchen too for making your own food though sadly breakfast is no longer available (covid). There’s a bar and coffee available. Games, art materials and they own the pub axcross the garden too. We chatted to Aussies, Koreans and Americans. That’s the joy of hostels you never know who you’ll meet. The staff are great and proved very helpful on this occasion.
Day two with the small people and a visit to the Museum Speelklok which is a personal favourite. Noisy and full of grandparents and grandchildren. We were in there for hours watching and listening to the huge circus organs and making our own musical books to play. Of course there was coffee and apple pie
A ‘straatorgel’
After dad had gone off to the dance music festival in Amsterdam we carried on to the library. I love this building. It was once the Post Office. I’ve been trying to get inside again for ten years, and now it is gloriously open. Go to the library.
Utrecht library
It’s like something out of Dune. I just feel like lying on the floor snd staring at the ceiling. Now there’s a lift so you can get above it to see the preservation work they’ve done. Seriously, go to the library. They also have a play post office which took a chunk of time and an excellent cafe.
Day three saw very tired youngsters peek up at the sight of a playground and a petting zoo in Grift Park. Word of caution here. If you’re an Uber fan don’t expect to find them much outside of Amsterdam because the Dutch use cycles so much so why get a cab?
Day four. Amsterdam. A stroll from Centraal Station to Rokin for a trip on my favourite boat (Reiderij Kooi). By now, the young ones were flagging as evidenced by the question (from the 4 year old) “When are you going to stop showing us things?” To be fair we’d made each of them an age appropriate scrap book to use whilst we were there and these had been used enthusiastically throughout the trip. Daddy was spotted on the bridge awaiting our return. Lunch and off to the airport for us. Naturally, it is more bitterbollen at the Hoppe.
Showing them things
Twi weeks later and our chums from the Netherlands arrived on the doorstep.
I spent Monday evening teaching SCUBA theory to three blokes who seemed fixated on how many ways SCUBA can kill you. Obviously you can die SCUBA diving but the whole point of teaching safety and calculations etc is to prevent that happening. Almost the entire evening boiled down to …’there are old divers and there are bold divers but there are no old, bold divers’. Translated: do as you’re told, take safety seriously and you’ll have a better chance of survival.
Look, I know that calculating a risk is not sexy. I’m at a point in my life where I don’t care what you think. I prefer to come up from dive a little tired and grinning at the wonderful things I’ve seen or learned along the way. What set them off was a true story of the day there was an unsuccessful rescue of a diver at a site I was visiting. I don’t particularly know the details of what happened only that I was amongst those who helped in the rescue and aftermath. I’m sure it haunts the people directly involved to this day.
Tuesday I took a couple of those same blokes into the swimming pool (the have not progressed into open water yet) to practice rescue techniques. Let’s say they will get some more practice before we let them out into the real world. It’s hard trying to relate the safety of the pool environment to the great outdoors and a surprising number of big husky guys and gals revert to holding the instructors hand like a child when they get into a diving centre’s water for the first time. Eventually though they learn to float effortlessly with the flow and it becomes an almost meditative experience. I’m lucky. I’ve been a BSAC dive Instructor for about 5 years at time of writing, and diving for about 8 years or so. I get to practice all the skills very regularly because I’m teaching them. Complete mask removal and replacement in 4 degree (centigrade) water if not fun but it proves that you could do it if you needed to, it is not that cold at the moment and was a balmy 11 degrees C in the deep end of the quarry last week.
A word about quarries. The one where I dive is not a working quarry. It has been converted into a dive centre. There is a phone and rescue equipment, certified rescuers… that sort of thing. To anyone out there thinking of a refreshing dunk in your local water source please don’t do it unless properly trained and equipped. I spend a chunk of time every summer explaining to parents and teens that the water may look lovely but it is both deep (your toddler will get into difficulty in 6 to 20 metres of water) and cold (look there’s a reason I’m wearing this diving suit and rubber hood). Even the open water swimmers are wearing full length wetsuits and carrying floats. At the moment most of the UK is staying indoors (it is summer) as its heaving down with rain but once that sun shines you know that some teenage boy is going to die by being too bold in very cold water. For reference it’s the shock to your system of a huge temperature change. (I have swum, supervised in a dock in the North of England wearing nothing but a swim suit in November, a long time ago. It was for a lifesavers exam. I really can’t recommend it).
