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Working with AAA, we found a bus tour that covered most of the sites in the Red Centre and Top End areas that I wanted to see.  And it billed itself as one for more active people.  I do a lot of hiking here in the states, so I did not want a tour where we simply pulled up to some overlook, snapped a few pictures, and hit the road again.  I wanted some outdoor activities.  And this one sounded almost exactly like what I wanted.  Until my 43-year-old eyes read the part that limited the group to under-35s.  I guess they wanted to ensure that the folks were really active types.

We then found one offered by Australian Pacific Tours (APT) that covered basically the same Northern Territory sites (I'd soon discover that it was probably harder to find a multi-day tour that did not cover most of these sites).  This tour was listed among their "Active Eco-experiences" - "Don't just see it, live it!", and under Fitness Level, it said "Moderate to Challenging".  I have done enough hiking all over the place that I was not too intimidated by this.  But as a middle-aged, overweight diabetic, I did not want to find myself bringing up the rear on the more challenging activities.

Figuring I could hang around the bus if I found some activity a little too challenging, we booked the tour, which began in Alice Springs and ended in Darwin.  We also booked four nights in Sydney after finishing the tour - I actually would have preferred to start the vacation in Sydney, but this way gave me the weekend in the big city for sampling the nightlife.

Like I said, Australia has long been a country that I wanted to see, much like Great Britain last year.  But last year's sampling of Iceland for four nights on my way back to the States worked out nicely, so I figured I'd sample another country in the region on this trip.  New Zealand was the obvious choice, especially since it broke up the cross-Pacific flight home into smaller pieces.  We booked four nights in Auckland.

I hit the web to learn about places to see along the way.  I was frustrated by my attempts to book a day tour of the East MacDonnell Range, to the east of Alice Springs - especially since that goal was the main reason I booked an extra day in the Alice before the bus tour started, but all of my attempts to book the trip online in advance failed.  Something I'd have to do once I got there.  On the other hand, I had no trouble booking a couple day tours online out of Auckland with Scenic Pacific.

I compiled my lists of sightseeing options, nightlife options and Alice Springs tour operator options.  And my passport and luggage, of course.  I was ready to hit the road.

A 25-day planned trip, with more than two of those days spent in airports and on planes.  But once I got the worst of the flying behind me - Seattle-San Francisco-Sydney-Alice Springs all in a row right at the start - I had a pretty good itinerary.  Some time in Alice Springs to hit some area sites on my own.  Then a 12-day bus tour that covered most of the Northern Territory sites that I wanted to see, ending up in Darwin.  An extra night in Darwin so that I could see a bit of the town.  Four nights in Sydney leaving time for a day trip to Bondi Beach.  And finally four nights in Auckland, leaving time for a couple day trips to explore the surrounding areas.  I even caught a glimpse of the Hollywood sign when I had some time to kill at LAX on the way home.

In Australia, I especially enjoyed the Red Centre geological sites, Nitmiluk's scenery and the rock art at Kakadu National Park.  I got a much better sense of the country, its history, setting and culture (although I was a bit disappointed in how little real exposure to Aboriginal culture we got on the tour).  New Zealand was a real treat.  I barely sampled that country but would love to spend more time there.

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Photo Links

I have created some entries on Worldisround where you will find pictures from my trip:

Highlights

On My Way

Wednesday October 6 -

As is typical of when I have a long trip, the days leading up to my departure were pretty long ones.  When I wasn't working, I was preparing for the trip - packing, checking the web for information, dutifully making copies of all my important documents, and so on.  Because I did not  start the trip until Wednesday evening, this continued with a full day of work just before I took off.

The basic itinerary...  Fly from Seattle to San Francisco.  Spend a couple hours there.  Spend 16 hours on a plane from San Francisco to Sydney.  Go through customs.  Catch another plane for Alice Springs.  I calculated that between time spent on planes and time spent at the airports, I'd be in transit for about 28 hours if all went well.

And for the most part it did, except for one little glitch.  At 6'4" I am used to airplane seats being a bit cramped.  And I fly a lot - more than 30 takeoffs (and just as many landings) in 2004 alone.  But my United Airlines flight - about 16 hours long - had the least amount of legroom of any standard plane I recall being on.  Ever.  My knees jammed into the back of the seat in front of me as I sat down.  The domestic United flights I was on in and out of Seattle at the beginning and end of this trip had more legroom than this cross-Pacific flight did.  And besides my own discomfort, it was not a good thing for the person seated in front of me who discovered right off the bat that she wouldn't be able to put her seat back for 16 hours.  Given past problems I have had with United Airlines, and this did not do anything to make me any more sympathetic to their current bankruptcy plight.

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Thursday October 7 -

Today just flew by. 

It marked the first time I crossed the Equator, and it ended abruptly when I crossed the International Date Line.

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Friday October 8 -

I did not sleep on the flight.  I usually sleep on my side, which is hard to simulate while on a plane even in the best of circumstances.  I read a bit, watched the plane's progress across the ocean on the video screen, and tried to sleep.  Surprisingly I did feel reasonably rested when we got to Sydney, shortly after sunrise Friday morning.

Customs went smoothly, and I found myself with a few hours to kill in the Sydney airport - which is very nice, by the way.  Breakfast at McDonalds (a different taste to the sausage, which I'd notice throughout the trip), spending my first Australian currency.  I brought some with me, but after breakfast I looked for an ATM to get some more.

I had a window seat for the flight to Alice Springs, so I got a view of the parallel sand ridges of the Simpson Desert, although we were too high for a detailed look.  

It was this flight that really began to impress upon me just how big Australia is.  With most of its cities in coastal areas and lots of empty everywhere else, maps of Australia tend to be small, even though it is almost as big as the 48 contiguous states in the U.S.  The flight from Sydney to Alice Springs thus was like flying from Miami to St. Louis (and actually a bit further).  The Northern Territory, where I spent much of the trip, is double the size of Texas, a point that would become especially apparent during the bus tour.

We approached Alice Springs from the southeast, and I had a window seat that gave me a very nice view of the East MacDonnell Range, and of Alice Springs itself.  Range?  Hmmmm.  I spend a lot of time in the mountains, so the term "range" conjures up certain images for me.  Lots of big mountains.  What I saw stretching to the east of Alice Springs was an escarpment fault, rising maybe 200 feet above the surrounding plain - if that.  I was plenty surprised by this (I actually try to avoid seeing many pictures of places that I am preparing to go to so that there are some surprises), and I must admit a bit disappointed.  Not exactly the rugged landscape I was expecting.  But I was on the right side of the plane - maybe the West MacDonnell Range was more impressive, which would explain why tours there are more popular.

We landed, I got my suitcase, and then the shuttle driver took me and some other passengers to our respective hotels.  I checked in and headed for my room.  There I'd find something that turned out to be common to my Australia (and New Zealand) hotels.  In order to get air conditioning - and sometimes most electric power - I had to insert my room key into some slot while in the room.  No leaving the air conditioner on when I am not there.  With temperatures in the 95-105 degree F range for most of the trip, it would have been nice to come back to a cool room at the end of the day, but I suppose that this saves electricity.

I changed clothes, got cleaned up, grabbed a map of Alice Springs, and headed on foot towards downtown.  It was mid-afternoon by now, and if there was a chance I could book a tour to the East MacDonnell range sites for tomorrow, I'd have to do it that afternoon.

Two things I learned right off the bat.  First, rivers in central Australia are often dry.  Like the Todd River, whose bed passes along the east side of Alice Springs and then cuts south through the Heavitree Gap of the MacDonnell Range.  Apparently if you dig down a few feet into the river's sandy bed, you'll hit water, but to the average eye it just looks like a sandy dry river bed.

Second, sand flies.  Lots of them.  Swarms of them.  Smaller than houseflies, but drawn to moisture, making them especially annoying about the mouth, nose, ears and eyes.  They do not bite, they do not taste too bad (trust me, if you hang out in central Australia long enough, you'll find out how they taste), and apparently they're rather harmless, but after experiencing the sand flies of the Northern Territory, I think that I now know what a fresh dog dropping must feel like.

I did not have any trouble finding my way downtown, and I immediately came across a business that booked day trips.  I checked out their brochures, and once I found a couple companies that provided the East MacDonnell Range tours, they called them.  Apparently I was the only person in Alice Springs with any interest in seeing the East MacDonnell Range sites.  The next day's tours had already been cancelled due to lack of interest.  And with a minimum requirement of three people, they're weren't going to uncancel them just for me.

Disappointed, I hit the brochures again, looking for a full day tour that did not overlap with my main tour itinerary.  A Palm Valley Safari with a stop in Hermannsburg looked like it would fit the bill, so I booked that instead.

I then headed through downtown Alice Springs and the Todd Mall, an open air plaza, checking out the shops and scouting a place for dinner.  Turns out that downtown Alice Springs is actually rather small and there's not really a lot to see - although it is easily the biggest city in central Australia.  I headed over to ANZAC Hill so that I could get a bit of an aerial look at the city.  The hill provides a very good view of Alice Springs from just northwest of the town centre.

There was a large grassy area just east of ANZAC Hill, and it looked like folks were setting up for some kind of festival there, so I checked it out.  The Central Land Council, an organization working to secure Aboriginal land claims in the Outback, was going to be holding its 30th anniversary celebration there later that evening.  Well, that was certainly an unexpected bonus - in addition to sightseeing and hiking, one of my goals was to learn more about the Aboriginal people.

I found a place for an early dinner, Bojangles, a pub that apparently is pretty popular.  Then I walked back to the hotel, stopping at the Olive Pink Botanical Gardens to check out its native plants displays.

I washed up at the hotel and then walked back downtown to check out the celebration.  Alas, I missed the early cultural portion of the program that featured Aboriginal singing and dancing.  I got there in time to catch the first of a long (and long-winded) series of speakers talking about the success of the Council, including the head of the Northern Territory government, Clare Martin.

The program promised more music after the speakers, but the speakers went on and on, boring the heck out of me - and others in the crowd.  I checked out the displays on the history of the CLC, and also stopped by the few booths at the celebration.  In addition to working to return ancestral lands to the Aboriginal people, the CLC also supports people from the Stolen Generation who seek to learn about their family histories.  For several decades, Aboriginal children were forcibly removed from their parents and placed with Anglo families or special schools in order to Anglicize them (the recent movie "Rabbit-proof Fence" is based on this history).  An Australian government report on the Stolen Generation resulted from an inquiry into the issue - it was tabled by the Australian Parliament in May 1997.  In May 1998, the anniversary was marked by the first national Sorry Day, marking the public's recognition of this history.

In addition to checking out the few booths, I also checked out the people.  I had seen some Aboriginal people around town.  From my Seattle perspective, the ones I saw reminded me of our local homeless in terms of what they wore, their unkempt appearance (e.g., matted hair), and, frankly, body odor.  The few times I said hi to those I passed, they tended to look away.  I figured that they were in fact homeless.

I was surprised to see a lot more of the same at the celebration.  And there were plenty to see.  Walking around Alice Springs earlier in the day, the vast majority of people I saw were white.  But I was one of very few whites I saw at the the celebration.  A couple things I would learn later in the trip at Sunday's Aboriginal Dreamtime and Bushtucker Tour explained my observations:  the Aboriginal people have traditionally been a nomadic people for at least 40,000 years.  Possessions and our definition of personal hygiene just do not hold the same value in their traditional culture.  And as for the CLC celebration, well, when traditional lands are returned to the Aboriginal people, control and access are being taken away from the whites - I'd find out that the CLC is not all that popular among the Anglos in the area.

The politicians finally (!) ended their speeches, and they got around to the entertainment again, but it was regular music rather than traditional Aboriginal song and dance.  I had an early day on Saturday, so I started my 30 minute walk back to the hotel.

My first day in Australia was already over.

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Alice Springs, Hermannsburg, Finke Gorge and Palm Valley

Saturday October 9 -

Although I did not get the tour I had hoped for when I planned the trip, today turned out to be a most excellent day.  I highly recommend the Palm Valley Safari day trip.

The tour bus picked me and a couple others up at my hotel around 7:30AM.  We made the rounds of a few more hotels and then regrouped at the tour company's offices before hitting the road.  The bus was only partially full, which was nice.  It gave me a chance to change window seats occasionally as the views changed.

We headed west on the Larapinta Highway to the town of Hermannsburg.  It is an Aboriginal settlement centered on an old German Lutheran Mission that was established there in 1877.  Except for its relative newness, it reminded me of the missions scattered around the American west and southwest.  (Heaven help the natives when Europeans move into the neighborhood!)  We had an hour there, which was barely enough time to see the place in detail, but not enough time if you spend half the time there having a cup of coffee or tea - like most of the 10 tourists in my group did.  (I am constantly amazed on group tours by how so many people are more concerned about snacks and shopping than they are in the sights that they traveled such great distances to see.)

In addition to its general historical interest and the insight it provided into the interactions between Europeans and Aboriginal people, the mission was the home to the first Aboriginal artist to capture Anglo Australia's interest, Albert Namatjira.  He was the first of his tribe to paint with watercolors in the European manner.  Some of his works were on display.  I must admit, though, that as good as it was, I found the traditional Aboriginal artwork I saw to be much more interesting.  I suppose what for me was the novelty of the style, the symbolism and the colors capturing my attention.  But it was well worth a visit, even if a bit rushed in spite of my skipping the refreshment break.

Back on the bus, and then we headed directly into nearby Finke Gorge National Park, home to Palm Valley.  We started out on a road, but then followed the dry river bed of the Finke River, believed to be the oldest river in the world.  Then back on road until we reached a picnic area where we stopped to stretch our legs, hit the bathroom and fill up on water.  The sand flies of Alice Springs were here too, which was a nuisance, and temperatures were once again in the upper 90s.  The heat did not bother me - I have done a lot of desert hiking, including several days in the American desert southwest earlier this year.

Back on the bus, we headed into Palm Valley itself.  When Australia was cooler and wetter, palm trees were common.  But as the continent warmed up and dried out, most of the trees died out except for places along the coast - and here.  In a red rock canyon reminiscent of the box canyons of southeastern Utah, a small grove of palm trees remains.  And not just any palm trees, but the red cabbage palm, which is unique to the area.

