:Flutter: follow the butterfly

Another disjointed and crazy update...

2005-10-20T12:42:13Z

We're gonna play the numbered list game because that's about the extent that my brain is working tonight...

1) Kukrae got me totally re-hooked into Linda Fairstein's books and I'm trying to do a total re-read now and in order even. sunneyone, this is like James Patterson's series, you really should read in order but it's not the end of the world if you don't--but I'm trying to behave. Also, if you haven't read this series, you should. It's good and Alex Cooper was the basis for Alex Cabot.

2) Managed to get the luggage sorted for the trip and I got to Melbourne on Tuesday. The backpack was 18 kilos and then I paid extra to use the purple duffle I bought for the RE Safari trip--that one was just over 10K and is mainly stuff I'd like to send home if I ever get the box thing sorted. I am under the weight limit-sorta-for Japan but it's stuff I don't want to bring with me because I won't need/use it there. The sorta under the weight limit thing...lucky they didn't weigh the carry on, which Qantas did when I flew from Bris--it's 12 kilos o:) Books, Laptop and External HD.

3) Changed my layout for the first time in ages. Flexible Squares is interesting. Odd but interesting. Just read that I managed to miss out on a three month paid time bonus thingy. Phoey. Saved my pics page so I don't lose my icons but not sure if I'm going to renew. I used to feel I used the paid account benefits and the whole small business thing. Not sure how compelled I feel to support it since it's now 6Apart and in general I don't use LJ as much as I used to. Suppose I'll see when I get to Japan. Going to miss the icons though, I like having so many, not that I use them that much. Oh well, will choose three. This one's back because I get to play with Demon Kitty again for the next few weeks.

4) The new iTunes is almost as icky as the old one. Got some new music though which should keep me sane on the flights and in the layover at Singapore. Got my Japan address and updated the post in my memories. Don't expect anyone to send anything but you have it if you feel inspired to use it--I arrive on the 5th of November.

5) Oh and um, pics from myrth1's wedding are up on her site if you haven't seen them and are looking.

I had more to say, I know I did but I have brain rot at the moment. Should go to bed so I can read more of Likely to Die and be up at a normal hour. We're going out to eat for kiwibeck's birthday tomorrow night but not sure what the plans are for the day.

Packing and Japan and...

2005-10-16T13:18:23Z

So I watched this episode tonight and realised that even five years later, and probably a year since I saw it last, I can still do this scene word for word. Could probably do the whole episode if I tried. As much as I don't watch ER anymore and my Clooney obsession has been topped by the Meloni obsession, SSS is still one of my favourite TV episodes. Ever.

Mark-Paul Gosselaar was in an episode of SVU that aired last night as a gay porn star and it was so weird because he will always be Zach Morris. On an SVU note, the deleted scenes from s2 are great! I now have s1,2,5 and 6 complete with three close to complete. Mmm. I will not be whinging (too much) about a lack of TV this time in Japan.

/fandom squee

Anyway, spent most of the day packing, or trying to. Can have (2) 30 kg bags on the flight from Melbourne but only (1) 20kg bag on Tuesday's bus to Melbourne. Original plan was to ship some stuff home but the boxes never arrived so that's a no-go. Plan B was to post some stuff to Melbourne in Aus Post's 3kg bags and deal with shipping it home from there but didn't really want to schlep stuff down to the post office so the current plan is to fill the purple duffle with stuff like my sleeping bag and other odds and ends and pay to take it as 'freight' on the bus on Tuesday.

Did spend the day finishing off my journal/scrapbook. Fun to flip through and really see what I've done in the last nearly eleven months. Can't believe it's been that long. Will be just shy of eleven months in Australia when I leave on the 4th. One present to myself in Singapore (CHEAP duty free perfume, I got Aqua di Gio-Giorgio Armani-last time for $9 US) is going to be Elizabeth Arden's Provocative Woman. Is perfect timing as I'm nearly out of Red Door.

I can be such a girlie girl at times.

