Flashback...Uluru Sunrise Tour

All photos copyright Robert May

Written 17th March 2011

Uluru as the sun came up
(Kata Tjuta in the distance)

Today was a very early start, and I set 5 alarms just to make sure that we did get up at 4.30am.  All was fine and we sprang out of bed and were at the front of the hotel for our pickup at 5.30.  We headed out in the 4WD minibus towards the sunrise viewpoint and were the first group there. Rob managed to get a great spot and we watched the colours changing on the huge rock as the sun came up – really very beautiful, and we were lucky with clear skies after rain for the last couple of days.  

The same view a short time after -
Amazing how the colours change

The tour took us to a number of other stops with different views, including the point where you can climb the rock, although it is strongly suggested that you don’t do this any more for a number of reasons - the aboriginal owners ask you to respect their culture and prefer you not to climb, but also the weather conditions and the fact that it is a strenuous climb make it risky.  It looked too steep and scary to me anyway.  The tour guide told us some great stories and bits of information as we went round, and we saw some artwork on the walls and also a beautiful watering hole.  We also spent a little time in the cultural centre and saw some of the artwork made by the local people and got to know more about the culture and community.

For more information about Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, please see the website here.

Beautiful Aboriginal rock art
These used to be used for telling stories and teaching

Spot the heart in the rock

Because of the early start, we were back at the hotel by 11am, although by that point it felt more like 5pm. Rob went for another dip in the pool, whilst I sat in the shade watching the dragonflies and butterflies darting around the gardens. Then we had some poolside drinks and a bite to eat – thank you to Sarah King for our rather delicious refreshments!

Back to the room for an afternoon nap for me and some photo processing for Rob, followed by dinner at Gecko’s cafe again.  Now we are just packing (well, Rob is packing while I play with his iPad) as we head to Melbourne tomorrow!

Flashback... Ayers Rock Resort

All photos copyright Robert May.

Written 16th March 2011


Today we had a nice free day, so we had some time to just relax from all the rushing around.  We didn’t really see much of the resort in daylight yesterday, so after a much needed lie in, we went for a wander.  One of the few things we noticed was people wearing nets over their heads.  We laughed at them to start with, but then we realised that the fat little flies were really very irritating, probably the main downside of this part of the trip.  Everything would be fine and then one would come a buzz really loudly in your ear.  If you're planning to do a trip here, I'd be taking something to cover my head, because they were a real annoyance in the outside spaces (not a problem at all indoors).

The view from our Rock View room
(with a little bit of zoom)

We found the pool in our hotel, which was nice, but we decided to have a peek at the one in the 5 star hotel too, which was better.  Apart from that, there is a wide range of opportunity for shopping here – clothing, crafts, hairdressers, post office and a remarkably well stocked newsagent and supermarket, we were really pleasantly surprised given that we thought being somewhere like this would mean there really wasn't much to do.

The nice pool

We had a quick sandwich in the deli, and then Rob went for a long swim in the fancy pool while I read my book in the comfort of the air conditioned bar while enjoying a pot of tea.  Afterwards, Rob did some MORE shopping and bought me back a present (for organising such a wonderful honeymoon) … a lovely purple necklace.

A bit later after more reading in the room and a quick change, we had an early meal in Geckos Cafe and a couple of drinks in our hotel bar.  Now it’s time for an early night as we are off on the 4WD sunrise tour tomorrow morning and it’s a 5.30am pickup! Night Night!!

Flashback... Uluru / Ayers Rock

All photos copyright Robert May

First posted 15th March 2011

We packed up and left Perth early, heading to the next stop of our trip, the Ayers Rock Resort.  We landed shortly after lunch, blimey they don’t half feed you a lot on these Qantas flights – we were quite happy with just a bag of pretzels and then they brought out trays of lunch. My waistline is growing by the day.  We didn't have this stop on our itinerary until a few days before we booked the flights and thought it would be a bit different to all the city stops we were doing so we added it in.

A quick transfer to the hotel and we were all checked into our Rock-view room, looking out onto Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park.  What strikes you immediately is the amazing red colour of the ground all around you and the contrast of the green vegetation.  I had never seen anything like it, it was beautiful.  

We couldn't quite stretch to the 5 star hotel, and so we opted instead for the Desert Gardens Hotel, which was a short walk away and had a better view.  Rob made us a lovely cup of tea… with some little chocolates, to celebrate our arrival.

Lovely cup of tea.  Just realised one cup is bigger.
That must have been mine.

Unfortunately, the weather had been bad the day before, and so the Dinner Under The Stars wasn’t able to go ahead – instead we booked a table at the nicest restaurant in the resort and ate up some delicious Wagyu Beef, accompanied by a tasty bottle of Red wine. 

Posh beef in the posh restaurant.
Delicious!

The rest of the evening was spent listening to the torrential rain – I did start to wonder if it had been worth booking the Rock View room as it completely vanished from sight, and we had to navigate so many pools of water in the dark on the way back to our room!!!  We were told that it hardly ever rains, and so it would be just our luck of course!