Saucy? Well, whilst the Netherlands can provide a very ‘adult’ holiday destination in my case, I’m off to see an old friend. We met in the North of Ireland about 40 years ago, and there’s pretty much nothing we don’t know about each other. We haven’t seen each other since pre pandemic and even a chunk of time before that, but you know what, after all this time he’s still my friend. This is the guy who flew in for 24 hours to be the witness at our wedding. He’s pretty special.
The town of Brummen is nowhere. Tiny. Rural and not on the map for most tourists. They’re missing out. It’s on the edge of the Veluwe, near Arnhem and encircled by forest and fields. Beautiful. Not only that but classic car fans would flock to The Gallery to browse, buy or hire a Delorian or a Porche just like James Dean’s. There’s a cute little ferry across the river and a walk taking you to Bronkhorst which styles itself as ‘Dickensian’ and has no cars allowed in the villages where artisan craftspeople ply their wares.
Day two a zoo adventure. Its a 20 minute drive to Burger Zoo, an amazing place. It’s designed in habitats so the people are kept more co fined and the animals (except large or dangerous ones) mingle in the biomes. There’s desert, rainforest… you get the picture. Wow! Their conservation work is impressive and they started the idea of habitat based zoos way way back. I’m.not sure we saw everything but we came close. A relaxed evening meal with a little wine and conversation that went too late as our host had do leave stupid early for a work trip giving us the keys to the house and time to ourselves. We rested from our journey (How many stag do’s (Bachelors parties) can you fit on a plane?) and took a gentle walk to the local thrift store as you’ve seen in a previous post before shooting off to the next village over for an evening meal with some other chums. I noticed in the free newspaper that Hall (where we were for the evening) was expecting a Lancaster Bomber fly past for VE day.
A not so early start the next day took us by train (and the trains from Brummen are excellent) took us via Zwolle to Deventer. It’s not a place I’d ever been and I have to say its a stunning medieval city. I think we found the pinkest cafe there for lunch which was excellent and a book store which took up a chunk of our time before hopping back to Zwolle to meet someone I’ve known since they were six for a coffee and ice cream in one of the local game cafes. We left as a serious game of Magic the Gathering began in earnest. Zwolle is also an amazing medieval city with the walls still visible and a ‘moat’ around the town centre.
What I didn’t mention earlier was that this was the week on Kings Day. The Dutch, like the UK, have a monarchy but unlike the UK make the monarch’s official birthday an excuse for a huge party and a public holiday. Brummen kept it low key with a small market and flea market (swap meet) and, of course a lot of orange clothing. My favourite part of the day was ‘King William’ ice cream, the joke is King Billy ice cream as Erik and I had met in Northern Ireland. We didn’t stay long and aerik took us into the Veluwe to one of the many national park properties to spot wild deer in the forest. What a magical evening. Please venture out of Amsterdam next time you’re in Holland.
Friday we took our leave and headed to my favourite city, Utrecht. It’s a university city equivalent to Oxford or Cambridge in its size and tone. No rivers but the Oude and Niewe Gracht (canals). We had an air b’n’b in what has become the Moslem area of town …. oh yes great food! Usually we visit the Straat Orgel Museum but we planned something different this time. One of my favourite buildings in the world (alongside Battersea power station which is on the list since it has been refurbished as a shopping centre). 10 years ago I tried to take Em there only to find it closed!!!! Noooooo. There were various rumours as to what it would become … thankfully my worst fears were not realised. Welcome to Utrecht Library, formerly the Post Office. The joy of the refit was that we could work our way up to the rafters to see the stunning glass roof from both inside and out. Honestly people go in to lie on the floor and look up. I’d borrow a lot of books if this were my local library. There’s a really cool coffee shop too.