Folks could choose a river-level easy hike or a slightly more rugged one along the Arankaia Trail that followed the canyon rim for a ways before heading down into the canyon.  A very Utah-feel hike that I thoroughly enjoyed.  If the scenery was going to be anything like this, I was going to enjoy my central Australia visit.

I was really struck by how familiar and yet odd the scenery was.  The geology reminded me of southeastern Utah, except the sand in the sandstone was much more coarser.  There were plants and trees with shapes and colorations almost the same as the familiar sage and junipers, and yet the shrubs and trees were different.  And of course there were the palm trees.  Red cabbage palms have a reddish coloration only when they're small.  And I happened across a small one as I strayed from the group a bit for a less noisy walk.  (Don't people ever stop talking?!)

After that hike we headed back to the picnic area for lunch , stopping for some pictures of a Sturt desert rose, the official flower of the Territory.  After lunch, we stopped at Kalarranga Lookout, an easy hike to the top of a rock outcropping that provided some excellent views of Palm Valley.  I was taking a lot of scenery pictures, but I also found the plant life interesting, so I pointed my camera at both big scenes and small plants for most of the trip.

We left Finke Gorge the way we came in, and stopped in Hermannsburg for refreshments at the local grocery store before heading back to Alice Springs.  It was election day, and some Australians on the tour wanted to get dropped off downtown so that they could vote - casting a ballot is required by law in Australia.  Rather than taking the ride back to the hotel, I got off the bus downtown, too, so I could walk around and check out the town's historical buildings.  I got dinner at a downtown restaurant and then once again picked up some snacks for the evening, mostly cold pop.

The tour would start tomorrow, so I rearranged some things in my suitcase, got my journal caught up, did some reading, and then got dressed to head out.  It was Saturday night, after all.  I figured I'd go back to Bojangles.  But when I got there is was already at capacity, and only members would be admitted after that.  Okay.  So I walked around downtown looking for another lively place.  I did not find one, so I started back towards the hotel.  I stopped at the Melanka Party Bar, which turned out to be reasonably big, and a crowd was just starting to grow, filling the club.  I can't say that I found the crowd or the music all that interesting, so I did not stick around very late.  I was back at the hotel and in bed before 1AM.

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Sunday October 10 -

The 12-day bus tour portion of the trip got off to a disappointing start today.  But not until 12:30.  Up until then I had some time on my own, so I took a walk around the southern part of Alice Springs near my hotel and Heavitree Gap.  I also checked out the Ghan rail line that connects Alice Springs to Adelaide - the Ghan, the Stuart Highway and the dry riverbed of the Todd River all pass through the narrow Heavitree Gap.  I then walked through a couple neighborhoods to check out how folks live there.  A stop at a convenience store for lots of cold pop - boy, was it hot out, and it was still morning.

Then I cut across the Todd to Barrett Drive.  A small hill along Barrett Drive and a few other sites I came across in town are marked with signs that indicate that they are a sacred sites for the local Aboriginal people, the Arrernte people.  According to Arrernte traditions, this small hill - Ntyarlkarle Tyaneme - was one of the first sites created by the Ntyarlke Caterpillars of the Dreamtime (tied to the origins traditions of the Aboriginal people).  As a registered sacred site, trespassing was forbidden and subject to severe fines.

A number of sites I'd come across during the trip are considered sacred to the Aboriginal people, each with rules regarding permission to enter, what permits are needed, who must accompany you, where you can walk, and even what you can photograph.  Not really any different than some places I have come across that are sacred to Native Americans, only a lot more of it in Australia.

Back to the hotel.  Our tour bus driver and guide stopped by to say hi and to remind me to be out in front of the hotel by 12:30.  And I was.  There I met a few people who would be part of our group.  I had been wondering what kind of shape the others would be in, given the brochure's reporting of a "moderate to challenging" fitness level - I can't say that these folks intimidated me at all in that department.

Very small group, I noticed, and thought that'd be nice.  We boarded the bus and headed for...

The Todd Mall?  Downtown?  That's not on the itinerary.  Well, it was an hour for shopping or lunch.  Then we'd go to the airport to pick up the rest of the group.  I had already checked out the Todd Mall, so I got a sandwich and rechecked out some stores.  Back on the bus, down to the airport.  Where we waited for what seemed like a rather long time before the rest of the gang showed up.  A large group of people, including about 15 Dutch people.  We'd end up with 31 in our group, which was a little larger than I had hoped, but it ultimately was not much of an issue (other than when the bus would stop at some site, I'd be ready to hop off to see sights, but this many folks sometimes moved more than a bit too slowly off the bus for my tastes).

But what I really noticed was that this group did not look anything at all like a moderate to challenging fitness level of people.  As it would turn out, there were only two hikes on the bus tour that I would have put in the moderate category - and one, the walk around Uluru, I'd put in that category only because of its length in the desert, not because there was anything even remotely difficult about it.  At most of our stops, the time available for any strenuous activity would be so short that the only reason I sweated at all was that it was close to 100 degrees out.  I'd send a note of disappointment about this aspect of the trip to my travel agent when I got home.  (From strictly a sightseeing standpoint, it was a very good tour with lots of stops, but I wouldn't call it an "active" tour by any stretch of the imagination - my Palm Valley day trip was more physically active than most days of the bus tour were.)

According to the itinerary that Koala Tours prepared for me, today's tour activities were in Alice Springs - the Alice Springs Desert Park and then the Aboriginal Dreamtime and Bushtucker Tour.  

From the airport, we headed to the Dreamtime and Bushtucker tour, a spot outside of town where we'd meet folks from the Walpiri tribe and learn about their culture.  According to the website, we'd learn about their traditional sources of food (hunting, gathering, nomadic culture), watch boomerang and spear-throwing demonstrations (and try it ourselves), see tribe members dressed in their traditional decorations, learn about their art, and see a fully decorated corroboree, the "highlight" of the tour.

What we got was a white guy (who said he had been inducted into the tribe) give an interesting talk on Aboriginal culture and we did learn about the traditional sources of food.  Folks were even offered the opportunity to sample kangaroo tail, witchetty grubs, and an assortment of seeds gathered from the native plants.  We then had the opportunity to buy some art from a few Aboriginal women who had been sitting well off to the side during all of this.  No boomerang.  No spear-throwing.  No native dress.  No corroboree.  Don't get me wrong, the guy's talk was quite interesting.  But I have to say that I was disappointed by the fact that they left so much of the advertised highlights out of the program that we saw.

Anyway, off to Alice Springs Desert Park.

Or not, as it turned out.  We went back to the hotel, giving us plenty of time to get cleaned up for the group's Welcome Dinner.  Two courses (plus the dessert that I skipped) which for some reason dragged out for two hours.  Given what was in the itinerary I had been given, I was left feeling that our stop at Alice Springs Desert Park had been replaced with stops at the mall and the airport parking lot.

When I got home I compared a number of features in the itinerary that Koala Tours prepared for me with the APT itinerary in the brochure because of how often I was left scratching my head over some of our stops.  The APT itinerary made no mention of the Desert Park stop, so the Koala itinerary was wrong, but the APT itinerary featured a photo of the Walpiri dancing in traditional dress, something that we never saw.

But at the time, as far as I was concerned, the tour did not get off to the kind of start that gave me much confidence in the folks who advertised it.

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Uluru, Kata Tjuta, Watarrka, Ormiston Gorge and Glen Helen

Monday October 11 -

Today did not inspire any more confidence in the tour agenda, especially when our driver told us that tomorrow's schedule really did not have enough time for the base hike around Uluru that was in our itineraries.  What?  That was one of the key motivations for selecting this tour.  Throw in only 45 minutes to "explore" Kata Tjuta (the Olgas), which was the featured highlight in the itinerary for the day, and by the end of Day 2 of the bus tour I was plenty concerned about whether I was going to get anything anywhere close to what I had hoped for when I booked this particular tour.

Like most days on the tour, we had to get up rather early to hit the road, which was fine with me.  The sun was up, and there's no point in wasting daylight lingering in some hotel room.  We headed south out of Alice Springs on the Stuart Highway through Heavitree Gap.  The trip to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is about 300 miles long, which gave me more appreciation for how large Australia really is.  We had a short stop at  Stuarts Well for refreshments and to check out the camels and dingo.  Further south we crossed the dry Finke River bed, several miles downstream from Palm Valley and Finke Gorge National Park.  At Erldunda we headed west on the Lasseter Highway, stopping at Mt. Ebenezer roadhouse for more refreshments and at a roadside stop to stretch our legs and to get a view of the distant Mt. Conner, a mesa that would be at home in northern New Mexico.  Although not a scenic drive in any traditional sense of the word, I enjoyed both for its novelty and because I appreciate the subtleties of desert scenery.

 We reached Yulara, gateway to Uluru-Kata Tjuta, and home of the Ayers Rock Resort.  Those readers familiar with Ayers Rock and the Olgas - the names I knew before the trip - should know that Uluru is Ayers Rock, and Kata Tjuta is the Olgas.  The park is on lands that have been returned to the Anangu, but it is being leased back to the government.  Uluru and Kata Tjuta are Aboriginal place names for these sites, and are now the preferred terms.

Our first stop was the Cultural Centre, which contained several nice displays on the park and its features as well as on the Anangu.  On some displays, pictures and names of Anangu were covered up with tape or plastic.  According to Aboriginal traditions, when one of their people dies, symbols of their life should be removed to help the spirit leave this world and move on to the next one.  Taking pictures of Aboriginal people, especially when they are the focus of the picture, is actively discouraged for this reason.  The Cultural Centre also had a cafeteria, so we got lunch before heading out.

We had a great view of Uluru from there, but our first sightseeing stop was at Kata Tjuta, where we were given 45 minutes to make the easy walk into and out of Walpa Gorge, a somewhat narrow but level gap between a couple of the 36 domes of the Kata Tjuta formation.  Kata Tjuta is such a sacred site to the Aboriginal people that they have said almost nothing about its spiritual significance to the Anglos who now dominate Australia.

I got my first close-up look at the deep red rock that makes up Kata Tjuta.  A very coarse sandstone, more of a conglomerate, given the size of the embedded rocks - a sharp contrast to the fine grain sandstones of southeastern Utah.  I also had my first interesting wildlife sighting, a large monitor (someone said) lizard.  As someone who enjoys spotting the details of the outdoors when I hike, I noticed that most folks on the trail seemed more intent in walking-talking, which is pretty routine when it comes to lots of folks who do not spend much time in the great outdoors.  Several people walked by until I started pointing the lizard out to people.  (On a canyon hike in Utah earlier this year, some folks were so engrossed in their conversation that they walked right by one of the Indian pueblo ruins a few feet off to the right, and one of the highlights of that trail.)

Back on the bus and over to the parking area for the Valley of the Winds walking trail.  Okay, so we got only 45 minutes at Walpa Gorge to leave time for this trail.

Or not.  We got a few minutes to check out the view, and then it was back on the bus to head out of the park and over to Ayers Rock Resort to settle into our rooms and get cleaned up.  We were there for awhile, but I saw no point to cleaning up since we were heading right back out again, this time to position ourselves for the sunset viewing of Uluru.  Throw in the drive back and forth between the park and the resort, and an hour of sightseeing was lost to this unnecessary side excursion.

Our group - and lots of others - took our positions at an established sunset viewing area.  The red rock of Uluru and Kata Tjuta can take on a real glow with the right sunset conditions.  Some of the photos I have seen are spectacular.  But like my sunset pictures at Arches National Park in Utah, weather conditions control whether it is bland, spectacular, or something in between.  Tonight's Uluru sunset leaned towards the bland end of the scale, but it was still rather pretty.  And in spite of the crowd at the viewing area, most people hung around their refreshments, so I had my pick of several excellent viewpoints.

After sunset it was back to the resort.  I got dinner on my own and then went for a walk, which included checking out a small shopping center.  Finally I headed back to my room, showered, and readied my stuff for Tuesday morning.  Our driver confirmed that we would indeed have time for the Uluru base walk after sunrise at Uluru, but that meant being on the bus by 5:25AM.  So it was early to bed.

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Tuesday October 12 -

If you have read this far, you might wonder if this summary is going to continue to be full of complaints about the bus tour.  Well, after two days on the tour, the featured sightseeing so far had amounted to a white guy telling us about Aboriginal culture, about an hour total at Kata Tjuta, and 45 minutes watching Uluru at sunset.  Given the brochure, the itinerary, web advertisements and my great Palm Valley tour, and it is fair to say that I was expecting more than this.

Fortunately that changed today.

Those of us heading out for the sunrise were onboard the bus, all on time and ready to go.  We drove back into the park.  There was the tiniest sliver of a moon, the glow of a planet right next to it, both just above the dark silhouette of Uluru.  It would have been a fantastic picture with the right camera equipment.  We headed for the sunrise viewing area.  As did lots of people, but as with sunset there was plenty of room to spread out, and a fence to keep some idiot from walking out in front of everyone's cameras - and the park police strictly enforced the fence.  Sunrise was slow in coming, but it did, and it brought out the red glow that Uluru is famous for.  Simply outstanding.

Back on the bus, and then our driver dropped us off at the Mala Walk car park.  It was here I had to make my hiking decision,  There is a steep climb up Uluru to the top, and there is the 6-mile base walk around the monolith.  The climb is what tourists hear of and imagine doing should they ever get to Uluru, and I must admit that I like the idea of the physical accomplishment.  But Uluru and Kata Tjuta have spiritual and cultural significance to the Anangu people.  Although they do not forbid the climb (they will close it under some weather conditions), they actively discourage it, and climbing Uluru is disrespectful to the Tjukurpa, the value system of the Anangu people.

When originally planning my trip, I have to say I had planned to make the climb until I read about the cultural issues.  And from what I learned about the landscape, strictly from a scenery standpoint I was beginning to think that perhaps I'd get the best pictures by taking the base walk so that I could feature Uluru in my photos.  And when we got there I saw that Uluru is pretty much surrounded by a decidedly flat landscape, with Kata Tjuta and Mt. Conner only very distant views.  Did I still want to make the climb?  Well, to be honest, yeah, but I also wanted some interesting pictures, and I wanted to respect the traditions of our Anangu hosts.  The decision was easier than I thought it would be.

