Sunday 15 November. To Cairns

We have until 10 to check out so we pack up and leave the room on the dot. There are a few hours until the bus takes us to the airport so we get breakfast and wait around writing postcards. Our flight to Cairns gets in after 6pm. There is another half hour adjustment so we are now 10 hours ahead of the UK, which should be our last time change for a couple of months.
We get a taxi to the Travellers Oasis, another hostel with a bit of a hippy vibe to it. It’s a pleasant place made up of three houses set round a pool, with palm trees and shaded areas to sit under. Although most of the clientele are in their twenties there are a few our age or older. Everyone is very friendly and we swap travellers tales and get tips on what to see in Cairns.
We take a walk through town to the Esplanade, stopping for beers on the way back then find a bottle shop and get wine. Back at the room we buy WiFi connection until the morning and catch up on emails. Sue can even listen to the Archers. Fantastic! (Sue)

Saturday 14 November. Sunrise over Uluru

The alarm is set for 4am as we have to get up to see it all over again in reverse. The coach picks us up at 4.55 and takes us to a different viewing area from the night before so the sun rises behind us. Supplied with tea and biscuits we head out to various viewpoints. It is hard to find a view that is not obscured by a tree or bush, or someone else with a camera and a big hat. Everyone takes loads of photos, most of which will look identical. Uluru changes from brown to red. We all head back to our coaches.

Excuse me while I remove my cynical head. Uluru really is magnificent, a huge monolithic rock standing out in a vast plain. The land around is semi-arid desert but surprisingly green. We didn’t see the supposed changing colours much in evidence, but I guess that depends on atmospheric conditions and dust refracting the sunlight from the horizon. The more dramatic the sunrise or sunset, the better will be the colours of Uluru.

Next on the itinerary is a cultural walk around part of the base of the rock. Our guide Rebecca shows us how features in the rock were interpreted to show fables and moral tales rather as stained glass windows in English churches portrayed parables. For the aborigines the whole landscape must have been like a picture book. We see some aboriginal ‘art’ in caves which were probably just marks on the wall to teach boys about hunting – like scrawl on a blackboard in a schoolroom.

We bus round to the climb point where you can ascend to the top of the rock. The local indigenous people ask visitors not to climb the rock, and we don’t get the chance anyway. Because of the heat, the climb is closed when we get there. People who set out earlier are now descending and some are obviously finding it difficult. It is extremely steep and some are sliding down on their backsides. I was a bit sorry in a way that I had come all this way and not had the opportunity to climb the rock. It was extremely hot, and when I saw how very steep it was I felt a bit queasy at the thought , not so much of going up, but I think that I would have been one of those tourists who would have needed to be rescued on their way down. It appeared to be precipitous. (Sue)

We get more tea and cake then set off for another walk on this side of Uluru. There are a number of caves used for various purposes, and sacred sites which we are not allowed to photograph – nor even to know their true significance.

Back at our room around midday we make up for lost sleep before the evening’s ‘Sound of Silence’ meal. As ever, a coach picks us up and heads out of the resort. This time though we rumble down a dirt road for a few kilometres until we halt by a small hill. We are situated somewhere between Uluru and Kata Tjuta on opposite horizons. The sun is setting almost behind Kata Tjuta. We ascend a sandy path to a paved area where we are given a glass of sparkling wine and canapés – kangaroo and crocodile canapés in fact, amongst others.

We meet some people who were on the tour this morning. More glasses of wine are drunk.

We make up a table of eight and descend the other side of the hill to an area of red sand with tables set out. We help ourselves at the buffet to more crocodile (tastes like chicken), kangaroo, lamb etc. and various side dishes, but with the tables lit only by small lamps it is very difficult to make out what one is eating. By this stage I had decided that I did not like crocodile, and was reasonably convinced that kangaroo would not become a favourite in the foreseeable future.(Sue)

A didgeridoo plays for a while and then we are told a bit about the instrument. We get a talk on the southern skies. Unfortunately it is a little cloudy so we don’t have the full stargazing experience. Wine continues to be poured. Dessert is served, and coffee and port, and we all have a good time. All too soon it is time to go back. Thank goodness we don’t have to get up at 4 in the morning tomorrow.