The next day we spent wandering the town. Being a University city there’s a lot of places to eat and drink fairly cheaply and lots of board game shops (we found 4). We had to buy licorice, salty licorice, for my dad and visit the excellent handmade chocolate shop we found lst time we were here. sad to say some places had suffered and gone through the pandemic. We found the most chill bar of the trip close to the cathedral (the Dom) and partook of some Belgian beer before a visit to another of my favourite little men, a tiny statue of a monk in the cloister. It was a sunny day and the place I’ve so often had to myself, was packed. Excellent busker in there too. I said a quick hello to the little fella and we headed out to the air b’n’b to feed the cats. Yes, this one came with critters and a small yard/garden.
Homeward bound we stopped in Amsterdam en route for the airport. There was a book I wanted and the American Book Centre had it in stock which is lucky since its around the corner from one of my favourite bars on Spui. Now the Hoppe is famous and old and usually rammed with tourists but its sister bar (the one with the toilets … if you know you know) is used more by locals. Finally we set our teeth on bitterballen. They’re hard to explain. Kinda like a thick soupy but not liquid middle of meat and potato (ish) in a breadcrumb coating. usually eaten with mustard. As ever I had the house speciality, Jenever, a sort of Dutch precursor to gin. next we hopped on the subway to avoid the crowds (Yes, read that again the subway is the least crowded mode of transport) and headed to NSDM one of the newer, trendier areas of Amsterdam. It’s in a former dockyard and holds a lot of arts workshops, cafes and the Street art museum (which we didn’t have time to visit). On a hot sunny day we were grateful to grab the ferry back to Amsterdam Centraal to head out to Schipol.
It’s been too long and I miss my friends. Not too much time will pass before I’m on Dutch soil again.
Apologies for the delay on this as my hand is in a splint … don’t ask .. so this will take me a while to type!
Rolling overnight from Coober Pedy we woke up to an emu vs kangaroo race alongside the tracks and to a countryside that looked a little more like the southern end of the UK. Wheat fields and greenery. Staff made themselves available for selfies and goodbyes. We arrived around early afternoon and were taken by private car to our air b’n’b in the historic district just off Adelaide’s Chinatown and a five minute walk from the famous food market. Guess what our first stop was?
It was close to closing time but we managed to find a couple of talkative former Brits who were happy to direct us to the best bread stall and some great local produce. We were at the market daily. There are a range of excellent cafes and loads of high quality food alongside a bookstall and weirdly a camera shop. One thing I did find odd was that apart from the market there was nothing we might call an ‘Off Licence’. Supermarkets don’t sell alcohol. We wandered into a pub that seemed to indicate it sold drinks for home consumption. Yep, there they were locked up away from the bar. A bottle shop. Sad to say we had come across a number of people with varying mental health and alcohol issues on our journey and many of these were First Nation individuals. I can see the logic in making alcohol difficult to get to but when we think about Australia in the UK the pub features heavily so it was an eye opener to see the strict controls. It’s been sad to hear about the current issues in Alice Springs since we came home too
The little row house we were staying in had one window in the front and one in the back with non at all the kitchen which was served by a skylight. It was cosy but we both felt like we were still moving for a while there. The weather forecast was very British but we’d brought our rain gear so not problem. Day one and we located the museum quarter and the superb collection in the South Australian Museum. This includes an opalised fossil dinosaur and I love a fossil of any kind. Just across the yard is the Art Gallery of South Australia where we spent a good few hours enjoying the modern art and the excellent selection of Namatjura paintings.
It took us a while the next day to work out how to get hold of a bus pass having been refused entry to a buss for Handorf as they don’t accept cash. (HINT: get it at the railway station and talk to a human being to make sure you’re getting the best deal). Armed with the appropriate piece of plastic we got onto a local bus and wound our way to the former ‘German Town’ through places with familiar names and an unfamiliar location. The tours to Barossa are wildly expensive but the Handorf winery is beautiful and a normal commuter bus is a more interesting experience than a tour. honestly we saved about 350 dollars!
