Sunday, 21 March. Last night I saw 2 shooting stars before falling asleep. The sky was clear and beautifully lit by all the stars. I saw the milky way. Sam taught us how to navigate by using the southern cross. With just our naked eye, we could identify south within 2 degrees accuracy.
Today we had to get up at 5:00, roll up our swag and be on the bus by 5:25. We drove to last night's sunset location to view the sun rise. We had breakfast there too. The rock looked awesome and I couldn't believe how well my body was functioning with such little sleep.
We did the 9.8km Uluru Base Walk after some toast and cereal for breakfast. We were expected to complete the walk in 2 hrs. I was in the slower walking group and we kept on getting rushed. We wanted to take lots of pictures so we arrived 30 minutes late. Felicitas and I broke out of the slow group near the end and sprinted to the finish line so we weren't last.
The climb to the top was closed today. But I don't think I would have climbed it anyways because to the aboriginal people, this is their sacred land and they prefer that no one climbs it. After learning about Uluru on this tour, I will respect their wishes. However, the climb is permitted because the government still has control over the land. Eventually the land will be handed back to the aboriginals, but not for another 50+ years.
On our way back to Alice Springs, we stopped by a camel farm. I went on a camel ride and took shot gun on the two seater camel. Our camel raced with Luke and Roman's camel. Even though the handler was holding onto both the reins and jogging with the camels the entire time, I think my camel came out ahead. Ouch, my bum was a bit sore after that.
On our drive back, Sam spotted a thorney lizzard on the road and stopped the van to pick it up to show us. We were driving at 100 km/hr so I'm surprised that he even spotted the little fella.
After we got back from the tour, our group met up again in the evening at the Rock Bar for dinner and drinks. Then we went to another bar after the rock bar closed and stayed there till it closed at 1:30am. This bar has a live feed on the Internet. I wonder if anyone saw me dancing online?
After the bar shut, I was going to walk back to the hostel but all the locals insisted on taking the taxi. Apparently Alice Springs was not a safe place to be walking around at night alone. The aboriginals may decide to mug you. I've been told that these aboriginals are the ones that have been kicked out of their tribe because they have done something wrong. So they are not the most friendly aboriginals out there.
Overall, the tour was awesome. We had a great group, a great guide and I think that's what made this tour the best tour that ive been on. We had so many laughs together. Our guide was the best. Sam, was very knowledgeable. He told us interesting aboriginal stories that have been passed down for generations. He told us about bush medician and the aboriginal culture. He showed us how the aboriginals made paint to use on the rocks. I learned about the significance of white paint and a few aboriginal symbols. An awesome guide.
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