Friday 13 November. Off to Uluru

Never mind the date. We are up early again to take our coach at 7.05. We pass through the Heavitree Gap in the MacDonnell range of mountains. The driver says it is 465 kilometres to Ayers Rock resort and we are just about to take the first of two turnings on the route. He is quite excited.

We stop for breakfast at a camel farm and Sue elects to take a ride on Maisie the dromedary.

We stop for a photo shot of Mount Conner then on to Ayers Rock Resort.

After arriving at Ayers Rock resort and checking in, our first trip takes us to Kata Tjuta (formerly known as The Olgas). In some ways these domes are even more impressive than Uluru.

We take a walk into Walpa gorge which has a trickle of water from a spring and is surprisingly green in places. There are tadpoles in some of the pools.

Next stop sunset at Uluru. The whole exercise runs like a well oiled machine. We arrive and take our place with hundreds of others, which makes us realise how commercialised this place is. With our camp stool and complimentary glass of wine we watch as the sun sets. Uluru changes from red to brown. Wow. We pack up and go back to the resort.

Thursday 12 November. Alice Springs

We arrive at 9.30 in the morning. Outside it is 40C but a lot more comfortable than Darwin being so dry. We drag our bags across town, over the bridge crossing the bone dry Todd River to our hostel where we are offered a choice of accommodation – an old bus or a shed. Both were actually nicely furnished, quite comfortable with a/c and a fridge in the bus. Sue chooses the shed which she prefers to call the ‘Wendy House’, because it has a veranda.

After settling in we walk back to explore the town. This is the second largest town in NT and is probably the size of Chippenham or Stroud. We have lunch in a café then look at the old hospital, the oldest building in Alice dating to 1926. It was set up by John Flynn who travelled the area as a camel-riding padre and was involved with the early Flying Doctor service, pedal driven radios and other innovations. Quite a remarkable character.

Back at the hostel we are able to access WiFi and Sue skypes Alex before he goes to work.

Wednesday 11th November. The Ghan

My first impressions (Sue) of the splendid looking silvered train, with 23 carriages, once we had got on were that it was slightly smelly in a damp mouldering kind of way. We cheapskates had elected to bypass the bed option and purchased the sit up all night seats in the Red zone. These seats were not uncomfortable, and there was plenty of leg room, which was just as well since we would be in them for the next 21 hours.

We got going at 10 am, clocking up kilometre after kilometre of the rather boring to look at semi arid landscape, with regular patches of burned scrub.

In the afternoon at 14.10 we were obliged to get off the train for the enforced stop in the town of Katherine for the next four hours. We had already been warned that there was little to do in this town, and had been advised to go on a trip to ease the monotony.

We hired a double canoe for a couple of hours from Sunnyvale Homestead. This attractive building is apparently the oldest in the Northern Territory, having been built in 1879.

Our concerns about saltwater crocodiles weren’t entirely answered by the woman hiring the canoes. She said they had a trap out and hadn’t caught any so there probably were none around – but she couldn’t guarantee it!(Phil)

The boats were stable, and fairly easy to paddle, though from the state of me, you might not get that impression! The river was reasonably lazy, no white water, which made for a leisurely trip upstream and a slow drift back.

The last time we did anything like this was with Phil and Angie on the river Wye near Hay a few years ago. The wildlife was a little different then.(Phil)

It was a lot cooler on the water. Lovely flocks of cockatoos screeched as we passed. I thought that we had disturbed them, but they are I think generally raucous. There were lots of birds.

Back on the train it soon got dark and even the unchanging view of scrub disappeared from view. We settled down for the duration and despite the outside temp being above 30C, the a/c was so efficient that a good 50% of the passengers were cold during the night.

Tuesday 10th November. Our last day in Darwin.