If you’ve never tasted good wine with good chocolate I’d suggest that you try this wine pairing when you are in town. The historic high street of Handorf had a range of cafes and niche/boutique shops. Yes, its a bit touristy but very pretty. The original Melbourne Cup was on display in the Wolf Blass bar/tasting centre and it was Melbourne cup day. With the time differences I can honestly say Adelaide was very quiet when we got back! It still blow my mind how many different time zones cover Australia.
Now I had my birthday while we were in Adelaide. Asked what I’d like to do I opted for the zoo. Out with the trusty bus pass, but no, there is a free city circular which dropped us not far from the Adelaide Oval and a short walk from the zoo. I had thought to book to walk over the roof of the oval but we decided it was a touch pricey since I’m the only one with any interest in cricket! We ran into some cricketers in the Rundle Mall …. some team, pale blue kit … may have been Australia!
The zoo was a lovely day out. We got to feed the giraffes and I could have cuddled them (you’re asked specifically not to try). You have no notion of how big a giraffe is until its eating from your hand. I love the fact that there were school kids at the zoo and that there’s a huge emphasis on conservation. People found it so funny that we through the ibis were exotic when the locals called them ‘bin chicken’. I’d not seen one so close as when it was trying to steal my lunch! They really do look like Egyptian mummies.
Finally a day to wander around and do a touch of shopping. Obviously we found an antique book store, I found an R.M. Williams belt and we found the Mall’s Balls. Then there was chocolate at Beehive Corner.
Leaving for the airport we sailed past the Journey Beyond passenger terminal. The flight to Perth for our connection to the UK proved lively with a passenger collapsing in economy and staff trying hard to maintain composure when we had seen the defibrillator coming out. We gave them some of our chocolate figuring they needed it more than we. That passenger walked off the plane into the care of waiting paramedics!
Whilst we’d grown used to business class treatment it was still wonderful to be spoiled rotten all the way home. Pajamas, food at all hours (thankfully, as I fell asleep before dinner finished being on Adelaide time), fully flat beds and a smooth flight back to Heathrow. We arrived on a strike day (underground staff) making our journey across London a quieter than expected. I hated that we had no choice but to break the strike and I’m sorry folks.
Would I recommend the whole Australian experience? Well, we’re planning the next one already. I reckon the train experience was well worth every penny. I know the flights were an indulgence but folks if this is a once in a lifetime for you, treat yourself. I’ve done that journey in economy and business is worth it if only to get some sleep. Someone said to me this very afternoon that they’d love to do the Ghan but. There are no buts. It’s well worth the experience. Make it the focus of your big birthday (like I did), get vouchers, start a travel account that you can’t access easily, ask for your Christmas and birthday money. Travel is always worth the trouble. Our next trip is somewhat shorter but already planned and Australia… we will see you asap.
Footnote: just had dinner with Karen & Smiley… in the UK. They are still wonderful. Go on their tours!
That is what Kupa Piti means. Coober Pedy, white man in a hole. Of course Coober Pedy has no station so we drew in at Manguri a siding about 40 km out of town. We rolled in and were met by Ghan branded coaches and staff ready to take us on the tour of the town. There were options for half day tours taking in just the Breakaways or just the mine but naturally most people want the full trip. We were sent to our numbered vehicle and the whole beautifully choreographed operation swung into action. Each coach took the tour in a different direction so as not to swamp the destinations.
Manguri Station
Today was a very different experience. Beautiful scenery and great photo ops but also restricted by the care the Australians are taking of their country. (Now in Pricilla Queen of the Desert the bus breaks down and our heroes find themselves in need of rescue…. that’s the Breakaways). Our driver for the day 26 years old with a bucket full of dad jokes. It felt odd to be on a 50 seater especially on dirt roads. Breathtaking is the only way to describe the view from our hill (several were being used). Champagne, well, of course. Stories of the various landmarks and their names. Honestly, I could have stayed there all day. WOW!