After hitting the restroom, I set off on the base walk around Uluru.  With only two hours allocated to the hike, I had to move at a reasonably fast pace, but the ground was level, and I had plenty of water, so it was an easy hike.  I really enjoyed the many views of Uluru I got, as it changed shapes with every angle, and the rising sun brought out different shades of red.  And with the morning light, I did not get any washed out looking pictures that are more common mid-day.  I snapped a ton of pictures, of the rock, the surrounding landscape and some surviving rock art, although there were a few places that were off-limits to photographs because of their spiritual significance to the Anangu.

I periodically passed - or was passed by - someone from our tour, and I walked much of the last mile or so with a Dutch man from our group.  But I was mostly intent on taking in the scenery and getting my pictures - and getting back on time.

After dropping us off at the Mala Walk car park, our driver headed back to the resort to get the luggage and pick up the folks from the group who wanted to sleep in.  He brought them back to lead them on the Mala Walk - I was just completing the base hike when I intercepted them on this walk, so I joined them for a look at the Anangu rock art that is featured on this short walk.  By the time we finished this walk, the whole group was together, and we headed over to the Mutitjulu car park.  That short trail took us into a nook at the base of Uluru that featured a waterhole that was home to Wanampi, an ancestral watersnake, and an overhang that featured more Anangu rock art.

A great sunrise, beautiful weather, a fine morning hike, nice photos, interesting rock art.  A great day, and it was still only late morning.

It was time to head out.  It was a bit of a melancholy moment.  Before coming here, I knew very little about central Australia other than Uluru and Kata Tjuta, so these were key reasons that motivated my trips.  And after months - years, actually - of anticipation, this part of the trip was over.  I did not have much in the way of expectations for anything else in the Northern Territory, so I did not have the same build-up of anticipation that I had at these sites.

We headed back to the Ayers Rock Resort, back to the little shopping center I stopped at the night before.  I got lunch and browsed the shops a bit before we got on the bus and hit the road.  We were off to Watarrka National Park and its Kings Canyon Resort.  We backtracked along the Lasseter Highway until we reached Luritja Road.  We turned north on that and then headed west on Ernest Giles Road, which took us to the resort.  We got there by late afternoon, and had the rest of the day to ourselves.  After settling into my room, I got some provisions for the room and tomorrow's hike, and then took the resort rim trail hike, an easy trail that wraps around the lodging area of the park.

I got dinner and then joined with a group of people to watch the effects of the sunset on a distant ridge of the George Gill Range.  I returned to my room to read through some of the literature I had been picking up along the trip - I even watched a bit of Australian television.  In spite of getting up so early, and with another early rising ahead of me, I wasn't tired, so I took a nice walk, stopping at several places to check out the stars, which look quite a bit different to my untrained eye in the Southern Hemisphere.

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Wednesday October 13 -

Another early start.  We headed over to the Kings Canyon trail head and hit the trail just before sunrise.  This proved to be my favorite hike of the trip.  A 4-mile walk, it starts off with a climb up from the parking area to the top of the ridge I was watching at sunset last night, and then up there it winds its way past a number of interesting sandstone formations and viewpoints from ridge's edge.  There is a section of ripple patterns locked in the rock, a lake bed leftover from a millions of years ago.  We passed through the Lost City, an area of rock domes (the frozen Kuninga Men of Luritja traditions), and at one point we headed down into the Garden of Eden, a valley with a permanent waterhole and lush vegetation, a contrast to the landscape at the top of the ridge.  The trail headed back up to the ridge and then followed the canyon for a bit, giving us some nice views of the Garden of Eden below us.  I enjoyed the varied scenery, and with the morning sunlight and a few clouds I was enjoying the photo opportunity.  Even though the Uluru base walk was somewhat longer, the landscape here was more interesting, and I ended up with a lot more pictures from this hike.

If someone were to ask me for just one site to visit in the Red Centre, I'd generally recommend Watarrka-Kings Canyon, except that if someone is visiting the Red Centre, they no doubt have dreams of Uluru.  So after you fulfill your Uluru goal, then go to Watarrka.

We had time for a late breakfast before hitting the road.  We had a fairly long drive ahead of us on the unpaved Mereenie Loop Road through Aboriginal lands, with no roadhouses or convenience stores along the way.  We did make a few stops, the first just barely into the drive for some nice views from Carmichael Crag.  We turned on to Namatjira Road to continue on to Glen Helen Resort.  At a refreshment break, we had a great view of Tnorala (Gosse Bluff), the outer walls of a huge crater.  The Aboriginal people hold that Tnorala was formed during the creation time when a giant baby carrier fell from the Milky Way and crashed to the earth, its sides turning into the walls of the crater.  Scientists believe that it was a comet - about 1/3 of a mile wide - that hit that spot around 142 million years ago.  Erosion since then has left a crater that today is about three miles wide.  Had I been road-tripping on my own, this would be the kind of site I'd detour for; an unpaved road leads off the highway into the crater.  But the road was not bus-friendly, so we settled for the view.

We made one more scenery stop just short of Glen Helen Resort for the views of Mt. Sonder.  Glen Helen Resort is an old ranch house that has been converted to a motel, restaurant and bar, located on the edge of West MacDonnell Range National Park, and on the Finke River at Glen Helen Gorge.  In fact, it is upstream, almost due north, from Finke Gorge National Park and Palm Valley.  We settled into our rooms, and then those of us who were interested headed over to Ormiston Gorge for a look.  There was a short trail down into the gorge itself, and a few others, with one target being the Ghost Gum Lookout, an uphill climb that offers some nice overhead views of the gorge.  

Now, it was about 4PM.  Sun sets after 6PM, and dinner wasn't until about 7.  So why were we given only a half hour for this stop featured in the itinerary?  Because Happy Hour at the resort's bar began at 5.  So I hurried down into the gorge to snap a few pictures, and then I ran uphill to catch up with the others in the group at the Gum Tree Lookout just as they were starting to head back down to the bus.  At least I got some pictures from both sites, and I did have the lookout to myself for a couple minutes.  Back at the resort I took another walk, heading over to Glen Helen Gorge to check that out.  I saw a rock arch in the distance, but the gorge was filled with water, so the only way I'd get a closer look would require a swim.  I enjoyed the view for a bit and then headed back to the resort to catch the effects of the sunset on Mt. Sonder.

Dinner was good, and later the hotel bar featured a singer who performed a nice mix of pop tunes and Aussie classics.  Some folks danced to a couple songs.  Others chatted out on the porch.  A cute Aussie guy on the staff set off my gaydar, and we made eye contact several times.  But I figure he probably just wondered why I kept looking at him, much like I wondered why he kept looking at me.  The same thing happened the next morning before we left.

The bar closed around 9PM, so I went outside to look at the stars for awhile before turning in.

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West MacDonnell Range and Alice Springs Redux

Thursday October 14 -

Another very good day, especially because there was a lot of sightseeing and not much driving.  We even picked up some stops in the Western MacDonnell Range I had hoped to see that weren't on the itinerary.

Namatjira Road and then Larapinta Drive follow the southern edge of the West MacDonnell Range for about 100 miles from Glen Helen east to Alice Springs.  Along the way there are a number of gaps in the range, some part of the West MacDonnell National Park.  We stopped at four of these on our way back to the Alice.

First up was the Ochre Pits.  The Ochre Pits feature a patch of soft colorful rock along a creek bed.  Ground up into a fine powder, these are used as the basis for paints using in Aboriginal ceremonies and artwork.  We had time to walk into the creek bed to check them out - a few of us hiked a bit further along the trail that connects to the Larapinta Trail some distance away, so we could check out more of the landscape.

Next up was Ellery Creek-Big Hole.  The biggest, deepest, coldest and most permanent water hole among the gaps of the West MacDonnell Range, it was a pretty stop, if just for the view.  As dry as the scenery - much like the Todd River in Alice Springs - may look, the water table in some areas is relatively close to the surface, which combined with the way sandstone holds and transports water explains why so many of the gaps have waterholes.  Ellery Creek's riverbed heads southwest from here, meeting up with the Finke River in Finke Gorge National Park.

As we drove east, I saw that rock ridges paralleled the road.  Many of these had small gaps or arches in them, none as impressive as the arches around Moab, Utah, but nonetheless the highest concentration of these I have come across outside of the Moab area.

Our third stop was Angkerle (Standley Chasm), which was the most interesting of our morning stops.  We had our longest stop here, although our time was once again less than the recommended time for the main sightseeing trail.  Angkerle is basically a slot canyon, whose 250-feet high flat red vertical walls can take on a deep red glow when the sun is positioned overhead near midday.  The generally easy, flat trail leading up to the chasm was interesting for its plant life and rock formations.  Beyond the chasm the trail climbed fairly steeply up to some view points, but because our allotted time was somewhat less than the amount the sign for the walk recommended, I climbed only part way up before heading back to join the tour group.  Only one other person from our group ventured much past the chasm itself on this trail - most everyone else had long returned to a refreshments kiosk, meeting the physical challenge of morning tea and ice cream, I guess.

One last stop before returning to the Alice was Simpsons Gap, home to black-footed rock wallabies, which generally stay hidden with the midday sun.  A dry riverbed passes through the gap, although there is a generally permanent waterhole in the gap itself.  Scenically, the least interesting of our morning stops, but it was still pretty.  Most of us were amused by the "No Swimming" sign planted next to the dry sandy riverbed.

Once back in Alice Springs, we were dropped off at the Todd Mall to get lunch and do some shopping while our driver got us set up back at the hotel.  I wanted to find some piece of Aboriginal artwork on this trip, but just the right piece.  There were actually a few pieces back at the hotel that I really liked, but much of what was for sale in the shops at Todd Mall was more contemporary.  Traditional Aboriginal art uses only a few colors, based on the ochres that they can make, but the contemporary work often featured a whole rainbow of colors.  I also wanted a piece whose symbols told some story.  (I ultimately settled on a piece in Sydney after trying to find just the right piece at various stops in the Northern Territory.)

Our driver picked us up and then took us to the Royal Flying Doctor Service visitor center.  The RFDS is a system that provides general and emergency medical care throughout the sparsely populated Australian outback.  The visitor center had a nice display on the history and activities of the service.

Next up was the Alice Springs Old Telegraph Station, the first white settlement in central Australia.  The city got its start in the 1870s as a repeater station along the Overland Telegraph Line that connected Australia to the rest of the world.  The line ran south from Darwin, crossing the country through the heart of the Red Centre.  A number of towns and settlements along what is now the Stuart Highway got their starts as telegraph repeater stations.  The Old Telegraph Station is located on the banks of the Todd River (bed) at the site of some water.  Originally mistaken as a spring, it is just a waterhole where the water gets trapped above a layer of granite.  The site features original buildings, including the oldest in the Territory, and telegraph equipment.  I also hiked up nearby Trig Hill, which gave me a great view of the old townsite and the nearby desert lands.

We headed back into town and stopped at ANZAC Hill.  I had been here my first day in Alice Springs.  Now that I was much more familiar with the town and the surrounding area, this stop was more interesting (and sunnier, too) as I could pick out the various features of the area.

Finally we headed for the hotel - the same one from the start of the trip - and we had the rest of the day to ourselves.  I got cleaned up and then walked into town for dinner, Australian pizza, and checked out the downtown one last time before returning to my room.  I caught some TV as I repacked my suitcase, and then took a short walk in the area before checking out Lasseters Casino, across the street from the hotel.  Downtown had been quiet, and the casino bar was quiet.  I played a few pulls on a slot machine and did not win anything.  I headed back to the hotel and turned in.

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Stuart Highway North towards Katherine

Friday October 15 -

If I hadn't realized how big Australia and the Northern Territory were before now, today and tomorrow really drove that point home.  These days were the transition between our explorations of the Red Centre and the Top End, the northern part of the Northern Territory.  Our target was Katherine, more than 700 miles north of Alice Springs.  We'd get to Tennant Creek Friday evening, and then head on to Katherine on Saturday.  Today's itinerary identified only one stop - Karlwekarlwe (the Devils Marbles) - which I was looking forward to.

Our day ended up being peppered with a number of short stops, some more interesting than others.  Barely out of Alice Springs, we stopped at a monument along the side of the road.  It marked the location where the Tropic of Capricorn crossed the Stuart Highway.  I had thought to note crossing the International Dateline and the equator for the first times on this trip in my journal, but I have to admit that I hadn't given the Tropic of Cancer much thought until we stopped.

Next up was Ryan Well Historical Reserve, the ruins of an old well and pioneer homestead.  The Stuart Highway generally follows the old telegraph line.  The well was dug to serve those following the line and to help encourage settlement of what is now the Northern Territory.  Across the highway from the ruins of the well were the ruins of the Glen Maggie Homestead.  Home, telegraph station, general store, at one time it was the last supply station for those heading north in search of gold.

Our third stop was at the Red Centre Farms, Shatto Mango specifically, for a chance to do some mango wine tasting at an area fruit farm.  Not a stop on our original agenda, and one I could have done without (I am not a wine drinker), but I was a good sport and pitched in some money for the wine and snacks since that was not covered in our tour price.

In Ti-Tree we stopped at the Red Sands Gallery for lunch.  I got a burger and then browsed through the Aboriginal art on display.  I did not have any luck finding "just the piece" of art to get as my Australian souvenir in Alice Springs, and I did not have any better luck here.  There wasn't a lot to Ti-Tree, but it was one of the wider wide spots along that stretch of the Stuart Highway.

Further up the highway we stopped at the Central Mount Stuart Historical Reserve and its Stuart Memorial.  Australian explorer John McDouall Stuart used a sextant to calculate that Central Mount Stuart was pretty close to the center of Australia, halfway between east and west, and north and south.  Some cyclist trying to enjoy a peaceful lunch at a picnic table suddenly found himself at the center of attention, surrounded by a bus full of people - he did not seem to be too thrilled to see us.  It was along this part of the drive that we began to see our first termite mounds.  That's a head-scratcher if you haven't been to Australia, but the country, and particularly the Top End, is covered with these mounds.  These were pretty small compared to the ones we'd find further north, but I did not know that so I snapped a few pictures.

Another break, this time at a roadhouse at Wycliffe Well.  Little more than a gas station, convenience store and campground, Wycliffe Well is famous for its UFO sightings.  It is in fact the UFO Centre of Australia, reminding me a lot of Rachel, Nevada, in its kitschy embrace of space alien culture.  Out front of the roadhouse was a little green family posing with their spaceship, and the building and grounds were decorated with UFO-themed art.

