Alice Springs (Uluru Trip Day 1)

When I woke up at 5:50am on Sunday the 5th I was oblivious to the fact that 5:50 was going to be a late start compared to the next 3 days…

Now that I have your attention, I have decided to post my Uluru experience on my blog in at least 5 installments (one for each day) so that it is easier reading for y’all (yup, I used y’all). So make sure you read them in the correct order. Now back to the story…

I got up in time to make a skype call to my family before showering and finishing packing before leaving for the airport. The journey officially started at 7:45am as Laura, Alex, Ryan, Dustin and I walked out of our apartment building on our way to the bus stop. Our flight from the Adelaide airport was scheduled to depart at 11:05 am, but it was with Tiger Airways – a cheap airline that is notorious for all of a traveler’s nightmares, from not allowing you to board if your just minutes late to the 45 min. minimum deadline to delayed flights.

We took the appropriate bus and were in line to check in about 2.5 hours early. It took about 1.5 hours to check in (there was a long line) and just a few minutes to get to our gate. The flight itself was not too bad; I’ve been through worse. But it wasn’t much to brag about either with a rough landing that forced your heart into your throat and stopped all breathing until you could laugh at each other for our sudden can’t-breath-because-of-heart-in-throat faces.

Alice Springs was warm and dry as we landed, and would be for the rest of our stay. It was very pleasant to go from an average of 16 (roughly 61F) degrees and cloudy to 28 (82F) degrees and not a cloud to be seen. I still have the chapped lips, but the dry heat was pretty refreshing for me.

First thing on our agenda was to find the bus that was scheduled to take us to The Haven. The Alice Springs Haven Backpacking Resort was the hostel that we stayed in for the nights we spent in Alice Springs.

Alice Springs from Anzac Lookout. It is really small... there isn't much missing from this photo.

One of the residential streets in Alice

On the bus ride to the Haven, I felt for the first time like I was a little out of my league; almost like a city slicker out in the sticks. I think it was impacted by my feeling of not having packed enough, and yet without the right type of equipment to carry it in (I have no backpack here, so I had to travel with a duffle bag that was just not very convenient). But getting to see the true Outback landscape was amazing. The landscape was very flat except for a range of mountains which Alice sits at the base of. Then there was the short dry brush trees and bushes the grew everywhere. The deep red sand that covered everything, and the barren bleached plant life contrast with the combination of a light blue sky was an amazing experience. Driving through the outback may not be that exciting, and look very similar the whole way, but now I have seen for myself what the outback really looks like, not just based on what is in the movies.

Because of the agent we went through, we were able to get a deal on the Haven, paying only $1 per person per night. The resort included a plasma screen tv, pool, complementary continental breakfast, and each room had its own bathroom with a shower. Before we had booked the trip through the agent, though, I had started following a connection that could have possibly given us a night at a local’s house. I found out a few weeks before that I learned from my dad that the mother of the family that we buy our eggs from in Ohio has a sister who lives in Alice Springs. After contacting her, we arranged a dinner at he place on our first night in Alice.

So after checking into the hostel, we killed some time by walking around the small village and buying Linda, our dinner host, some wine as a hospitality gift. Then we walked to Linda’s house for a good American barbeque with Linda, Sam, her 2 year old son, and some American coworkers (a young woman named Melissa and a couple with a young daughter about 10 years old named Sydney).

We were there for a few hours enjoying each other’s company and a delicious home made dinner. I quickly felt at home in their fun presents and found myself plying with the two kids for about 2/3 of our time there. Linda and her friends were very friendly and almost made the trip worth it even if Uluru was not in our plans.

While at dinner we got to hear some about the reality of the Aboriginal presence in Alice. I have vaguely learned that there are “Missionaries” that seem to be Aboriginal communities that seem to be a place for them to go to practice and live in the style and manner that is their heritage, and is still engrained in their culture. These seem to be safe places for them to live in peace away from the white settlers. The situation in Alice seems to be rough, because these missionaries in that area have kicked out some of the misfits who then go to Alice and live on the streets. Because of this, the people who visit Alice only come in contact with some of the more troubled Aboriginal people and have only them to base their experiences on.

For reasons connected to the Aboriginal presence, we were driven back to the Haven. We prepared for our early start the next morning, then settled down for the night.

Cheers!