Breakaways
This is a fragile area. Many different colours of soil and rock. I swear you can see the curve of the earth from up here and I don’t think I’ve ever been able to see so far. We were carefully kept in the designated viewing areas so as not to erode any more of this place. The road is now about 18 inches below the desert surface and there’s not stopping outside the carefully placed stops. We literally had a couple of metres square to stand in at some places. Its sad to know that the very thing which people come to see is being destroyed by them being here in modern machines. (Bit like the Barrier reef when we saw that a few years back). We stopped to see the two dogs (aka salt and pepper) but were asked not to publish photos out of respect for the true owners. On then to the Moon Plain, which looks like … the surface of the moon and is much coveted by NASA and film crews alike for its lunar similarities. Whilst Australia works closely with the USA on space monitoring it is not about to give up this area for destruction. on the edge of all this we stopped to see the Dingo Proof Fence. 1.8m high and with 1.8m below ground in places it is almost constantly under repair it runs for 5614km although it does not entirely stop dingoes nor did it stop rabbits when it was known as the rabbit proof fence.
Coober Pedy sits on the border between Kokotha and Arabana land. The town is small and mining may only take place within a 20 x 50 km area though not, anymore, within the town limits as the dust is bad for your health. Coober Pedy means opals. I have loved opals for as long as I can remember and this grubby, messy mining town was, for me, the thing I had wanted most to see. We were due down a mine … for lunch!
After lunch we did get to look around the museum (for this was an underground museum and historic mine as well as out restaurant). There were examples of historic and modern dugout living. Most people here live underground where it is a comfortable 25C year round. As I say mining id not allowed in town but any opal found whilst extending your home is saleable. Some single fellas have 16 bedroom homes with a bunch of en suite bathrooms! LOL. Opal glows in black light and I’d come prepared with a UV feature on my torch.
Our final visit of the visit of the day was to church. The Serbian Orthodox church. Coober Pedy had more churches per capita than anywhere in Australia reflecting the huge range of nationalities drawn to the mines. This one is spectacular with its nave sitting 15m below the ground. Noodling around outside I found, not opal, but a small meteor chunk of iron. No one in Coober Pedy looks away from the ground for long.
We were first back to the train and were driven to the wrong side of the tracks to get the classic Ghan photo before a little more champagne by with our Red Centre chums as the light faded and the bonfires were lit. This was to be our last night aboard and we arranged to head for the tail (Snowpiercer reference) for drinks after dinner.
Ghan at manguri
Our view as we sat for our meal was sunset over the red desert of South Australia. Drinks later were fun and a little bittersweet. We would be moving ever closer to Adelaide overnight and to the end of this outback adventure.
For anyone who thinks this journey is expensive we worked it out. 10 nights accommodation plus all the food and drink you could want (we paid for two meals in Alice) plus your guides and transport and all the entry fees and coaches to venues etc. it came to around £250 per night, Platinum. (2021 prices) Frankly you would struggle to get just the luxury hotel in London for that. I cannot recommend this highly enough.
Everyone was up and ready for our transfer to the station. I have to admit it felt odd not to have Smiler and Karen looking after us and we were a little twitchy as to what form our transfer would take. Turns out it was a very nice local minibus taxi and they delivered us in time to see the Ghan pull into the station. Once there our bags were checked ready for delivery to our cabins for later. Choices for today’s Ghan related trips were a tour of Alice (been there done that), an animal encounter at the Desert Park (my wife’s choice) and Simpson’s Gap. I went for the Gap. Oh sure we may have gone to ANZAC hill again but this time there was the bonus view, the train. Only seeing it from up there can give any realistic idea of what a 1km train looks like.
The thin red and silver line across the centre of the image is the Ghan. Alice spreads only as far as you can see and is no allowed beyond the current city limits as this is now Arrente land. Once we passed Flynn’s memorial again we were off to Simpson’s gap.