Nearby - actually hanging out in the dust below a Stuart Highway bridge - was a group of Aboriginal people, apparently having found a spot to stay out of the sun.  As with many of those I saw walking the streets of Alice Spring or hanging out in the dry Todd River bed, I was again reminded of the homeless folks I see in larger U.S. cities.

We finally reached the itinerary's featured attraction for the day, Devils Marbles Conservation Reserve.  It features large clusters of granite boulders, eroded into large balls, reminding the Aboriginal people - who named it Karlwekarlwe - of the eggs of the Dreamtime's Rainbow Serpent Eggs.  We were only given 25 minutes to see the park, just enough time for a quick walk around one cluster of the boulders.  Most folks seemed content with that, but with about 5 minutes to spare, I quickly walked out towards a second cluster to at least catch a bit more of the park.  I ended up being the last one back to the bus, but I was checking my watch and had a minute to spare.

Our last stop of the day was the Battery Hill Mining Centre, a gold mine that now gives underground tours.  The area was the site of a major Australian gold rush.  The tour was interesting, and it ended just in time for us to get above ground to watch the sunset.

Off to the motel.  I found a convenience store for some provisions, had dinner, and then ended up in a nice conversation with folks from the group for much of the evening.  Folks started turning in around 10:30, which was a bit early for me.  It was Friday night in the biggest small town in the area, so I thought I'd head out to find some nightlife.  I did find a local bar, but there were only a few cars out front, so I explored downtown Tennant Creek - in the dark - for awhile, including a stop at a historical display.  We'd be leaving first thing in the morning, so this was likely the only chance I'd have to see much of the town itself.

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Saturday October 16 -

Today would be the longest driving day of the bus trip, and the day with the least sightseeing.  But sometimes, that's what it takes to get from one part of the country to another.

After breakfast we got an early start leaving Tennant Creek, hitting the Stuart Highway once again.  We had barely started when we stopped at our first roadhouse for a break.  The 3 Ways Shell station, where the Barkly Highway from Queensland meets it end at the Stuart Highway.  The settlement also features the 3 Ways Motel for those so inclined, and the John Flynn Memorial Cross.  Flynn was instrumental in establishing the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

A little further north, near yet another memorial to Australian explorer John McDouall Stuart, we left the main highway for a bit to follow a short stretch of the Old Stuart Highway.  The highlight of this alternative route - besides to give us a bit of a taste of what the Stuart Highway used to be like - is a small rock outcropping said to look like Winston Churchill's head, especially after someone stuck a stick in it to look like a cigarette.  Sorry to any Australians reading this, but with the stick it looks more like Franklin Delano Roosevelt - or just a rock with a stick in it - if you ask me.

Back on the highway we stopped at another roadhouse, this one at Renner Springs.  The most interesting aspect of this stop was the large flock of cockatoos flying about the trees just across the road.  They're considered to be rather exotic in the U.S., so to see them in their natural habitat for a change was rather nice.

Another short stop further up the highway was at the Barkly Stock Route intersection.  Just an ordinary dusty gravel road, but the sign warning that you're 228 KM from the next highway crossing and 500 KM from the next gas station catches your eye.

We took a tea break at Newcastle Waters.  A historic water hole and large cattle station (ranch), today it appears to be mostly a dusty small town long past its prime.  Like more than a few fading western towns in the U.S.  While most of the group enjoyed a tea break in Drovers Memorial Park (which features a statue that memorializes drovers, i.e., cowboys, who worked the local cattle industry), I took a walking tour of the town.  The Aboriginal Inland Mission Church was little more than a corrugated steel shell - I do not know if it was still in use.  There was a small school, some homes and a few other buildings that in their day were hotels, bars and stores lining the dusty road that was the main street through town.  It was interesting enough, making me wish we had the time to explore the place a bit more.  One of Australia's richest men, media entrepreneur Kerry Packer, owns the Newcastle Waters Homestead.

In addition to the termite mounds, we were beginning to see some real change in the landscape.  If you're looking for stunning scenery, the drive north out of Alice Springs really hasn't been the place to see it.  It is mostly flat along the highway route, with the more interesting features usually well into the distance.  The flora is generally sparse, reminding me of high desert country in the U.S.  But as we headed further north, the vegetation was clearly becoming more dense.  And at Newcastle Waters, we crossed the Newcastle River bed.  Generally dry, like the Todd River and most other river beds I have seen on the trip, but actually much more broad.  When the Newcastle River carries water, it clearly carries a lot of water.  Unlike the Red Centre, the northern part of Australia alternates between the Wet and the Dry, monsoonal rains and arid sunshine.  Mid-October is springtime in Australia, although near the Tropic of Capricorn, that means temperatures nearing 100 degrees most days.  But it is towards the late end of the Dry - I did not want to risk missing some of the sights I wanted to see because of monsoon season, which begins to hit in earnest in November.

Our next stop was the famous historic Daly Waters Pub.  Established in 1930, it looks like a hodgepodge of scrap somehow shaped into a crude building.  It was a favorite rowdy house for the drovers taking the cattle herds across Australia to market.  It still has a rowdy feel with an assortment of flags, currency, t-shirts and other items tacked up on the walls and ceiling.  Above the pool table several pairs of underwear, panties and bras are tacked up there - according to our driver, if someone playing pool scratches on the eight ball, they have to remove some item of underwear right then and there and add it to the collection.

The town of Daly Waters is also famous for what looks like a dead tree with the letter "S" carved in it.  John McDouall Stuart carved that on May 23, 1862, when he passed through the area on his first successful south to north crossing of Australia.

We continued north to Mataranka, the heart of the "Never Never", the area featured in the book "We of the Never Never", a story of isolated pioneer life in the Australian Outback.  There's still not much to the town, but just east of the highway is Elsey National Park, which features the Mataranka Hot Springs.  The itinerary suggested that we'd have a swim here, but our driver had already warned us that the trees were fill with bats - large red flying foxes, specifically - and their droppings had really stunk up the place and dirtied the water.  He was right about that.  They were larger than most bats I have seen, hanging from the trees above us - with a few taking some short flights.  I took a nice walk on the boardwalk through the woods to the Waterhouse River.  Yes, woods and river.  We were surrounded by vegetation and lots of water, very much in contrast to so much of the Outback we had seen up until now.  There was also a crocodile warning sign, reminding us of what we'd see a lot more of in the Top End.  The less aggressive freshwater crocodile rather than the more threatening salties at this point, but I started keeping an eye out for them along some hiking trails.

Instead of swimming at Mataranka, our driver had suggested the Katherine Hot Springs as an alternative.  We were heading for Katherine anyway, so that made sense (not that I was planning on swimming), so we continued on for another hour, reaching our hotel on the south edge of town.  One nice thing about this stop was that we were going to spend two nights here, the first time for that since my original nights in Alice Springs.  We got settled into our rooms and then those of us interesting in going to the hot springs headed back on the bus.  I was more interested in the sightseeing aspect of this - heck, the hotel had a nice swimming pool - and seeing Katherine itself, which is why I joined the group.

Katherine Hot Springs is probably nice enough if you're there alone, but frankly it had the appeal and ambience of a crowded drainage ditch - it is close enough to town that it draws lots of locals and tourists.  I took a walk along the Katherine River while others swam or sat.  We'd see a much prettier area of the river tomorrow, but here it was pretty non-descript.

Back to the hotel for dinner.  Then I got cleaned up and walked the couple miles back to downtown Katherine.  It was Saturday night, and I was determined to not spend it in a motel bar.  I could hear what sounded like one dance bar, but I never did find an entrance to it.  A second one that I had seen featured in the local paper had a sign demanding long pants - I was wearing shorts.  So I headed to Kirby's Sports Bar.  Big bar, so-so crowd, but a good atmosphere.  I enjoyed watching the pool players and contributed some money to the juke box.

I was a bit surprised that it was almost all men.  After awhile, two local women did show up.  And that's when I'd hear my one and only "Oy!" of the trip.  Words like "Oy" and "Crikey" get some play as Australians, but the only time I heard "Crikey" used was when our driver was telling us about the word during one stretch of the drive.  More of a meta-"Crikey" than a true "Crikey" in that context.  But the "Oy" boomed across the bar when one of the women - a petite little thing - wanted to get the attention of a friend of hers at a slot machine along the far side of the bar.

What surprised me even more, and probably more than it should have, were a few Aboriginal people among the bar's patrons.  I have commented earlier in this report about how so many of the Aboriginal people I'd seen reminded me of our homeless people in the States, and of the explanation we had gotten a week earlier at the Aboriginal Dreamtime and Bushtucker Tour.  Up until now I had seen very little mixing between Aboriginal people and Anglos, and most of the ones I said hi to along the streets of Alice Springs pretty much ignored me.  Except for some physical features, those at Kirby's were indistinguishable from the Anglos, with their wardrobe, nice haircuts and chattiness.  After all the previous encounters and Dreamtime explanations, I was glad to get this more well-rounded perspective of Aboriginal people in Australia.

I left around 11:30PM as we had an early start the next morning.  I hit a convenience store to pick up a few things for tomorrow, and headed back to the hotel.  It was a dark walk back, and along the way I saw several Aboriginal people moving among the shadows, much like back in Alice Springs at night.  It is odd to see so many people - men, women and children - who seem to be just hanging out along the roads at that time of night.

As I neared the motel I saw an odd shape move on the sidewalk in front of me.  A closer look revealed it to be a large frog, a cane toad, actually.  By the time I got to the hotel parking lot I found the ground covered with cane toads.  They began invading northern Australia some years ago, and they aren't good eating for their potential predators, so they have multiplied like crazy in the Top End.  I don't know where they hide during the daytime, but at night you really have to watch your step.

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Katherine Sites and Nitmiluk

Sunday October 17 -

Today, as well as any day on the bus tour, provided a fine example of both the best and worst aspects of the bus tour.

The big feature in the Katherine area is Nitmiluk National Park, home to Katherine Gorge and Leliyn (Edith Falls), both of which proved to be outstanding places to see.  And with us staying in the same hotel both last night and tonight, our only driving was the short distances to these two features, 20 miles to the gorge and 36 miles to the falls.  And according to the itinerary, we'd have time for a bush walk before a swim at Edith Falls.  A nice, rather leisurely day.  And yet we'd spend only about 3 1/2 hours - total! - seeing the two featured attractions of this park.

The day started off well, just a beautiful day (we had great weather the entire time I was in the Outback).  After breakfast we hit the road and headed for Nitmiluk National Park and Katherine Gorge.  The Katherine River carves a series of canyons through the park.  Narrated boat tours head up through the canyons - depending on the tour you take, at one or more points you leave one boat to hike past some rapids and then board the next boat.  We took a two-boat version.  The canyon scenery was quite pretty, and the geological explanation for the canyons and its right-angle turns was interesting (and it also gave us the morning sun at a nice variety of angles for picture taking).  An additional treat was that at our portage site we passed a gallery of ancient rock art.  I don't know what else the longer cruise might have offered, but the two-boat version was very nice, and probably just the right length to get a good taste of the gorge.

When we got back there were a handful of wallabies near the boat dock.  These were the first ones I had a chance to see up close - very close, actually - so I got a great look, and some decent video, too.  But there was no time to see anything else about this part of the park.  It was back on the bus to head into Katherine, where we were dropped off downtown at a mall. It was Sunday morning, so most of the rest of downtown Katherine was closed.  Although it was no more than 60 miles from Katherine Gorge to Leliyn, it took us three hours to get from one to the other because of our excessively long stop along the way in downtown Katherine.

Leliyn was a very pretty spot.  A river running through the park creates Edith Falls, actually a series of three pools - two small ones and the third a large lake - whose waters cascade from one to the next.  A hiking trail follows the hillsides and bluffs around these, providing several excellent views of the river, the cascades, the pools and the surrounding landscape.  You could swim and then hike, hike and then swim, or mix the two as the trail loops around the water sites.  In addition to that trail and swimming in any or all of the lakes, there were other trails, a kiosk selling food, ice cream, coffee and tea, and a display of Aboriginal artwork, plenty of things for us to fill the whole afternoon with.

We were given just over an hour here, barely enough to finish the loop trail around the lakes if you walked at a very fast pace and leaving no time for swimming afterwards as the itinerary promised.  In fact, I was the only one from our group to hike the loop trail.   Why the rush?  Our driver dumbfoundingly suggested that if we got back to Katherine early we could go back to Katherine Hot Springs, the crowded, glorified drainage ditch we visited in town yesterday afternoon.  To this day, I'll never figure out why we had to cut short our visit to one of the featured attractions on our itinerary to make a return visit to the hot springs (which, by the way, weren't even tepid).  Those who were really into swimming had three pools and some waterfalls to explore at Leliyn, and the water there was actually deep enough to swim in.  Because most people in our group did not take the loop trail, they were oblivious to the exploration opportunities that this park offered.  Those not into swimming had nothing else to do at the shallow, unswimmable springs back in Katherine.  (Yes, I was pissed off about this at the time, and as I write up this passage three months later, it still pisses me off when I think about it.)

Back to the hotel.  I walked into Katherine to find a place for dinner.  There were surprisingly few restaurants.  I did find movie theatre that was hosting some sort of film festival, but I was more in a walking mood.  I got dinner at the Red Rooster, a fast food chicken place.  Kirby's was open, but there were only a few people there on a Sunday night, so I picked up some munchies at a convenience store and then walked back to the hotel.  I watched a bit of TV and then headed out to get some cane toad pictures before turning in.

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Kakadu and Arnhem Land

Monday October 18 -

Today I passed the halfway point of my trip.

I was really looking forward to Kakadu National Park, but after our rushed visits to the features of Nitmiluk National Park yesterday, I have to say that by now I was pretty concerned that Kakadu would get similar treatment.  Fortunately I was wrong, but our first Kakadu stop did not ease these concerns.

We headed north on the Stuart Highway, retracing part of the route to Leliyn for almost half of our drive up to Pine Creek.  Although bare an hour into our trip, we stopped in Pine Creek for a few sites.  Our first stop was at the Enterprise Pit/Pine Creek Gold Fields, a major gold mining operation until it had closed 10 years earlier.  Next was Pine Creek itself, where we stopped at Mayse's Cafe for sandwiches and snacks.  It was just after breakfast, but this was for getting picnic lunch items for lunch.  Mayse's features some American rock & roll memorabilia in its decor, although it did not look at all like a the classic 1950s diner where you typically see such stuff.  I wandered around Pine Creek a bit after getting a sandwich and some Diet Coke - I got a couple pictures I liked of a really big windmill at the Water Gardens in the middle of town, and the Bogger's Park, which featured a memorial to Albert George Young who had married the Mayse Dowling after whom the cafe was named.  Before leaving town we also stopped at the Pine Creek Railway Trust, which features an old railroad station and a collection of train cars.