We walked down through Doctor’s Gulley, via a lane to the side of our hostel.
This area was formerly an area of market garden, successfully managed by the Chinese until about 1920, and after was a WW2 base for flying planes. This site was where Darwin’s expedition sourced their fresh water and fruits for their voyaging / explorations. A steamy place of tropical vegetation.

Saw a kingfisher and chatted to a woman with her elderly mother, both from Sydney region, both eager to slag off the Aborigines for ripping off the white Australians, an opinion which quite a few Aussies seem eager to express. We are still waiting to see any Aborigines who look rich and prosperous.

In the afternoon we decided to soak up a bit of culture in the museum. We had a good look at the natural history exhibits in an attempt to try and start to identify some of the unfamiliar creatures we had seen. They had an interesting exhibition featuring Cyclone Tracy which in the wee hours of Christmas morning in 1974 flattened large areas of Darwin, was classified as a national disaster, necessitating the evacuation of thousands of families, many of whom did not return.

The coffee shop/ café had a pretty view of the bay through the pandanus trees.

Phil had a cake and coffee, and I could indulge myself with a new favourite drink of lemon and lime bitters.

I would like to point out here that Sue also had cake (Phil)

We went back to pack up and get ready for another earlyish start at 6.30am to walk down to pick up the coach transfer to take us to the station to get on The Ghan train.

Monday 9 November. Litchfield National Park

My turn to write a little bit: (Sue)

Up at 7 am after the usual sticky night, but it seems cooler this morning after the thunder, lightning and heavy rain in the night.

Phil had the bright idea of hiring a car to go to Lichfield National Park, rather than going on an organised tour and being herded around by the tour operators. As well as having our independence, we saw more than if we had taken a trip.

Features of interest were allegedly the magnetic termite mounds, so called because they are aligned on a N-S axis. Additionally there were large, towering cathedral mounds. There were indeed lots of them.

The best part, as far as I was concerned was the assortment of lovely places in which to take a dip and cool off.

Firstly we went to Florence Falls. On the way down to the pool we saw a couple of rock wallabies, said to be shy creatures. Very cute. After a short walk through the trees we came to the beautiful clear pool fed by a couple of waterfalls, with big black / sooty coloured fish hanging around in the sunny shallows.

 Next stop Buley Hole which was a linear series of deep eroded pools connected by water cascading over flat rocks between the pools, deliciously cool and refreshing.

At our lunch stop we saw our first kookaburra.

I wasn’t so keen on Wangi Falls, the third and largest swimming area, having developed paranoia that there might be crocodiles. Phil reassured me that if there had been any crocs there, that they had had all day to fill up on the other tourists and would not trouble me. I sat down on the edge before agreeing that I was unlikely to be croc fodder and got in for another swim. It was only afterwards that I read the warnings in the guide book. It stated that on no account should you sit on the ground because one would almost inevitably contract scrub typhus. Charming! I seem to have survived though I am still in the 7-10 days incubation period.

Lastly we saw Tolmer Falls from a view point, being unable to access the water because of the steep sides of the gorge. On the way back we stopped off at East Point to take in the views across the bay in Darwin, and hoped to see one of the 2000 wallabies that live in this area. It was getting dusky and we saw two. Result!

Sunday 8 November. Going troppo.

According to the Rough Guide, this time of year in the dreaded build-up to the wet season ‘the weak willed or insufficiently drunk can flip out and go troppo as the unbearable tensions of heat, humidity and dysfunctional air-conditioning push people over the edge.’ We find almost everyone to be extremely friendly and helpful but the climate does sap your energy. After organizing a hire car for tomorrow we spend most of the day relaxing or doing chores at the hostel. It is a pleasant place with mature palms, tree ferns and Frangipani in blossom. Sue enjoys the heady fragrance. I find it a bit sickly.

In the evening we walk half an hour to Cullen Bay, an area with bars and restaurants around a marina, and eat Barramundi washed down with fizzy water and a bottle of sauvignon blanc as the sun sets.