Once again this place has been immortalised by Albert Namatjura. It was busier than many sites we’d visited but still fresh from the coach we were greeted by a Bearded Dragon (lizard) and some pink birds I’m informed were Major Mitchell’s cockatoos posing in a tree for their close up. As ever this being Australia the rivers run underground except in times of flood and we were able to crunch along the sandy river bed where the Blood Gums grew until we reached the water hole that marks the end of the tourist area and the start of First People’s land. You get some idea of the scale of the place from the little figures in this image. A rocky area near the gap itself kept us captivated for some time as we scoured the area for sight of the Black Rock Wallaby. They did not disappoint but you try photographing one!
Lunch was served at the Desert Park where we met up with our train mates. I’m not sure who had the better day. Getting close up and personal with the local wildlife and watching the staff fly birds of prey sounded pretty cool to me. For those who felt the need to shop there was a drop off in the town centre but we opted for a cool down and a shower on board before our evening’s entertainment. Alice Springs was not done with us yet.
The town was called Stuart (after the explorer) or originally Mbantwe. When the overland Telegraph Station was build out of town that became known as Alice’s Spring after Alice Todd wife of Sir Charles Todd. Eventually it became too confusing to have two names for what was essentially one place and Alice Springs it became (Aussies, we are told, are naturally lazy and that is easier to pronounce than Alice’s Spring). The town grew with the 1887 gold rush. The telegraph station is still there on the edge of town and that was our dinner destination for the evening. We arrived at dusk to be greeted with love music and, of course, champagne. It never gets boring.
We ate as the sun went down serenaded by a live band. The Milky Way was visible above us. Some of our travelling companions in ‘Platinum’ were a little too much for us (never discuss politics at dinner) but I found myself seated next to the guy who played triangle on a Thompson Twins single hit (if he was to be believed) and we talked 80s music for a while. Conversation across the table was getting heated. My wife and I went for a walk. We decided to opt out of the camel rides but did join our Red Centre companions at their ‘Gold’ table for a few laughs.
[At this point I should say that we opted for the Platinum package because we wanted a flat bed experience rather than bunks. Neither of us were comfortable with the level of privilege shown by some of our coach mates. It costs nothing to be nice only some people seem to forget that. We have family who work in the hospitality industry and make it a habit not to treat service staff rudely.]
Whilst some people chose to dance into the wee small hours we took the shuttle coach back to the Ghan for a quiet nightcap (brought to your room) and an early-ish night, it was still close to midnight. Once the last passengers were on board we started to move slowly through the desert towards Coober Pedy.
An early start to catch a sunrise over Uluru from the viewing platform near the resort was rather spoiled by cloud cover! Still a spectacular sight though, in truth, we overslept a little. Back for breakfast an onto the bus. Today’s viewing was the story of the accident that changed aviation worldwide. The Coffee Royal Affair. Less commentary as we were all tired and reflecting on the end of an eventful week. Some of our friends were leaving today to go on their travels and yet others would be rejoining the Ghan with us tomorrow. We were on the black top (proper roads) as we made our way back to Alice our final lunch stop being at Elrunda Roadhouse. Yes, there were emu. Yes it was everything you imaging a roadhouse to be. None of us wanted a beer and the barman and three locals that had appeared as we arrived faded into the background as quickly as they came.
Emu at Elrunda Roadhouse
We rolled into Alice Springs past a Toyota dealership. It sells more ‘utes’ than anywhere else on the planet. After the roads we have driven in the past few days I can see why. The town itself exists because of the telegraph station but more of that later. It is a hot day as usual and we decided to walk into town before it got too hot (spoilers, it was already too hot). There are a few attractions. Our hotel was next door to the Lasseter’s Casino (Pricilla again), in the town centre highlights are the Qantas hangar, the old prison and the Flying Doctor museum, the desert park is just outside town but more of that later. A farewell diner with our driver and guide and off to bed. One day free to roam Alice tomorrow.
Well, it would have been rude not to visit the Royal Flying Doctor Service since we had already been to Flynn’s memorial and now knew the story of the 20 dollar note (the old ones) and how it could save your life. Its hologram show and the opportunity to get on board a life size mock up of the plane made an enjoyable and informative visit … and we ran into some of the team whilst we were there.