When we left Pine Creek, we also left the Stuart Highway, heading northeast on the Kakadu Highway towards Kakadu National Park.  After about 35 miles, we crossed the Mary River and entered Kakadu.  The 7000+ square mile park, now a World Heritage Area, is known for both its natural features and Aboriginal culture.  The landscape combines the rugged terrain, woodlands, monsoon forests, tidal flats, floodplains and billabongs that make up the entire South Alligator watershed.  No alligators, though.  In addition to a variety of birds, reptiles and wallabies, the park is home to numerous shy freshwater crocodiles and the larger, aggressive saltwater crocodiles - the salties.  The park is also home to a number of Aboriginal people, and it is adjacent to Arnhem Land, the large northeast corner of the territory that is under full authority of Aboriginal groups.  A particular draw for me is that the park and the adjacent Arnhem Land have one of the largest concentrations of rock art in the world, more than 15,000 identified sites, and indeed I would see the most interesting rock art I have ever encountered during our visit.

A few miles into the park we turned onto an unpaved road and headed for our first stop, Gunlom Falls.  Our stop for lunch and a scheduled "swim below the tumbling waterfall" was limited to just a half hour, so I wolfed down my sandwich and then headed for a walk over to the pool at the base of the falls, home to Bolung, the Rainbow Serpent, according to local traditions.  Signs again warned of possible crocodiles, so I kept a hopeful eye out for those, but did not see any - or Bolung, for that matter.  Short 1-kilometer trails led to the top of the falls and to a nearby billabong, but our stop did not leave time for either.  It was back on the bus for the 70 mile drive to Gagudju Lodge Cooinda, where we would be staying for the night.

Our driver dropped us off at the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre, which features some nice displays on Aboriginal history and culture in Kakadu, while he got us set up at the lodge.  Once we settled into the lodge, we had an hour to kill before heading on to our next stop.  I would have liked to have had more of that hour at Gunlom Falls, but instead I used it to hike a stretch of the Yellow Water Walk, which follows part of the crocodile-infested billabong.  As it was towards the end of the Dry (the dry season), there were some areas I passed through that clearly had had water in them not long before that must have dried out.  I enjoyed the close-up view of the native plants and setting, although every rustle prompted a quick check for crocodiles.

We headed for the Yellow Water Wetlands and boarded a boat for a late afternoon cruise that was just excellent.  We were greeted by the sight of a huge crocodile right off the bat, but it was such a common site at that spot that the guides had already named it.  We'd come across a number of others, maybe a dozen or so, during the two-hour cruise, including some that swam alongside the boat.  (Folks on the boat were warned not to dangle anything that might seem tasty to a crocodile - such as an arm - over the side of the boat.  In addition to the crocodiles, we saw a huge number of colorful birds, among them the jacanas, also known as "Jesus birds" because they appear to walk on water (actually lily pads).  The birders among the group really enjoyed such sights, while I was taken more by the landscape, which reminded me a bit of the bayous of southern Louisiana.  The late day sun and a slight haze gave us a warm but fading light towards the end of the cruise, which ended just as the sun was setting.

With the sun setting before seven, that left a lot of evening to fill before bedtime, even with dinner.  In most places along the trip I usually headed out walking.  The site of all those crocodiles, however, suggested that might not be the best idea in the woods and along the waters surrounding Gagudju.  I watched a bit of TV and then headed for the resort's swimming pool for a swim and a soak there.  I did note that the pool was very carefully fenced off, no doubt to discourage crocodiles from joining the swimmers.

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Tuesday October 19 -

A very interesting day, with a great focus on Aboriginal culture and rock art.  After breakfast, we checked out of Gagudju and headed up the Kakadu highway towards Jabiru.  Near the park headquarters, we rendezvoused with an Aboriginal guide and split our group in two - Anglos vs. Dutch, except for the Dutch man I had hiked part of Uluru with, who joined us - and then continued on.  The two groups would see the same sites except in reverse order.  Our group headed for a crossing of the East Alligator River onto the Oenpelli Road into Arnhem Land.  Arnhem Land, which is about the size of Indiana, is an Aboriginal reserve controlled by the Northern Land Council.  Many Aboriginal people living there continue to follow their ancient traditions, and access by non-Aboriginal people is severely restricted and by written permit only.  

Our guide first stopped at the East Alligator River crossing itself so he could tell us a bit about Arnhem Land, its people and its traditions.  The river is rather non-descript, at least during the Dry.  Much of where we were would be underwater during the upcoming Wet (the wet season).  We did see some interesting small fish, the mudskippers.  

We continued on a little further up the road for a stop at a billabong.  There we learned about about the animals that use the place and about the differences in the area between the Wet and the Dry.  Our next stop was at a large rock outcropping that we explored on foot.  Two of the three sites we visited here featured panels of ancient and not so ancient rock art.  Some of the more recent work featured an old-style sailing ship, no doubt a record of the early Europeans who had explored the area.

The oldest rock art I have seen in the United States are some pictographs in Utah dated to about 2,000 years ago.  Some Australian rock art has been dated to 35,000 years ago.  Over time, changes in culture, climate and technique have been reflected in the rock art.  A major influence over time has been the impact of the end of the last Ice Age.  Coastlines were radically altered, water moved inland and climate changed.  This period was accompanied with the rise of the Dreamtime traditions and the Rainbow Serpent.  The concept of the Rainbow Serpent began showing up in Kakadu and Arnhem Land regional rock art about 6,000 years ago.  As a symbol of creation, the Rainbow Serpent is regarded as the world's oldest continuous religious tradition.

The third site at this Arnhem Land stop was a burial site, where we learned about local customs for burying and honoring the dead.  Not so much burying, actually, but more of a way to  support the decay and dispersal of the remains.  As with some sites along the Uluru base hike, this was a sacred site and thus off limits to pictures.  Our guide gave us more information on traditional Aboriginal culture, including a rite of passage for young men - throwing spears into a seemingly unlikely to reach crevasse high above in the rocks.  Even then, they apparently had to wait for the older men to have their pick of the young women before getting their chance at getting a mate.

Our guide also gave us a demonstration of Aboriginal spear-throwing.  As part of the process for boys maturing into men of the tribe, they had to demonstrate proficiency in spear-throwing.  And to do so in this area meant that they had to throw their spears at a small crevice in the rocks overhead - and have several of their spears wedge into that crevice.  A pretty tough challenge, if you ask me, and a rather impressive accomplishment.

We then headed over to a nearby billabong for a short stop.  It looked like a broad sandy beach along a large pond at the base of a rock outcropping.  Probably a nice place for a swim - if it weren't for the crocodile I spotted nearby.

Back into Kakadu, we headed for nearby Ubirr, where we switched with the Dutch group.  They headed off to Arnhem Land, and we began our exploration of Ubirr.  There a short trail leads to several outstanding panels of pictographs, with fish, hunting and spiritual figures (attributed to the ancient Mimi) the most common subject matter.  Along the trail we climbed up an outcropping which gave us an outstanding view of the Nardab floodplain, the East Alligator River channel and Arnhem Land beyond it.  And because the Dutch group had as much time in Arnhem Land as we did, we actually had enough time to enjoy the Ubirr sites and not just rush past them.

When the group all got together, we headed for the Jabiru airport for a lunch break.  A few people took a scenic flight, which I was suppose was fine for them, but for the rest of us it was a couple of hours to kill at an airport hangar.  

Our next scheduled stop was at Burrunggui (Nourlangie Rock), home of the Anbangbang rock art galleries, my top priority rock art site when planning the trip.  This is when a couple folks from the bus group started lobbying our driver to go on to the hotel instead.  Good grief!  These galleries are why people from all over the world come to Kakadu.  We'd end up spending only 45 minutes here, skipping one of the main sections - the Anbangbang Shelter - that I suppose would have added perhaps ten more minutes to the stop.  At one of the panels we did see, someone spied a wallaby, which captured the attention of most of the folks in the group.  Unique Aboriginal rock art that is thousands of years old or more wallabies?  I thought the choice was obvious.  So did most of my tour mates, apparently - as we faced opposite directions.

Hunting scenes and dancing figures were among the subject matter depicted in the pictographs we viewed on our way to the Anbangbang Gallery.  Among these was Nabulwinjbulwinj, a dangerous spirit who eats females after killing them by striking them with a yam.  The main Anbangbang Gallery features Namarrgon (the Lightning Man), Barrginj (Namarrgon's wife), and Namondjok (a Creation Ancestor who may have broken kinship laws according to Aboriginal traditions).  There are also family groupings on this panel, wearing elaborate dress that suggests that they are on their way to a ceremony.  We continued on the trail to the Gun-warddehwardde Lookout with its views of Burrunggui and eastern Kakadu.

After leaving the Nourlangie area, we headed to Jabiru, a planned community that features a Holiday Inn hotel that from above looks like a giant crocodile.  Mostly a gas break for the bus.  Then it was on to Aurora Kakadu Resort, near the South Alligator River, where we would spend the night.  I dropped my suitcase off in my room and then hit the Gu-ngarre trail and headed for the nearby Anggardabal Billabong, where I checked out the birds, kept an eye out for crocodiles and watch the sun as it slowly set beyond the trees.  Dinner with the gang and then back to the room for some TV and to do some repacking of the suitcase.  Tomorrow we'd end up in Darwin for the last night of the tour.

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On to Darwin

Wednesday October 20 -

Now I can relax.  Whether for a disappointing 25 minute stop or a more reasonable couple of hours, all the main sites I wanted to see on this bus trip were behind me.  There were a few sites to see along the way to Darwin, and tomorrow's stop at Litchfield National Park, which I knew almost nothing about, but these I could take or leave when I planned the trip.  Other than I was looking forward to seeing the giant termite mounds.

On my way to breakfast I found a wallaby grazing in the grassy area near my room.  I watched it for awhile, but it ran (hopped) off  once I got just a bit too close.  We hit the road, heading west on the Arnhem Highway on our way out of Kakadu.  Our first stop was at the Cathedral Termite Mounds.  These termite mounds can reach up to 20 feet tall, making them among the tallest in the world.  They're interesting to see, but some folks can't resist touching them (and two of the tour mates who grated on me earlier, including at yesterday's Nourlangie Rock stop, broke off pieces to look at, crumble in their hand, and then drop on the ground).

After a short stop at a roadhouse, we headed onto our next stop.  It was scheduled to be the Windows on the Wetlands, but our driver gave us the option of seeing the nearby Spectacular Jumping Crocodile Cruise, which most of us took instead.  For this cruise, our boat trolls up and down the Mary River at Mary River National Park looking for crocodiles.  The crocs have gotten used to this because our guide ties a chunk of raw meat to a string and holds it out over the water.  The crocs put on a show as they go after the meet, jumping for the meat, getting most of their body out of the water.  Okay, it is a cheap thrill, but it did give us a somewhat different look at the crocodiles that populate the local waters.  The site also features a variety of local snakes that our hosts are quite willing to drape around your neck if you'd like.

Next up was the Territorial Wildlife Park, basically a zoo, although more open with fewer cages.  I had lunch followed by a walk through the park.  It was interesting to see the animals and plants more closely, but in general I prefer to see animals in more natural settings.

Finally it was on to Darwin for the last night of the tour, although I was scheduled to spend an extra night in the hotel.  I dropped my suitcase off in the room and then headed out to explore Darwin.  For this walk I first explored Bicentennial Park and worked my way towards the Northern Territory's parliament building, and picking up some historical sites.  Lyons Cottage, the Old Admiralty House, State Square, the Supreme Court, Liberty Square, the Government House, the old Customs House and some telegraph and World War II-related sites (the Japanese bombed Darwin in February 1942) were among my sightseeing stops.  There really isn't a lot in the way of historical sites.  Like Alice Springs, the city isn't all that old, and in the 1970s a cyclone had struck the city, destroying most of the old stuff.  As a result, the town had more the look of modern suburbia as much as anything.

I did not do much shopping, but I found a few places to check out tomorrow.  My last day in the Northern Territory was just about here, and I still hadn't picked out a piece of Aboriginal painting as my Australian souvenir.  

I did scout the town for nightlife sites - I had a couple addresses that I had brought with me, but I found that one of the bars was closed on Wednesday nights.  Back to the hotel to get cleaned up for dinner.  We had the tour's Farewell Dinner, and then went our own ways for the evening.  I bummed around Darwin's Central Business District for awhile.  Around 10PM I headed for a local gay bar, but with only a couple people there, I decided not to stay.  (But I did go in, so I guess I get to count it.)

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Darwin and Litchfield

Thursday October 21 -

The last official day of our bus tour.  After breakfast at the hotel, we headed for Litchfield National Park.  We made a brief stop in Batchelor, where a homesick immigrant has re-created the Karlstein Castle, a miniature replica of a castle in Bohemia.  I suggested that in the future our driver should tell tour groups that it is one of the more elaborate termite mounds found in the Northern Territory.

Then it was on to Litchfield.  Our first stop was at Litchfield's magnetic termite mounds.  The termites living in some mounds can migrate below ground to deal with the tropical heat.  But in Litchfield the soil may be waterlogged, so the termites need another way to control temperatures.  As a result, their mounds in Litchfield are aligned north-south, which minimizes the amount of their surface exposed to the sun during the hottest time of day.  The alignment of these tall flat termite mounds suggests a headstone, so a field filled with magnetic termite mounds somewhat resembles a cemetery.

Next up was Wangi Falls, where we had time scheduled for swimming or hiking.  Some folks hit the water (because of Litchfield's elevation, crocodiles are much less likely to be a problem here).  I took a loop trail that followed one side of the waterhole, climbed to the top of the waterfall, and then looped around the other side of the waterhole.  For part of this trail, the fauna was quite tropical in its appearance, but once the trail climbed out of that the scenery reminded me of a lot of what I saw at Leliyn and parts of Kakadu.  As we were heading back towards the bus, someone in the group noticed an unusual birds nest near the parking lot that held a clutch of eggs.  No sign of the birds, though - probably scared off by a couple dozen tourists.

