Alice Springs

[juliet]

Good morning from the centre of Australia, where it is a mere 20deg (35 max expected today).

My ride on the Ghan (the Darwin-Adelaide railway) started somewhat unexpectedly, viz, in a coach, due to a freight train derailment. We got put back on the train at Katherine, where there's a 4-hr stop anyway. Which gave time to take the local nature tour cruise thingy, where I saw WALLABIES and kites and lots of other sorts of birds and drank tea from a billy with gum-tree leaves in. It was all very, very beautiful.

Strangely enough, the reclining seats on the Ghan are a lot less comfortable than a proper sleeper (bah), although my lack of a seat-mate made life a bit easier. I migrated to the floor halfway through. You don't get provided with a pillow or blanket, which IMO is a bit cheap of them, and my pillow was in the checked luggage - will resolve this problem on the next stint.

After much Sorting Of Things Out, finally decided that I am hiring a car to get myself down to Uluru & then doing the Aborigine-led tours, rather than going with a backpacker minibus tour (lack of ethical/eco tourism certification was the main mover for this). Irritatingly, I have just discovered that the car rental I booked has changed its location at the last minute from downtown (where I am now) to the airport (where I am not), so I am off to hunt for the airport shuttle bus.

Comments

[brightybot.livejournal.com]

Wallabies! Cool. I remember taking very strongly to the wallabies on a visit to Whipsnade Zoo when I was about 4. I amused myself with endles Wallaby impressions for quite a long time afterwards.

[some-fox.livejournal.com]

spikeylady and I found those recliniing seats to be pretty uncomfortable too as I recall.

Yey wallabies :-)

[titaniccapybara.livejournal.com]

wallabies are great. are you seeing them wild just hopping about the place?
We saw some last year at Longleat safari park. One of them had a baby wallaby poking his head out of her pouch, and another of them had no exterior evidence of a baby wallaby but she did have her pouch area rippling somewhat as if someone very small was practicing jumping inside.

[juliet]

They were just wild hopping around the place! Which was fairly awesome. No signs of baby wallabies but I didn't get that close to them.