Amazing Ayers

                                         Sunset and champagne in front of Ayers.
                                                              Ayers' Rock watering hole.
                                                              Our campsite was quaint. 
                                                                 Life on a camel farm. 

Day 1: I will freely admit that when B suggested we camp in the outback I was skeptical. Those who know me realize that woodsy I am not. However, I have to immensely thank him for this remarkable experience. To date, it might be my favorite. Ayers Rock (alongside the opera house, the harbour bridge, and the Great Barrier Reef) is one of the most noteworthy images to represent Australia. However, I never realized the massive mountain was in fact formed in sections. To be precise, the side of Ayers Rock that faces West has less sun exposure and therefore, it can be determined that it is about 100,000 years younger than its opposition. Climbing the structure itself is a huge controversy. The natives used the land for many religious rites of passage. Therefore, they're dismayed that the government has allowed people to climb on and through it. To preserve their feelings, there are certain areas of the rock which can't be photographed or entered. If this rule is violated, a fine of $5,000 is imposed. One of these is a small cave at the top of it. This is were young boys would climb and camp when the leaders of the tribe felt they had reached adulthood. It was their bar mitzvah! :) We were unable to climb Ayers regardless of the controversy because it was closed for winds. However, we were informed that the fastest time to hike it is 14.30 minutes! Yowza. Speed Demon!

After we explored the base of the rock, we returned to camp for dinner (an Aussie barbeque). I loved camp! We were staying with people from Holland, Germany, France, Italy and England. All were on holiday for a minimum of 3 weeks and were so surprised that we had such a limited amount of time to travel. My favorite couple was a charming set of empty-nesters from England! They were 60+ years old. Love their thrill for adventure! There were 5 honeymoon couples on the trip including us. It seemed to be a popular idea!

Day 2: the next morning we were expected to be eating breakfast at 5 am! Five is nothing for B and incredibly painful for me! We were up so early to enjoy the sunrise over amazing Ayers. The sun rose promtly at 6:15! Just in time for us to catch a few images. After this experience,we went to hike Kata Tjuta. There are actually 3 noteworthy rock formations in this area. Ayers, Kata Tjuta and Mt. Connors (which looks like a tabletop). Unlike Ayers, we were able to climb through and around Kata Tjuta to no end. We saw a few cave paintings. These, however, were not Aboriginese art but rather a chalk board of sorts. These were telling younger generations where to find food, water, ect. We learned the plants the Aboriginese used to smoke, to eat, to hunt with! We also saw all sorts of wild animals including native Kangas and thorny devils (a lizard). My favorite aspect of the hike were the watering holes. Aboriginese consider water sacred and therefore, rarely bathed in it. Rather they use it to drink and for rituals alone! Their odor is used to ward off preditors! Ick!

Off to the reef next! Cheers mates!