Then we decided on the prison, its just across the road. It’s not entirely grim as it was rescued from destruction because of a wonderful mural painted by a former inmate. Sadly (?) some of the buildings had been destroyed before the community campaign managed to save the rest and it has now been converted to a museum of prominent women. That’s a whole new perspective on the influence of these hardy females. Some of the original blocks have been preserved and no way would I have wanted to be locked in there with no air con.
By now the sun was almost directly overhead so we abandoned the idea of a short walk to find a bakery recommended as a great place to eat and made our way back to the RFDS café for lunch. Staff from the hospital were there too. Refreshed, cooled and stocked up with water in our indispensable water flasks (the best thing in those kits we got) and wandered back to the hotel. Yeah, the pool in the shade was definitely the place to be. Quiet bar snack diner, complementary drinks of course and an early night ready for our return to the train.
Following the dark skies experience and late finish we are up early to wind our way to Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) for a wander up to what many consider the second best known of Australia’s big rocks but it’s not what it seems. En route we could see so many Desert Oaks and these amazing trees, which look like saplings to us, are 100s of years old. The First People use them for water, food and shade but every tree is treated with the respect it deserves given how they grow in this inhospitable landscape.
Desert Oak sign board
The area surrounding Kata Tjuta is flat and red as you may expect but on the way down the valley there are signs of surface water and the occasional blue or green speck in the conglomerate which forms this feature. Yes it’s true. This is, in fact, a huge lump of desert concrete and not one giant rock as you might imagine.
Fitted for the heatKata Tjuta conglomerate
The fly net is not pretty but the joke in the Red Centre is one canyon, one rock, one railway and one billion flies. Truly at the time of year we were there it was an absolute necessity! The scarf may seem odd but its a cooling scarf. Effectively designed to be damp and allow the evaporation to cool your neck. Best buy of the trip for comfort. By now the ‘team’ from the bus had bonded and I felt quite comfortable wandering up the valley with some new friends whilst my travelling companion rested in the shade.
Lunch was served at the cultural centre. There is a wonderful instructional ‘dream time’ tunnel display at the centre which we visited before lunch but we were respectfully asked not to photograph the artifacts inside. The First People also own the gallery and shop and provide paintings and other items for purchase. Again this goes towards school and health provision. Throughout our bus tour Smiler kept disappearing with the leftover food and we found out that her was donating it to local First Nation people as many now struggle to eat. Now before anyone rushes to judgement Australians of European descent took children away from families their families for years with a view to ‘educating’ them in mission schools. Many never saw their birth families again. (Please look up stories like that of singer Archie Roach for more detail). In doing this we stripped many people of their language and culture and broke the link to the land and the old ways which allow First people to survive in the brutal heat. We have much to learn and ‘bush tucker’ is now being shipped to markets worldwide for its excellent nutrition. As Australia moves gradually northward year by year and given the changing climate I can see how facilitating the next generation’s return to their lands is massively important.
We were bussed to the base of Uluru with stories of the formation of the scars on the rock and and insight into the custom of interaction between different tribes. Surprisingly the first visit we mad was to a spring and water hole hidden within the curves of the rock. Smiler appraised up of the punishments used by those who break community laws. Some of these are still permitted/tolerated under the Australian system as they are effective in maintaining balance between European and First People’s cultures.
The rock art above one of the springs demonstrates more about the children being taken. Traditionally when a child was old enough to do so they would add their hand print to the family wall. This remained until they were elderly and they would then superimpose their adult hand over the top. As you can see many of these hands are child sized only.
After an emotional day on the rock we headed back to freshen up for the ‘Field of Light‘ that evening. More champagne overlooking these two spectacular features, a quick team photo and as darkness fell the ‘field’ was revealed. Originally the installation was only supposed to run for a couple of years but now it is set to remain until 2030. It is exactly as described, a field of thousands of lamps winding a pattern into the darkness. It has to be experienced rather than described. My shaky cam photos do not do it justice so please click the link if you want to see more. Tired and emotional we headed back to the resort for a late supper and off to bed.