Realised when I flipped through the books I have that my Japanese has gone to pot in the last three years. Got some study bits, should really do that on the bus on Tuesday since I have 11 hours to kill.

skinglist @ 2005-10-13T15:16:00

2005-10-13T05:52:38Z

So flight to Japan is booked, I leave Melbourne on the 4th of November at 5 PM. Get to Singapore at 9PM and fly to Osaka at 1 AM, arriving in Osaka at 8 AM on the 5th. I should be happy, I got a good deal from Nova's travel agent but the whole visa-not-yet-sorted thing worries me. Yeah, I'm a little neurotic at times.

On a more pleasant note, I've got a copy of LP Japan, Japanese Words and Their Uses: II and the Japanese Berlitz Phrase Book from a friend which will mean I don't have to think about most of my Japan books being in the States.

Also finally got in touch with the freight company to get my stuff sent home. Don't really think the box is going to be big enough for all I want to send but it will help and worse comes to worse, I use the extra luggage allowance and take it to Japan. I really hope I can do well at throwing things out though. Must do that!

On an even better note, got $100 for my broken camera. Said he'd have given me $200 if I had it fixed first but repair estimate was $325 so no. Of course I turned around and spent $218 to ship stuff home and on bus fare to Melbourne so the $100 didn't last long.

Back to reading, Ticket to Ride is a kickass book.

Catch Up of Sorts...

2005-10-10T13:42:53Z

There was a time when I could not understand people who didn't update regularly. I couldn't imagine a day of not having something, or four things if I was really bored at work, to post but then in the last year...especially the last few months. Don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing with LJ these days but I'm here for now. Making somewhat of an attempt to read but in general not happening..no time. Tweaked my default view. If you want to know if you're on it, just ask but odds are if you're reading this, you are.

At any rate, busy week:

Flew down to Adelaide last Sunday and Kukrae flew in from the States and we pulled off one hell of a surprise for Myrth at her Hen's Night. I think everyone who was involved in the surprise knows about how it went, have heard various threads have popped up about it. Suffice it to say, Myrth was thrilled and we all had a blast this week doing various things. The Hen's night was a lot of fun and the wedding was gorgeous. It was in a town (city?) called Mannum on the banks of the Murray River about an hour and a half from Adelaide and the ceremony was outdoors on the banks of the River. It rained during the ceremony but it was still beautiful and then the reception was in the Pub. I anticipate pics will be surfacing, probably when "Mr. and Mrs. Myrth" (so loved that on one of the cards!) return from their honeymoon. Have seen the official photographs-some benefits of staying with the official photographer-and they are gorgeous but it is so weird not having my 'own' photographs, but more on that later. And after all the stress about what to wear, I didn't wear the skirt. It was too cold and damp so I ended up wearing this shirt with black linen pants. Would have been woefully underdressed for a wedding at home but the dress codes were much more relaxed here. Anyway, it was awesome and we pulled off the surprise, which was what mattered most.

Reason I have no photos...Camera utterly and totally dead. Beyond the sensor issues I knew it was having a few weeks ago. I turned it on the other day; the lens came halfway out and stopped. Dead. RIP Camera. As I said earlier, it owes me nothing and it got me as far as I needed it to get me. Kukrae brought her new camera and I had fun playing with that last week and Helen gives me copies of her photos, as will kiwibeck if we take anything interesting when I get there. On a good note, there's a shop in the city that wants to buy it for parts so I'll get something for it. Once I decided what kind of camera I want to get-thinking about the Nikon D70S because I really want a good camera, though the new Olympus 8 megapixel is a *very* nice compact-I'll see what kind of media it takes and then see what to do about my memory cards. I think the D70 takes SD but I'm not sure anymore. I'm a Nikon girl but also considering a Canon. Decisions, decisions. Anyway, all to be researched and purchased in Japan.