Our last sightseeing stop was Florence Falls.  Another swimming hole, but there was a steep walk to get down to it.  A pretty spot but crowded with tourists and locals - although they did all coincidentally get out of the way at one point so I could get a nice picture of the falls.  I got my pictures and then followed the loop trail just over a mile that climbed up around the other side of the falls and then looped around a creek before heading back to the parking lot.  I then started heading towards the falls once more so that I could intercept the members of the tour group who by now were on their way back towards the bus.

That was our last official stop.  We drove back to the hotel and headed our separate ways.  I wanted to finish exploring Darwin.  I saw a few people from the group later in the evening at some bar, and a couple at the airport the next morning, but that was it.  A pretty mundane ending after having spent 12 days together.

For today's Darwin tour I first hit some downtown shops and the Smith Mall - and still did not find any Aboriginal art that really caught my fancy.  Then I headed for a few last sightseeing stops - the Browns Mart Theatre and the shells of the old town hall and an old church.  Then I headed down to Darwin's Wharf Precinct and checked out the waterfront and the wharf.  I also checked out the entrances to some WWII era oil storage tunnels (Darwin was bombed by the Japanese; these helped protect wartime oil supplies).  Finally it was back up to Bicentennial Park, where I watched the sun set beyond the Indian Ocean.

Dinner on my own, then I packed for tomorrow's flight to Sydney.  Then I hit the streets once more to check out the gay bars.  But the one was still closed, and the other only had two customers this time.  I walked around for awhile and then headed back to the hotel.  I had an early flight to catch, so I hadn't planned on staying out too late anyway.

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Nhulunbuy (Gove), Cairns, the Great Barrier Reef and Sydney Arrival

Friday October 22 - 

Mostly a flying day as I made my way from Darwin to Sydney.  I knew I'd be changing planes in Cairns, but at the airport I found out that my Darwin to Cairns flight also made a stop at the Gove Airport at Nhulunbuy, on the northeast tip of Arnhem Land's Gove Peninsula.  I had a window seat on the left side of the plane for my flights so I got some great coastline and ocean views.  I could pick out the rivers of Kakadu, but we were north of the places I had seen on the ground.  Arnhem Land is big and empty.  Few roads.  Almost no towns that I saw.

At least not until we approached Gove.  Local mining operations there showed the results of lots of earthmoving and settling ponds.  We had to get off the plane at Gove Airfield (and go through security again to get back on).  The Gove Airfield was built in 1943 to support World War II operations.  There's little more than a building there now, but it was my second visit to Arnhem Land, even if it was just a brief one.

Back on board, we flew across the Gulf of Carpentaria and then Queensland's Cape York.  As we approached Cairns we crossed a ring of mountains and then lots of farmland before landing at the airport.  A quick exit from the plane and through security to catch my next plane.  (I had to go through security in Sydney, too - this must be normal when changing planes at Australian airports).  

For my flight to Sydney I had an ocean view for the first twenty minutes which included great views of the Great Barrier Reef.  Then more dry continent scenery before hitting some clouds, although I did get a few aerial views of the Sydney area before we landed.

After landing, I picked up my luggage, and then found the driver to take me and a few others to our hotels.  There was a similar driver for me in Alice Springs, but this time we waited quite awhile for someone else who was supposed to join us but who never did show up, and then I was the last person to be dropped off - an hour more of daylight gone that I wouldn't have lost had I simply taken a taxi (something for me to keep in mind for future travels, I guess).

I chose a hotel on Riley Street, just off Oxford St. and a few blocks southeast of Hyde Park and the Central Business District.  That would put me within reasonable walking distance of the downtown and waterfront sites by day and just a few blocks from Sydney's famous Darlinghurst neighborhood gay nightlife (for safety in new city reasons, I generally prefer to keep my nighttime walking shorter).  For my purposes, it turned out to be a great location.

I dropped off my stuff in my room and set out for a late afternoon exploration of Sydney.  I mostly wanted to head to the waterfront at this point to find out what my options were for a Saturday harbor cruise so that I could plan my other activities around that.  I headed for Hyde Park and checked out the ANZAC War Memorial before heading into the heart of downtown Sydney.  I followed George Street to the start of the Rocks area - historically the oldest part of Sydney - and then cut over to Sydney Harbour at Circular Quay.  From here you have got the harbor ferries and views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the famous Sydney Opera House, the downtown skyline and a view of North Sydney.  Throw in local train and ferry commuters, buskers and tourists, and it was a pretty busy place at dinner time.  I picked up a harbour cruise ticket for the following morning, shot a few pictures and then started heading back to the hotel.

On the way back I generally followed Macquarie Street, which passes the Government House, the Royal Botanic Gardens, the Conservatorium of Music, Parliament and other historic sites on my list.  I then cut through Hyde Park, walking its length.  The annual Art & About event was nearing the end of its run, so the main walkway through the park was lined with giant photos of people and sights around city.  Banners related to the Art & About event hung on poles throughout the downtown.

Although I had a bit of sun for my walk, by the time I got back to Oxford Street it was raining.  Pretty much the first real rain I had seen on the trip.  The rain, the urban setting, and just being around so many people and so much greenery was quite a contrast with the hot, arid, empty Northern Territory.  As someone who routinely travels to both cities and deserts, I appreciate what I find in both kinds of places.

I found a restaurant on Oxford Street where I got dinner, and then I wandered around the area a bit scouting out the nightlife locations.  It was Friday night, so I figured that any choice would probably find a crowd.  I settled on a couple options, stopped at a convenience store and then headed back to my room to unpack - I'd be here four nights - and get cleaned up.

I headed for Stonewall for my early bar and then Midnight Shift for my later dance bar.  I liked both places well-enough that I decided to pretty much stick with them the rest of the trip.

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Sydney and Sydney Harbour

Saturday October 23 -

A perfect day for city sightseeing.  Sunny skies. Comfortable temperatures.

After grabbing a quick breakfast sandwich at Hungry Jack's (which looks like Burger King in every respect except for the name), I walked back over to Circular Quay where I caught the 10AM Sydney Harbour Cruise.  I had opted for a longer version of the cruise because it would not only give me some decent skyline views but also get me over towards the harbour mouth.  Sydney is a sprawling metropolitan area with 4 million people, so you never really lose sight of the city and its people during the cruise but there are a number of undeveloped areas along the water, and Sydney Harbour National Park protects some of the features we saw.  The cruise was quite interesting, and a great way to start such a beautiful day.

When we got back, I got a sandwich and found a spot near the water to eat my lunch.  It was Saturday, and Circular Quay is probably Sydney's primary tourist destination, so I did a fair amount of people watching while I had my lunch.

Then I headed back into the heart of the business district to go to Sydney Tower.  Sydney Tower rises about 800 feet above the Centre, and on a clear day like today, it provides outstanding views in all directions - the Harbour, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, City Centre sites, distant mountains, and even the airport and Pacific Coast beaches.  I had to laugh at the fact that the site that Sydney is most famous for - the Sydney Opera House - was mostly (although not entirely) obscured from view.  Great scenery, and it really helped me understand the lay of the city.

I spent the next few hours checking out the tourist sites of the City Centre.  Hyde Park, with the ANZAC War Memorial and Archibald Fountain.  St. Mary's Cathedral.  Sculptures of Albert the Good and Queen Victoria.  The St. James Church, which was originally intended as a courthouse.  The Law Court.  Hyde Park Barracks.  The Mint.  The building adornments and war memorial at St. Martins Place.  I found Channel Seven Studios.  Earlier in the trip I found out that they have a Today-like morning program with its own window out on the plaza.  Something to check out Monday morning as it was near the station for the train I would be taking out to Bondi Beach.

The Parliament.  The State Library.  I spent a few minutes checking out the Royal Botanic Gardens, but it was really on the agenda for Sunday. The castle-like Conservatorium of Music.  The Police Museum.  And soon I was back at Circular Quay.

Just west of Circular Quay is The Rocks.  The Rocks is the site of the first colonial settlement in Australia, dating back only to 1788.  Pieces of old Sydney are still found here, including Cadman's Cottage, built in 1816, making it the oldest surviving residence in Sydney.  The Garrison Church was built in 1840, and the Sydney Observatory dates back to 1846.  The rise of land here, which reaches its peak at Observatory Park, is the highest point in Sydney.  And that makes it a good place for the Sydney Harbour Bridge - the highway leading to the bridge passes alongside Observatory Park, dividing the Rocks in two.  A plaque on the grounds under the bridge note that at that spot a Lt. William Dawes erected a breastwork in 1788, and replaced it with a stone battery three years later.  Signs provide some archaeological information about the site.  What is now Dawes Point provides some nice views of the harbour, the bridge, and of people doing the Harbour Bridge climb.

The Rocks now draws a lot of tourists, and on Saturdays and Sundays The Rocks Market sets up along the streets of the neighborhood, pulling in a lot of locals as well.  Unfortunately that makes it difficult to get much of a sense of the history of the place, but I enjoyed exploring some of the back streets in the area.

I stopped at the Garrison Church and then checked out Observatory Park and its views before heading back down into the crowded streets of The Rocks.  The marketers were beginning to pack up by now, the streets were emptying, and I found a restaurant and had a nice dinner.

The sun was setting by the time I left Circular Quay.  I headed back to Oxford Street, picked up some pop for the room, and then headed back to the hotel for to get cleaned up.

For my nightlife, I checked out a different pub - the Columbian - as my early bar, but did not think much of it.  Then it was back to Midnight Shift for my dance bar stop.

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Sunday October 24 -

Today was my first (and only) seriously overcast day the entire time I was in Australia.  By late afternoon it was raining pretty hard.  But that just gave me a reason to see the Australian Museum, which was on my list anyway.

After breakfast I headed first for the Domain and from there the Royal Botanic Gardens.  It would have been nice to have sunny skies for photo purposes, I suppose, but I enjoyed exploring the gardens - well, except for the area where flying foxes filled the trees (and the air with the scent of their droppings).  In addition to the range of plants, there was a display on the Aboriginal people's push to reclaim their rights and their lands.  It was a continuation of the story I first learned about back on that first night in Alice Springs when I stumbled onto the 30th anniversary celebration of the Central Land Council.

After passing the Macquarie Wall, I headed for Woolloomooloo Bay.  Starting there I took a walk following the seawall to Mrs. Macquaries Point, around Farm Cove, and over to the Seattle Opera House.  I took several photos of the Opera House, but I was disappointed with the darkening skies.  Near the Opera House were several " houses of the future", part of the Art & About festivities.  Steel, clay, timber, glass, concrete - actually more like small apartments, but the idea was to suggest what might be possible with different kinds of building materials.

I got lunch at Circular Quay, and then wandered up to Government House.  I decided not to tour the place.  It was looking more and more like rain, I wanted to do a bit of shopping, and I had a couple museums to consider.

I am not really one for souvenirs.  I started collecting coffee mugs from places I visited, but I travel a lot, and when I packed up my old house to move to Seattle, I ended up pitching several dozen mugs that had done nothing but take up space in my kitchen cupboard for years.  I used to buy books, but with Amazon it is pretty much possible to buy books on just about anything from home.  But I did want to get a picture or wall hanging painted in the Aboriginal tradition.  During the last two days I had found a few stores that sold such artwork, so I hit them, finding two pieces at each of two stores that I liked quite a bit - except that none really stood out above the others.  Ideally I would find one that was entirely in the traditional style and colors, but the one that was closest to that goal was also my least favorite of the four.  Well, I'd have one more day to think about them.

Now it was on to the Australian Museum.  I was especially interested in seeing its exhibits on Aboriginal people and culture.  Although it was nice enough, it was rather disappointing, especially when less than a week later I could compare it to the Maori exhibits at the Auckland Museum.  The displays were informative but few traditional artifacts were on display.  Reportedly this is at the request of Aboriginal leaders.  Other exhibits in the museum included animal skeletons, minerals, birds and insects, and human evolution.

It was pouring when I left, so I headed back to the hotel.  I'd head out for dinner awhile later.  The rain eventually stopped.  Not sure what kind of nightlife there would be on a Sunday night, I headed back to Stonewall and the Midnight Shift - small but reasonable crowds.

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Bondi Beach

Monday October 25 -

I have heard about Bondi Beach and the surfers (and I suppose the lifeguards) that Australia is famous for and figured I'd check out the beach while I was in Sydney.  Saturday would have been a nice day for that with the sunshine.  Sundays clouds and rain would have made for a disappointing visit.  Monday started out as overcast, but the weather forecast promised some clearing.  I'd hope for the best.

But before the beach my first stop was St. Martin's Place in the City Centre.  The train station I'd want was there, as was the Channel 7 studio.  Its Seven Sunrise program was going on, and with its window on the street I made my Australian television debut.  The weather guy, Grant Denyer, was interviewing a trio of quite muscular young men wearing absurdly tight NutriGrain muscle shirts.  World class Ironman competitors, from what I could hear.  Towards the end of the program, all of the anchors joined the crowd outside.  Well, not so much a crowd, but a dozen or so onlookers.  Not even remotely close to the Today Show crowds of New York.  They wrapped up the show, posed for pictures with the fans and then disappeared.

Wishing that I had an Ironman-like body, I found a McDonalds and had breakfast.  Then it was off to the train station for the ride to Waverly/Bondi Junction, the stop nearest to Bondi Beach.  From there I walked the rest of the way to the beach.  Once I got my bearing straight, I followed Bondi through Bondi Junction, Waverly and Bondi to Hunter Park, stopping at the Waverly Cricket Oval for a few pictures.  At Hunter Park I found a trail that followed the coastal cliffs north past the Bondi Baths to Bondi Beach.  It was a bit overcast, but I was getting a few patches of sunlight, and within 20 minutes I had full sunshine that lasted the rest of the day.  Great!

I headed down to the beach, took off my shoes, and watched some surfers as I walked along the water's edge.  And wouldn't you know it, but the Ironmen from Seven Sunrise were there.  NutriGrain flags were up all over the place as there was some sort of photo shoot going on.  I watched that for a bit and then continued on north.  As the morning wore on, more and more people started showing up.  Great beach weather, and I guess the fact that it was a Monday was not going to keep people away.