Mount Connor rolled into view after a good few hours on the road. Smiley called it out. ‘Look a big rock’ … It’s no Uluru. Actually quite a different shape, but it sent everyone scrambling for their phones and cameras. Even though I expected this ruse, the feeling of getting so close to ‘that’ big rock was overwhelming.
To backtrack a little we’d been on the road for several hours. Mostly on corrugated dirt highway, Smiler had provided commentary and we’d been on the lookout for camel, giant lizards and, had seen Brumbies running wild (gorgeous, golden horses). He put on an Aussie classic ‘The Castle‘ (and a true story) for us to watch and we settled back for a long haul. People were quiet and tired after a couple of days of extreme heat and long drop toilets. (If you know, you know). I am in awe of the energy Smiler and Karen bring to their work every day. They deserve a chill too.
A ‘long drop’ toilet
We had our Afternoon tea at a station called Curtin Spring which lies outside the region supplied by the Great Artesian Basin aquifer and had not seen rain in over 9 years. They do have bore holes drilled on the property and are well enough supplied. We were introduced to station life by the wife of the current station owner in the tea room what they call the ‘bough house’ which has served as the only shelter for the family for 15 years when they first moved into the land. You can just see the grey spinifex grass roof on the left hand side of the image below (under the satellite dish). There were were no walls only the shade of a wire and grass roof. You have to be a certain kind of resilient to live out here. The wives made tea for travellers in part to get some company whilst the men were away dealing with the livestock and partly because food and water are hard to come by and hospitality highly prized.
Curtin Springs Station
Curtin Springs suffered like many small businesses during the pandemic with fewer tourists due to both internal and external travel restrictions. Who knows where the idea came from but they decided that they could make high grade artists paper and set about making it happen. We were treated to a paper making talk and demo in the old slaughterhouse which now houses the paper making and the containers which form the gallery exhibiting work by the station owners daughter. Naturally we were given samples and bought more of this high quality product. (No, they re not sponsoring me but you can buy paper through the link).
Finally back on the black top road Uluru loomed into sight. Its a hard to describe feeling. This really is one of the wonders of the world. Personally I’ll take Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) over Uluru (Ayres Rock) any day. Smiler took us for a brief circuit of Uluru before depositing us at the hotel. Sadly this was quite Americanised and as such jarred with the feel of the park. Yulara is a purpose built resort just outside the Uluru /Kata Tjuta National Park. As the sacred spaces have now been returned to the First People (the Anangu) and they have come to an arrangement in leasing the land back to the NT government and use the money to run their local school and house the community. Obviously its a massive draw and there are hundreds of people who want to experience this incredible place but the annoyance of a pool with piped pop tunes and a lot of people more intent on the hotel than the countryside was a disappointment. Oh, its lovely, clean, great food … oddly two double beds in the room … but massive and busy and would not have been my first choice but then all the hotels (there are about 6 of them) all seem much of a muchness. It served as a place to sleep and we were not there much.
Uluru in the evening sun
The big rock does change with the light and we had the chance to see it from dawn to dark (although the clouds on day two rather spoiled the sunrise). The coaches were provided by a different company as we were whisked away to the ‘Sounds of Silence’ bush tucker inspired dinner overlooking both these spectacular geological sights. Sadly there was a digeridoo player there to greet us … the Anagu do not use these. Hey ho. Champagne and the sunset then on to dinner.
Kata Tjuta at sunset
Once dinner was over all the lights were extinguished and a voice came out of the darkness. Our Star Talker had arrived to weave local stories with astronomy and astrology to show us around the night sky and for me my first glimpse of the milky way. They left the lights off for the remainder of the evening as we used our torches and a few shielded foot level lights to make our way down to where a telescope had been set up to allow us a clear view of Saturn and its rings. Full of champagne and excellent food we were ferried back to the hotel.
Of course tomorrow was our chance to explore further.
ffiftypluses 