Yes, Japan. Some of you know this already but I've really lost track of who knows what and from where and who I caught on chat but as far as I can tell, I've never gotten around to mentioning it here even though its been in the works for a while now. First applied back in May when I was in Melbourne but my e-application got lost in the online netherworld and I didn't hear back so I reapplied when I was in Perth. Nova called me about flying to Brisbane when I was in Broome but I postponed it a week and flew from Darwin in August. Spent three days back with kiwibeck's father and had the interview. Told me I'd here in two weeks, he'd gotten the letter in his mailbox by the time I'd flown back to Darwin and picked up my Ghan ticket for Adelaide. So last two months have been a mad dash of paperwork--visa applications, degree copies, JMA forms...Delays from Japan mean I'm leaving later than I thought i.e. on the day before my Australian visa expires so I will have spent just shy of eleven months here by the time I leave. I'm pretty happy with that. I don't have an address for Japan yet; if all goes as normal I'll have it just before I leave. I'm flying from Melbourne on the 4th of November, just need to book my ticket.

Also need to sort out what I want to ship home, what I want to take to Japan and what can be thrown out. I've been pretty good about not accumulating too much stuff and I can get the weight limit increased to 30kg if I book through Nova's travel agent but I really don't want a 30kg backpack of stuff I won't need in Japan plus there's bulky stuff like my sleeping bag. I got done for my luggage when I flew down from Brisbane--Qantas Domestic allows one checked bag at 20kg, backpack was 18 so this wasn't an issue. However hand luggage is limited to 7kgs and they decided to weigh mine. Daypack (i.e. laptop and books) was 17kgs. Eek. So had to check that after moving my laptop to a second bag. Not good. Need to get rid of some of the weight before I leave but at the same time I'm thinking of things I won't be able to get in Japan and want to bring from here i.e. western sized clothes and English books.

In between all the stuff I should be doing, I'm spending a lot of time on mindless stuff, especially fic. Kukrae's been my partner in SVU fic crime more or less since the first fic I wrote and it was wonderful having her here last week. I managed to post four stories and work on as many more plus I rediscovered why I like the show, if not exactly the fandom. Obviously that doesn't include anyone reading this but that fandom's gone to shit faster than any other I've ever watched. But getting to watch some of the s2 DVDs (especially the Wrong is Right shower scene and other deleted scenes) reminded me of what it was I liked about the show. This season, very ehh so far. I liked 911 (don't hit me, I didn't love it but I have seen MUCH worse) but I don't like the main partners being split every episode. From a logistical POV, I get it. They split the leads and can do more episodes. Partners don't always work together. But I like watching EO together, that's a big part of why I like the show and I miss that. So what do I do? I retreat into my AUs.

What else...Swear I had more to post when I was mentally composing this post. Just further proof that I need a brain-top. I'm sure I can manage to go back to my multi post days if I think of what it was.

skinglist @ 2005-09-22T13:58:00

2005-09-22T04:58:19Z

Full Sized

Have taken way too many photos lately to the point that I can't upload most yet, internet access simply too slow and too expensive but there's the one above, which I love because if you look at the
full-sized version you can see the ants' eyes and 'claws' (?)

and this one

Full sized
from Whitsunday Island simply because I adored the view.

Here are also some from Coober Pedy and the
Great Barrier Reef with ones from Cooktown, Coloured Sands, Fitzroy Island and the Whitsundays to come.

Nearly the ten month mark and apart from the previously mentioned jeans, a few other things are starting to wear out:

-my camera. Now I really have no room to complain because on this trip alone I've kept 8,006 photos (I'd venture a guess I've taken at least 9, if not 10,000) and prior to this trip I'd kept another 2,000 so this camera owes me nothing. It's a little over two years old and the on/off switch is going, the door to the memory card slot is half broken and the lens has been grinding for about six months. Come on camera, give me another ten days. That's all I need. Less, actually. By about Monday the 26th I'll have completed my circumnavigation of Australia in about five months-pretty impressive. So camera, five more days, please?

When I was up in Cooktown they had magazines on special 5/$1 and a few had reviews of the new Nikon Digital SLRs. Mmm, camera envy. Hate that so many are switching to the SD memory sticks, have so many CF ones and really don't want to have to swap over but I think the D70s still uses CF.