At the north end of the beach I scrambled across the tidal pools at Mermaid Rocks, just enjoying the day and watching the waves come in and the people playing on the beach.  I'd get lunch at a beachfront restaurant and then hung around for another hour before continuing on my walk.  I followed some neighborhood streets south until I got to Tamarama Beach, where I checked out the surfers for a few minutes before walking back to Bondi Town Centre.  Although my original plan had me going back to the train station, I instead hopped on an inbound bus, which I took as far as Oxford Street in Paddington.  From there I walked along Oxford the rest of the way to Darlinghurst and my hotel.  

I dropped off my pack, and then headed out again, this time heading for the City Centre one more time.  I had a few places left to see, and I needed to make my artwork decision.  The ANZAC War Memorial in Hyde Park, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Sydney Town Hall and then the Queen Victoria, now a shopping arcade, one of the more elaborate arcades I have come across, featuring a beautiful glass dome and some large clocks, one of which promised to put on a show of English historical scenes when the clock struck 4PM.

I stopped at the first of the two stores where I had picked out a couple pieces of artwork, and....  And bought one of them.  It was my favorite of the four, and its colors went well with my apartment, but it was also the least traditional of the four (even with its strong traditional elements).  Oh well.  I may not be quite what I had in mind when I decided to get some artwork, but now that it is framed and hanging in my apartment, I can barely remember only one of the three alternatives I decided against.

Then it was back to Circular Quay.  I had finished up all of my sightseeing targets (except for a second museum for which there was no longer time enough), and so I figured I would revisit the Sydney Opera House in order to redo my pictures, this time with the full sun.  I got the pictures I wanted and then decided to have dinner at a waterfront restaurant while waiting for the sun to go down. 

Everything timed out just right.  I took some nighttime shots of Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge and the City Centre skyline, and then started walking back to the hotel.  I cut through Hyde Park so I could get a few more nighttime pictures, with the last one featuring the ANZAC War Memorial.

I picked up some pop, went back to the hotel and packed for tomorrow's trip to New Zealand.

Nightlife?  I went to Stonewall for awhile where it was a retro video night.  There did not seem to be many people out, and I had an early morning ride to the airport, so I was back at the hotel and in bed by 11PM.

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Off to New Zealand (Aotearoa)

Tuesday October 26 -

My ride arrived at 7AM and took me to the international terminal at the airport.  I was in the air by 9:30.  I had a window seat, and as luck would have it, we had clear skies, and I was on the right side for outstanding window seat views of Sydney's City Centre, Sydney Harbour and the Pacific Coast beaches I had explored.  A great way to cap off my visit to Australia.

Even so, I was in a bit of a down mood.  That sometimes happens to me at the end of long-planned trips.  And I would have to say that from a sightseeing standpoint it did not really live up to my expectations.  The individual stops were interesting but routinely too short, and I hadn't anticipated the long, not very scenic drives between them.  And in most Red Centre cases I could draw parallels to sites in the western U.S. that I would regard as more impressive (although Watarrka and Palm Valley would certainly be welcome additions to Utah).  The features of the Top End were more unique and did not have the same easy parallels to western U.S. sites.

Anyway, Australia is behind.  And Auckland is ahead of me.

We hit cloudy skies below us about halfway to New Zealand, and they never cleared after that.  It was overcast and rainy when we landed.  No problems clearing customs - the good-natured agent razzed me a bit about my ratio of time in Australia to time in New Zealand.

I boarded a downtown shuttle van only to end up with the same situation I had when I arrived in Sydney from Alice Springs.  We waited almost a half hour to fill the van, and then my hotel was the next to last one he stopped at.  Some folks weren't even heading downtown, so we drove around suburbia and then hit rush hour traffic.  A solo taxi wouldn't have cost that much extra, and it would have given me almost 90 minutes (!) more of daylight that afternoon for checking out the city.

I dropped off my suitcase, grabbed my umbrella, map and camera and started checking things out.  Even with the cooler temperatures and the rain (which ended about 10 minutes into my walk), I took an instant liking to Auckland's City Centre.  Maybe because it was a lot smaller and more convenient than Sydney's City Centre, I am just not sure.  It did remind me a lot of Seattle (with a bit of Iceland, too).  But my bad mood and irritation over the endless shuttle van ride quickly dissipated.

In my Euro-centric view of the world, I think I had expected to see a great many similarities between Australia and New Zealand, as they are both South Pacific-based former British colonies.  But I would discover over the four days I was in the country that the similarities pretty much end there, from geography to climate, from flora to fauna, from sharp differences between New Zealand's Polynesian Maori and Australia's Aboriginal people and how well they're integrated into society.  Australians had a bit more of American brashness, whereas New Zealanders reminded me more of Canadians.  I started picking up on the differences right away.

And maybe it was due in part to the similarities in why I scheduled this visit to last year's Iceland stop, but in some ways New Zealand actually reminded more of Iceland than it did of Australia.

I learned my way around downtown Auckland pretty quickly - all roads lead to Queen Street.  Well, except for those that parallel it.  I had a list of gay bars and found all but one of them, so I'd have my nightlife figured out.  Then I found a restaurant and got some dinner.  I bummed around a few shops, got some evening pictures - a gap in the clouds was letting in some light from the setting sun, picked up some pop, and returned to my room to unpack.

Around 10PM I headed out again, this time to check out the nightlife.  The first place on the list?  Closed.  The second?  Closed.  The third?  Closed.  All five of the ones I had located were closed.  Maybe because it was a Tuesday night.  Well, no.  I would find out that they were closed-closed.  So I went for a walk, and then returned to my room and went to bed.

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Waitomo and Rotorua

Wednesday October 27 -

I had signed up for a couple day trips for my Auckland stay over the internet.  And when the bus did not show to pick me up on time, I was beginning to wonder if maybe I had been had.  Nope.  He was just running late.  The pickup crews dropped everyone off at the tour company's offices, and then we boarded buses for our respective tours.  A big, but not very full bus, which was nice.

Today's tour would take me south of Auckland, first into Waikoto to Waitomo Caves, home of some glowworms, and then over to sights in the Rotorua area in the Bay of Plenty region.  From what I could tell from the web, these were pretty standard tourist places to see.

We drove non-stop to Waitomo Caves.  The brochure had said that on the way down we would drive past some sites, and drive past we did.  A bit disappointing, I suppose, but at least it was honest.  We did have a lot of ground to cover in order to hit our scheduled sites.  It was a pretty drive, but an overcast day.  After so much time in central Australia, I was really taken by how green this part of New Zealand was in contrast.  (According to our driver, New Zealand's climate and volcanic soil is excellent for growing grass.)  We passed mostly through countryside and small towns, our driver giving us some information on the history of the area.  The prettiest site on our way to Waitomo Caves was Pirongia Mountain.

We reached Waitomo Caves and started our tour.  No photos allows, though (sigh).  We walked through some interesting chambers of the cave to look at its formations.  Typical cave stuff.  But then we reached a chamber and they turned off the lights.  Looking up we could see glowing dots, almost like looking at stars.  The glowworms.  They hang from the ceiling, lower a web-like string, and glow.  The light attracts insects caught in the cave, they get trapped in the webs, and eaten.  After our first few looks at the worms, we then boarded boats and were poled along an underwater stream into some chambers where the ceiling was covered with glowworms.  

Once the boat exited the cave, we could start to take pictures.  Of course, we were out of the cave by then, so we missed the highlights with our cameras, but I was getting my first close-up look at a New Zealand natural area, so I was enjoying that.  A quick stop for some postcards of the things I wasn't allowed photograph, and then I explored the area for a bit until our designated bus boarding time arrived.

More pretty scenery as we made our way northeast and then east towards Rotorua.  Not long after leaving Waitomo Caves we passed through the outskirts of Te Awamutu, referred to in the Split Enz song "Haul Away" when Brian Timothy (Tim) Finn sings "I was born in Te Awamutu, 25th of June, 1952".  Neil Finn gets his plug for the city in when he sings "The sound of Te Awamutu had a truly sacred ring" in Crowded House's "Mean to Me".  I asked the bus driver and our guide about it.  He told me that he used to point out the Finn connection to folks on the bus whenever he drove through, but most people had never heard of the Finns, and so he dropped it.  He was pretty tickled that I brought it up, and we ended up discussing favorite Finn songs for awhile.

East of Cambridge we passed through New Zealand's horse country, "the Kentucky of New Zealand", according to our driver.  I even noticed a sign for a Kentucky Road.  Further on we passed through a heavily wooded forest park - interesting trees that I would see all over (but I couldn't find a decent picture of them on the web), with twisted branches seeming to stretch out in just about every direction - and then across the Mamaku Plateau.  Along this stretch of road we also passed some odd rock outcroppings, leftovers from New Zealand's volcanic history call Ignimbrite Tors.

As we started heading down towards our stops at Rotorua, our driver started filling us in on the plans.  Which apparently was the cue for one of the passengers sitting immediately behind me making cell phone calls all morning decide to make another one, speaking so loudly that I couldn't hear the driver's instructions.  I asked him to quiet down, he apologized and then kept right on talking loudly - some business deal.  (The same thing would happen with someone else on tomorrow's tour, but at least tomorrow's folks were not sitting near me.)

We got to our first stop, the Agrodome.  Basically a small livestock farm and woolen mill.  We got to look at some farm animals and feed them.  The demonstration of shearing sheep was more interesting, and the overview of how yarn is made from the wool was informative, but all in all this was the least interesting sight I saw in New Zealand, although had there been any kids in our group they would have loved it.

Next up was Rainbow Springs Nature Park.  Known for its trout, it also features a walk through an area with native plants and bird, including a kiwi house.  Kiwi, the symbol of New Zealand, would probably be nocturnal rats if they weren't birds.  They don't fly, they burrow into the ground, and they usually only come out at night, which makes them difficult to see.  They are also now low in numbers, which also makes them difficult to see.  Until man arrived in New Zealand with his dogs and rats and - eventually - his ferrets, the kiwi did not have any natural predators, and they had a lot more natural habitat available to them.  The lighting in the kiwi house was quite dim, so if there was a kiwi in there moving about, I did not see it.  But they did have a stuffed one on display.

We also got a close up look at fern trees - they look like a long log a few inches in diameter topped with a clump of ferns - I had noticed them among the trees along the highway.  Scrape off the bark and they have got interestingly patterned wood that is carved into vases, bowls and other things that they can sell to tourists (like me).

Well, off to our next stop.  Or not.  Cell Phone Guy was missing.  The last time any of us had seen him he was making cell phone calls in the parking lot.  Given that he had been spending most of the day on his cell phone, discussing stock deals and rearranging travel plans, and I couldn't help but wonder why he even bothered with the tour.  Our driver and guide finally find him more than 10 minutes later.  (I really do not think that it sinks into people on bus tours that the time they delay our departures can not just be made up with the driving - it either comes out of everyone else's time at our next sightseeing stop, or it makes everyone that much later getting back.)  

And the next stop was the most interesting, the geysers and New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute at Te Whakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao (the third longest place name in the Maori language, meaning "the gathering place for the war parties of Wahiao").  The Institute is a prestigious school for teaching Maori their traditional arts.  We got to watch the carvers for awhile and then look at Maori carvings and other artwork on display.  Then we went to the Rotowhio Marae, traditional Maori meeting houses, and also saw a display on weavings and other Maori handicrafts.

Te Whakarewarewa, and the whole Rotorua area, has a lot of geothermic activity, including the Pohutu Geyser, which spewed out a steady spray of hot water and steam the entire time we were there.  Trails and boardwalks lead to several of the park's features, including pools, steam vents, and boiling mud pools.  There is also  Maori cemetery on the grounds, as well as an example of a traditional bird trap and war canoe.  It was a very interesting stop - I would have gladly traded off the Agrodome - and Cell Phone Guy's delay - for more time here.

Back on the bus for the non-stop drive back to Auckland.  An overcast morning had given way to bright sunshine just before we reached the Agrodome, and the clear skies stuck with us the rest of the day, which was nice.  We retraced part of our route across the Mamaku Plateau but then headed north at Tapapa for a different route back up north.  Again, some very pretty countryside.  We passed through Matamata, a.k.a. "Hobbiton", as the "Hobbiton" scenes of the "Lord of the Rings" movies were filmed nearby.

Cell Phone Guy made his presence known one more time, asking if we could drop him off at the airport on the way back because it was "on our way" and he had a plane to catch (the result of the travel rearranging I had gotten an earful of earlier in the day).  What he considered to be "on our way" would have been a 40-60 minute swing out of our way for everyone else on the bus, depending on the traffic.  I'll just say that the driver was not pleased with the request, especially given who made it.  Cell Phone Guy glared at the driver the rest of the way back to Auckland, but at least he stayed off of his cell phone.

I found a place for dinner and then dropped my stuff off at the hotel.  It was already getting late (it was a long bus tour), but I needed to do some walking to stretch my legs a bit.  All the gay bars were still closed - I'd conclude that they were all out of business before I'd leave Auckland, but I did finally stumble on the last one, Flesh (silly name).  Karaoke night drew a very nice crowd, but I had another bus tour first thing in the morning, so I did not stay out too late.

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Bay of Islands and Russell

Thursday October 28 -

Yesterday was natural wonders.  Today was history.  I had booked both tours, not knowing if I would really take the second one - a lot would depend on what I found in Auckland.  But central Auckland was such that I figured that the two days of sightseeing I'd have would be enough.  So early this morning I was on a bus crossing the Auckland Harbour Bridge and heading into the Northland Region on to the Bay of Islands.

It was mostly a straight drive up to Bay of Islands and back, although we made a couple stops on the way up there.  The first was at Parry Kauri Park to see the McKinney kauri tree.  Kauri is a very strong wood and prized for shipbuilding - which means that most kauri trees were cut down after the Europeans arrived.  They are now protected.  The McKinney kauri is an 800 year old example that survived lumbering activities.

Our next stop was a diner in Kaiwaka for morning tea.  Yesterday's drives were non-stop, with lunch served airline style.  Today's tour was a bit more relaxed as all of our primary sightseeing stops were basically in the same place, all in the Paihia area.  So while folks were enjoying their morning snack, I checked out the local scenery.