Saturday 7 November. Darwin

We arrive at 2.30 am local time and make it through immigration without a hitch, although Sue is asked at Customs if she is smuggling Marmite. Apparently many Brits do. Outside the terminal it feels like being draped in a hot wet blanket. Despite the time of night it is about 35C and very humid. We take a taxi to Banyan View Hostel where a key has been left out for us, find our room which thankfully has air-conditioning, and fall into bed.

Later we take a bus a few kilometres to Parap market on the outskirts of town where there are dozens of stalls selling …. Oh no, Asian food! Actually this looks much more appetising than in Hong Kong and there is a distinct lack of pigs’ giblets and frog. We have brunch here and some superb freshly crushed juice (lime, mango and watermelon). Strangely to us, there is a stall selling ‘exotic’ fruit juice – strawberry, raspberry etc.

Back in our room we cool off for a while then walk into town down Mitchell Street. Darwin has a small town feel to it. Well it is a small town, although capital of the vast Northern Territory. We explore for a while and Sue swims in the small lagoon which is the nearest thing to a public beach that is safe to swim in. Despite the heat and the humidity and being surrounded by beaches, at this time of year it is impossible to swim in the sea due to saltwater crocodiles and lethal box jellyfish. No problem with sharks though – maybe the crocodiles scare them off.

Friday 6 November. Things come together

Up early again to catch the airport shuttle, and back across the increasingly familiar road to Lantau Island. This time we check in without a hitch and take the flight to Singapore where we have to hang around for 6 hours before the connecting flight to Darwin. We decide to investigate the possibilities for lunch but Sue is sidetracked by a massage booth and decides to have a twenty minute shoulder massage.

Not content with this, after our lunch in a Japanese pasta restaurant (!) we spot the Fish Spa and Sue has to have another massage. Sue’s nephew Mark had apparently tried this experience on a recent visit to Singapore. Sue sits with her feet in a tank of water and small fish nibble away dead skin and provide a micro-massage to the feet. At the same time she has another shoulder massage for good measure.

I have very ticklish feet and for fear of screaming like a girl and kicking fish across the room, I decline the experience. I am allowed to put my hand in the tank. This is unsettling enough for me, being eaten alive by fish.

Thursday 5 November. Things fall apart.

We are up early again to catch the transfer bus to the airport at 7.05. At the airport we have to wait for the check-in to open so have breakfast at a noodle bar. Not a great experience. We check in two hours before the flight - but we are not on the list. Our E ticket doesn't have a valid code for the Jetstar flight and Quantas who issued the ticket have no say in the matter. Jenny on the desk says there are tickets available for around £100 each which we agree to pay as we have a connecting flight in Singapore, but after she makes several phone calls she stomps off looking annoyed and returns ten minutes later saying the tickets are no longer available. Our Travel Agent is not available as it is the middle of the night in UK. The local rep suggests we return to the hotel and hope to re-book for tomorrow. We take the shuttle bus ride back to Mongkok and the hotel upgrades our room. We send emails and Skype the agents in the UK and hope for the best. Feeling we have given the local restaurants our best shot we eat in the hotel and have a great buffet meal. When we return to the room an email tells us that everything is re-booked for the morning.

Wednesday 4 November

We are out early for the Hotel shuttle which drops us near the Peninsula Hotel, the oldest hotel in Kowloon, a very grand affair that makes our place look like the YHA. We join a trip that takes us to the funicular that climbs steeply to the peak. It always seems strange going uphill in a train, and this goes up at 45 degrees in places. The views from the top are magnificent, even so we seem to be barely higher than the highest skscrapers that flank the harbour.

Views from the Peak across Hong Kong harbour to Kowloon, New Territories and China.

Next we visit Stanley market at Repulse Bay on the far side of Hong Kong Island where Sue discovers a Salvation Army charity shop.

We take a sampan ride to view the floating village and working boats. The Jumbo Floating Restaurant is very impressive from the front ...

...less so from the rear.

In the evening we watch the impessive light and sound show across the harbour

and catch the shuttle back to the hotel.