-my laptop. Again, can't really complain. It's also just over two years old and gets used to death but it's showing wear and tear. There's time lag in opening folders, I get weird error messages and it's starting to suffer from Dead Battery Syndrome i.e. the battery won't fully recharge but not too much of an issue. Only been annoying lately when I want to use it while waiting for a bus and there's no power point and I haven't been able to charge it...

I've been trying to play catch up with photos and write ups, but its kind of a lost cause so here's a quick recap.

-Snorkelling on parts of the Great Barrier Reef in the last week or so. The two best were the Haba trip off Port Douglas and the Whitehaven Xpress trip in the Whitsundays. Simply because the reefs off Cairns are so degraded from the traffic that it's just not the same-a lot of the coral off Fitzroy was broken and dead so it wasn't the same vivid colours as off the others. On the plus side, that's where I first saw Crush. Two of us started to quote Nemo when we saw the turtle and one of the resort staff asked if we were two.

-Cooktown - as far North in Queensland as I was able to get and the home of a lot of history. It was there that Cook's ship was tied up to be fixed-the Endeavour in what is now called the Endeavour River-after running aground on the Reef. Can't breathe there without inhaling the myth of Captain Cook, but it's a fun bit of history. I skipped the museums as there was far more history to be had outside the museums and the area around Cooktown was just gorgeous.

-Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands were out of this world. Almost skipped them but am really glad I didn't since the time on Whitehaven Beach and the snorkelling in Mantaray Bay were amazing, not to mention the view from the Hill Inlet Lookout. So worth the climb. It was also in Airlie that I found the Australian equivalent of Auro Dry, the stuff I always used for my ears since all the snorkelling was killing my ears and I hated hearing the water squish around, but that's all better now.

-Mackay. Was originally going there to do a platypus safari but I was bumped off that and so spent the day with Felicia-Fairy, someone I knew through bookcrossing, and another friend of hers and they took me around the town to stuff I would never have known about without a local. It was a great day and nice to get off the backpacker trail. After nearly ten momths in Australia I still say Queensland is my favourite state (with WA a close second) but the thing I don't like about the coast is everyone's doing it so it's more crowded. But its worth seeing so it makes sense. With school holidays on this week I'm convinced no families with kids are in either Brisbane or Melbourne as they all seem to be up this way.

Had a bit of a Guardian Angel while waiting for the bus in Mackay. The only real issue that I've had with Greyhound is the fact that with all their changes most of their terminals close long before the last bus leaves (or aren't open before it arrives), which means people sitting outside with their bags. Not unsafe but not exactly safe either. I wasn't really worried, kind of just ignoring these two drunk guys when an older man came by and asked if I was OK. He was staying at the hotel nearby and offered to wait with me til my bus, which I thought was really nice of him, especially given it was 10 pm.

-Bundaberg was heaps of fun. I got here at 6 AM without any real plan on where to stay and saw a backpackers at the terminal. Not having to schlep my stuff earns high marks in my book so I booked a bed here and have the room to myself. Spent the morning mucking around Bundaberg and then went up to the Distillery, more or less my reason for stopping here. Tour of the factory and some wonderful presents for people. Bundy is something I'm really going to miss. I know we can get it in the states but nowhere near as easily.

Cairns and Week in Review

2005-09-16T10:06:54Z

Just arrived in Cairns all excited for tomorrow's trip to Undara and
when I checked in the receptionist let me know that the tour's been
cancelled. Phooey! The only day they could book me in for was Monday
and I'm going to be 11 hours south of here by then so no volcanos for
me :( but since I have a day to kill in Cairns now and don't want to
stay in Cairns, I'm going out to the reef again!

Been a good week. Quick recap until I get time to write up a full one
and post pics:

-Breaking News: Nemo is no longer lost! I found and snorkelled with
him on Tuesday on St. Crispin's and Agincourt Reef. Don't know how my
photos turned out but the ship's photographer got a good one of Nemo
and also of me snorkelling. To be posted when I get to real internet.

-If I die in the next few weeks, I'll save you the cost of an
autopsy...it's Dengue Fever. I quit counting at 31 bites and thats
only on my feet and ankles and I am wearing Tropical Strenght Rid.
Queensland, I love you but I don't love your mosquitoes.