We got to Paihia and headed for the Waitangi Treaty House & Grounds.  It was here that the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840.  The treaty was an agreement between two peoples to live and work together as one country, giving birth to a modern New Zealand in which Maori and Pakeha (European-origin) people were to be treated as equals, even as Captain William Hobson proclaimed British sovereignty over all of New Zealand later that year.  Equality did not work out as well as the Maori would have liked, and the New Zealand Wars resulted, lasting from 1843 to 1872, sporadic battles between Maoris and Pakehas, often but not exclusively tied to conflicts over land ownership and rights.  Both sides interpreted the Treaty of Waitangi in different ways, too, and Maori were excluded from some institutions, including an early Executive Council set up by Gov. Hobson to govern New Zealand.

As a casual observer of both countries, New Zealand today seems to have done a much better job of integrating Maori and descendents of European settlers both as a people and as a culture than what I saw in Australia between the Aboriginal people and European descendents, although from some press coverage and tour comments, there are still some tensions in New Zealand.

Treaty House, on Waitangi's grounds, was home to James Busby, appointed as British Resident in New Zealand.  He would help William Hobson draft the Treaty of Waitangi.  The house has period furniture and features displays on Busby, the Treaty of Waitangi and the Northern Tribes Declaration of Independence.  The spot on the grounds where the treaty was signed is now marked by a flagpole.  Near the house is Te Whare Runanga, a traditional Maori meeting house built in 1940 to symbolize the Maori role in the treaty and the country.  The grounds overlook the Bay of Islands, and a short trail, the Nias Track,  leads from the flagpole down to Hobson's Beach and Whare Waka, a canoe house that features a couple examples of Maori war canoes, one of which is the 110 feet long Ngatoki Matawhaorua canoe that requires at least 76 paddlers.

That finished up the sites at the Treaty Grounds.  We headed into Paihia, and groups of us were sent off on our own agendas.  Some folks took a Bay of Islands cruise that featured a passage through a hole in the rock.  That option was tempting, but as a history buff I had decided to take the Russell tour.  Russell, originally Kororareka, was New Zealand's first capital, but in the 1830s it was a trading center full of vice, brothels and taverns, earning it the nickname "The Hell-hole of the Pacific".  It was to deal with this problem that the British first sent James Busby to New Zealand, although they did not give him any real power.  A small group of us took a ferry over to Russell where we boarded a van for a quick tour of Russell's sights.  Mostly driving by old houses, an 1836 Anglican Church, the Duke of Marlborough Hotel (established in 1827, it has license #1) and a few other points.  We were also taken to a few scenic lookouts for views of Russell, Paihia and the Bay of Islands, at Tapeka Point, Flagstaff Hill and Long Beach.  It was a quick tour, and we were on a ferry back to Paihia less than 90 minutes after we arrived.

I had some time in Paihia before the other group returned, so I got lunch and then did some shopping, picking up a Kiwi Christmas ornament and a kauri carving of a kiwi.  Then it was back on the bus for the ride back to Auckland - which left 30 minutes late (!!!) because one family decided to go off shopping for souvenirs readily available in Auckland, and for some reason tour guides are not willing to just leave without such people.  We stopped once again for a short break in Kaiwaka.  Except for wasting a half hour sitting on the bus before the return to Auckland, it was a nice day, and a very interesting tour.

The landscape I saw in the countryside both days was quite pretty, and by now I was wishing that I had more time in the country to get out for more hiking and sightseeing.  And this with northern New Zealand being the most developed part of the country.  Picture books and postcards I saw suggested that there was a lot of even prettier scenery in the country, and I wasn't sampling the more rugged South Island at all on this trip.

Back to Auckland.  Dinner.  And back to Flesh.  Very slow Thursday night, so I listened to the music a bit, read the local gay and alternative papers that were available (confirming that all the other bars were indeed closed), and made an early night of it.

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Exploring Auckland

Friday October 29 -

I had two potential morning plans.  If it was sunny, I was going to take a ferry over to Rangitoto Island in Auckland Harbour for some hiking.  If it was overcast or threatened rain, I would take the Auckland Harbour Cruise.

I ended up with the cruise.

It was my last full day in Auckland, although tomorrow's flight was scheduled to leave late at night, so I basically had two days to see everything I wanted to see.  It was nice to be able to sleep in a little bit - this morning's cruise did not start until 10:30.  It indeed looked like it might rain, but the rain would hold off for the entire cruise.

The boat was much smaller than typical harbor cruise boats I have been on.  Auckland is far enough from anywhere that there is probably less tourist demand.  But the tour also did not have much in the way of narration, and instead of following the city's coastline past the Bean Rock lighthouse, as the brochure suggested, we instead made a pretty direct route to Rangitoto Island.  Turns out that the cruise doubled as a Rangitoto ferry.

This route gave us some nice views of the Auckland skyline, but not much else on that side of the harbor, as we were pretty far out.  Rangitoto is a volcano that rose out of the harbour only about 600 years ago, much to the surprise of the natives living in the area at the time.  Now it is a fairly sizeable island, and except for a dock and a few cottages along the water's edge, it is mostly a nature preserve with a hiking trail that climbs to its 800-foot peak.

From there we headed over to North Head and followed the Devonport Shoreline.  We continued on to the Auckland Harbour Bridge.  Some interesting construction here when they widened the bridge - they basically came up with a way to hang additional lanes of traffic along the original bridge.

The bridge is also used for bungy jumping, and we got to see someone jump from the bridge and almost hit the water before springing back up.  From there we checked out a marina where America's Cup yacht teams are stationed.  Then it was back to where we started, next to the Ferry Building at the base of Queen Street.

After disembarking, I headed up Queen Street, and checked out a few places in the Central Business District.  The Transport Centre has been refurbished, and is worth a stop even if you're not traveling anywhere.  Then it was on to an arcade where I got lunch, hoping by killing some time, I'd get some clearing skies.  No such luck, but I headed over to the Sky Tower anyway as it at least was not obscured by clouds.

At more than 1000 feet tall, the Sky Tower is the tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere.  While in Australia and New Zealand I came across a handful of Southern Hemisphere superlatives that each country claimed.  Of course, a look at a globe will reveal that they do not have much competition in that half of the world.

I headed up to the top and got some great views of Auckland's City Centre, Auckland Harbour, Rangitoto and the surrounding areas.  Sunshine would have been nice, but at least the clouds had lifted a bit so I could see the top of Rangitoto.  I picked out a number of other features, many of which I would be exploring this afternoon or tomorrow.  Whenever I travel I frequently go for harbour cruises and tower views for the perspectives that they provide.

Back down and back to the hotel to drop off some stuff and plan the rest of the day, mostly a city hike.  And as I set off on that it started to rain.  Heavy rains off and on for the first three hours of my hike.  First stop was St. Patrick's Cathedral, followed by a walk up Queen Street to Karangahape Road.  Karangahape Road had the feel of a younger, more funky, alternative neighborhood, with the types of stores it had and the nightlife it featured, including a couple gay bars.  I followed K-Road over to Newton, and then turned back and followed it the other direction to Symonds Street.

There I stopped at the Symonds Street Cemetery where I visited the grave of Captain William Hobson, the first governor of New Zealand.  With a lot of overgrown trees and shrubs, the cemetery reminded me a lot of the one I toured in Reykjavík, Iceland, last year.

I followed Symonds to Wellesley Street, and took that back to Queen Street.  The sun had popped out, so I got some pictures of the Civic Theatre.  Then I headed for Albert Park, just in time for more clouds.  It is a pleasant garden park, with statues, flower beds and a fountain.  Actually a rather sudsy fountain - it was the second fountain I came across today in which someone had poured some soap.

From there I cut through the Auckland University campus, with typical college campus buildings, but also the Albert Barracks Wall remnant, St. Andrew's Church (the first Presbyterian church in Auckland), and Waipapa Marae, a Maori meeting house located at the school's Department of Maori Studies where I checked out some of the carvings.  Another contrast between New Zealand and Australia... as fascinating as I found the traditional artwork of both the Aboriginal people and the Maori, that of the Maoris was easily much more accessible.  Except in a few art shops, tourist shops and the Australian Museum, traditional Aboriginal artwork was invisible in Sydney.

I followed the road a bit further, getting a view of Parnell, which I would visit tomorrow.  Then I started heading back towards the Central Business District, although I made one more stop where Parliament Street meets the campus.  There the foundation of New Zealand's first parliament building is marked with some stones and signs.  New Zealand's capital had been moved from Russell to Auckland before it ended up in Wellington.

By now the sun was out - I'd have no more rain during my visit.  I headed back into the City Centre once more, found a place for dinner, and then did a bit of shopping, picking up a tiki carving as one last souvenir.  A bit more walking around before heading back to the hotel.  It was my last night in the country, so I had to pack for tomorrow morning's checkout, and I wanted to head out on the town one last time.  But I did catch an episode of the locally produced soap opera "Shortland Street" - I had followed Shortland Street on my walk back downtown, so I was curious how the show portrayed it.

Flesh, one last time.  The K-Road bars did not seem like anything special.  Very good Friday night crowd, and eventually a couple floors opened up.  I did get hit on - by an Arab man and two Maori women - which was a bit of a surprise, as I tend to wallflower when I go out.  It gave me a chance to chat with some of the locals.

I stayed out fairly late, but I had to check out of the hotel by 10AM, so I called it a night at around 2:30.

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Saturday October 30 -

I think it has taken me almost as long to get to this day in writing the online journal as it did when I took the trip.  My last day in New Zealand of the trip.  I had to check out of my hotel by 10AM, but they were willing to store my suitcase for me for the day.  I did not need to leave for the airport until this evening.

So I was up and checked out.  Off to McDonalds to get some breakfast.  And then my walk to Parnell.  Yet another overcast day when I started.  I took a route that followed Custom Street and the Beach Road over to Parnell, stopping for a bit to look at the Central Railway Station and Te Taou Reserve.  Parnell is the oldest Auckland neighborhood, so I thought I would check it out on my way over the the Auckland Domain and Auckland Museum.  Parnell Road is now the heart of a neighborhood downtown, although more than a few shops seemed to cater more to visitors than neighbors.

I stopped at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, the oldest Catholic Church in the Auckland Diocese.  Further up the street is the Anglican Church's Auckland Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, and on the grounds of that building was St. Mary's Cathedral.  St. Mary's was built in 1886 as a parish church and as the Pro-Cathedral of the Diocese of Auckland.  When the new building was built, St. Mary's was moved across the street in one piece and incorporated as part of the church complex around the new cathedral.  According to the sign, St. Mary's is regarded as one of the finest wooden Gothic buildings in the world.  I don't have any points of comparison to express my own opinion on the subject, but I toured the building and thought that it was quite interesting in its look, architecture, and the artifacts that it had on display, including a 40-pound Bible published in 1717.

I continued on up the street to look at Ewelme Cottage, an early colonial cottage that has survived the growth of the city.

I finally reached Maunsell Street, and there I headed for the Auckland Domain.  The Domain is Auckland's oldest park.  It was developed around the cone of an extinct volcano, at the top of which is the Auckland War Memorial Museum, my main goal for this walk.

I wanted to learn more about Maori traditions and culture, and this museum did an outstanding job.  It has the world's largest collect of old Maori artwork, carvings, and other artifacts, and examples of a war canoe, a Tiki gateway and a storage house.  It also features a large collection of materials from other Polynesian cultures, and extensive exhibits on New Zealand's natural history.  Also featured is a section on Auckland's development as a city.  Most of the third floor is devoted to New Zealand's military history, including an informative display on the New Zealand Wars between the Maori and the Pakehas, as well as displays on the country's military role on the world stage.  The World War II Hall of Memories was especially compelling in how it put a human face on New Zealand's participation in that war.

The Auckland Museum is huge, requiring at least a few hours to really do it right, but it is well worth the time.  It was simply an outstanding way to cap off my visit.

I explored the Domain a bit, getting a closer look at the gangly trees I had seen during the bus tours.  Pohutukawa?  I don't know.  As many tree names as I have tried, I haven't turned up the right kind of picture on the web to compare them to.  Anyway, it was a pleasant walk through the Domain.  I headed back for the City Centre, passing through the Auckland University campus and Albert Park.

By the time I reached Queen Street, the sun was out in force.  Finally!  A few hours of sunny skies for some city pictures.  I headed up and down Queen Street taking new pictures of the sights that I had earlier photographed with grey skies.  I ended up back at the Ferry Building and got the pictures of the red fence with blue sky that I had hoped for since I first found that red-painted fence at the shipping docks.  Then I walked over towards the marina, a part of the city that I hadn't explored on foot yet.

By now it was getting late in the afternoon.  It was time for me to start making my way back to the hotel.

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Heading Home

Saturday October 30, Sunday October 31, Saturday October 30 -

I got back to the hotel around 6PM, picked up my suitcase and then hailed a taxi for the ride to the airport.  Without rush hour traffic or stops to drop off other passengers around town, I was at the airport in short order (actually a bit too early to check in).  Check-in, customs and security went smoothly.  I had plenty of time to exchange most of my New Zealand dollars and spend down the rest of them as I killed time waiting for my flight.

I love Air New Zealand.  Compared to the cattle car that United tried to pass off as an airplane for the flight from San Francisco to Sydney, Air New Zealand's plane had plenty of legroom - I am a big guy, and I still had 5 inches of legroom to spare.  It was wonderful.  Even with the extra legroom and the window seat, I did not sleep, but I rested in reasonable comfort.

Because we left so late in the day on the 30th, we did not cross the international dateline until after midnight, so I got to include October 31 among the travel days for this trip.  Even so, we arrived in Los Angeles on a warm, sunny Saturday October 30th.

I had four hours between flights, so I took a nice walk outside at LAX, and even got a picture of the very distant Hollywood sign, an unexpected picture to cap the trip with.  A nice dinner, some reading, and back on a United plane for the flight to Seattle.  Even this plane had more legroom than United's San Francisco to Sydney plane did, as I measured a 2-fingers gap between my knees and the seat in front of me.

I got to Seattle late in the evening, got cleaned up, and headed out on the town - it was Halloween Saturday.  I could unpack Sunday morning.

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National Park Sites

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Nightlife

If there are worse voluntary travel activities than spending the evening sitting in some strange hotel room watching television, I can't imagine what they would be.  Whether it is nightlife, a movie or just an evening walk, getting out helps you get more of the local flavor of some place.

Northern Territory

Sydney

Auckland

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