-Way to be well fed--have a 60 someodd year old grandmother from New
Zealand in your dorm room in Cooktown. Like grandmothers all over the
world, her natural tendency is to feed. Ate very well these last few
days--pasta salad, sausages, egg salad sandwiches.

-Cooktown's history is amazing. Skipped the museums as there was more
history to be seen on the streets. You really feel the myth of Captain
Cook there.

..I had more to say when I was composing this post on the bus but now
I've forgotten some. Whoops. Anyway off to bed as I am being picked up
at 7:15 for the ferry to Fitzroy Island.

Well the 36 hour bus ride didn't kill me....

2005-09-12T04:15:17Z

...but at times I wanted to kill the bus. Quick recap:

- Wednesday 7 September: Adelaide to Coober Pedy overnight bus
- Thursday 8 September: Coober Pedy. Was amazing. skyring I have a 'full report' on my laptop. WIll post when I can.
- Friday 9 September 5 AM-Saturday 10 September 5 PM: Coober Pedy, South Australia to Charters Towers, Queensland via Alice, Tenant Creek and Mt. Isa.
- Sunday 11 September (which I didn't realise on the day): Charters Towers with a friend from Nova. 5 PM bus to Townsville. 7pm-12am: sit outside Townsville bus station once it had closed.
- Monday 12 September: 12:15 board bus to Cairns. 2:15 AM mandatory meal break. 5:45 AM - arrive Cairns. 5:45-10:30 AM wait outside Cairns bus terminal for shuttle to Port Douglas.

...do you realise why I never want to see the inside of a bus or terminal again?

Upcoming (though why do I bother, am sure it will change)

- Tuesday 13 September - snorkel the Great Barrier reef with Haba. Not changing as it's actually booked but WOOHOO, finally going to do the Reef.
- Wednesday 14 September - Friday 16 September: Cooktown. Possibly heading back to Cairns on Thursday but probably Friday as it may allow me to do Daintree on the way back.
- Saturday 17 September - Undara LAva Tubes - because they seem just so cool!

Next Week:
Airlie Beach/Whitsundays
Mackay
Great Keppel Island
Bundaberg
Fraser Island

..updates when I can

I feel very disconnected...

2005-09-06T15:56:12Z

Granted it's a factor of the news here, but I only happened to hear about the passing of Rehnquist on a Yankees related list I somewhat follow so I went to CNN..

I think it's somewhat disturbing that there's room for the 'news' that Lance Armstrong is going to marry Sheryl Crow but that Rehnquist's death is buried two tiers in. Granted he's 80 and was ill so his death
isn't a huge surprise but I'd vote it somewhere above Lance Armstrong, a pet called Snowball and what Barbara Bush is doing for the Katrina victims...

Yes, Katrina has been on the news here. If one good thing can be said about the incessant coverage is that it's not coverage of the 9/11 anniversary. This is the first time I've not been in NY for the
anniversary, shall be interesting to see how it's handled here...

On a more pleasant note, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was awesome. I adore Tim Burton and his snark. We were laughing our heads off. I have to say Johnny Depp as Wonka disturbed me. I'd heard this
was meant to be a darker version, not so much darker but hello Campy!Wonka. At any rate I loved it.

On another movie note, some of those filmed in Coober Pedy, I've seen two, I think. Pitch Black and Priscilla...

Everything in this room is *eat*able. Even I'm *eat*able. But that is called cannibalism, my dear children, and is in fact frowned upon in most societies.

Updating...so that's what LJ is for.

2005-09-05T13:37:33Z

I could make up a really good excuse for not having updated but the truth is I've been staying with a friend who has broadband at her place so...

Quick Recap of the last few weeks:

-Two trips to the casino which increased my 'emergency fund' to $105 AUD. Depending on the exchange rate I'll either use that to avoid a 47 hour bus ride later this month, buy myself a cool souvenir at the end of the trip or use it on the next part. We'll see.

- Taken a heap of cool flower pictures at Helen and her mom's gardens. Based on how well their gardens were in bloom I took a trip to the Botanic Gardens but only found duckies! Spent that day also exploring the bits of Adelaide I didn't see last time. Most of those flowers are unnamed because I didn't have a pen and paper when I was being told the names. Bad Me.

- Went to the Royal Adelaide Show, which reminded me a lot of a County fair. There were rides and stuff which you can't see in the photos because it was very rainy but the animals were just too cute, and of course the flowers. We also saw coloured animals--looks like they'd been fed food colouring or something, wombats, blue heeler pups and a goat that was about 12 hours old, but I was having lighting issues with my camera. comeseptember, they had the most adorable bunnehs and I thought of you, especially with the black one.

- went sailing today northwest of Adelaide and saw dolphins! First time sailing that I can recall and it was a lot of fun.

So I suppose you want an idea of where I'm headed next? Here's a rough draft since it's all kinda in the air:

Adelaide-Cooper Pedy (Weds PM)
Coober Pedy - Charters Towers (Fri-Sat)
Charters Towers - Townsville (Sun)
Townsville - Port Douglas

From Port Douglas I will make my way South to Brisbane thereby completing my bus loop of Australia. You can see some idea of just how far I travelled here.

Koalas, Echnidnas and 'Roos (Oh My!)

2005-08-26T13:18:03Z

Over the course of the three day trip to Kangaroo Island I took 869
photos and kept 715 them. Yes, quite a few photos. Brought the total
kept over the course of the trip 7,252 photos at 4.29 gB. Yeah, a few
photos. Works out to 26.56 photos per day over 273 but as usual a day
like Wednesday where I kept 402 photos throws that average off. Aren't
you glad I don't upload them all?

This time I separated them not by day but rather by the three main
types of photos over the course of the trip - flowers, scenery and animals. With the
way my photo habits were going after the first day, I was predicting
flowers would be the clear winner in terms of uploads but I ended up
with 83 scenery (included sunsets), 25 animals and 40 flowers. No, I
don't expect anyone to look at all 148 photos but they're there.

All in all it was a fabulous trip. Three full days on the island and
we covered everything and more. The sunsets were amazing as they
always are but I was most amazed by the wildlife we saw: three cars
stopping for a mother duck and her brood crossing the road, heaps of
seals and their pups at Admiral's Arch (see above), koalas including
one with its baby, 'roos, possums and an echidna, among others. They
were all awesome but I think the echidna was the highlight because
it's so rare to see them--and I think we saw two but by the time we
turned around, he'd snuffled off into the bush so we couldn't confirm.

I swear I'm never going to get used to zoos again.

Long Uluru Update...

2005-08-21T12:50:34Z

Photos from the trip to Uluru

A look at the trip so far...

16 August 05: Alice Springs to Uluru

116 Photos Taken
98 Kept

I'd read somewhere that the thing with Uluru is that images are everywhere in Australia so by the time you get there, you're so sick of the rock. I was determined not to let that happen and a few times I'd hear someone say they were disappointed by the rock so I tried not to let myself hype it up too much. I didn't want to be disappointed; this was something I'd looked at as one of the high points of my trip since last trip. I was in danger of that happening simply because I'm getting to the point that you hit on every trip, the 'no more [insert frequent tourist siting here]' phase that comes with a long trip, no matter how wonderful the trip is. In my case 'no more gorges/canyons' is what's setting in so when I realised that Kings Canyon might have to be sacrificed as a result of Greyhound's tour going boom, I didn't mind. If I wanted to do the canyon there were precisely nine million eight hundred and seventy two tours I could have done from Alice that would allow me to see the canyon if I wanted to, but I didn't.

So I booked Greyhound from Alice and was picked up at 7 AM today and we were on the road at 7:30. As we stopped at the terminal to collect other passengers I saw the headline of the Territorian "Woman Killed on Way to Uluru" I still don't know the details and don't plan to find out until I get back to Alice, by which time I'll probably forget. Still, not the headline you want to see as you're boarding a bus to Uluru.

This service still bears a resemblance to the old tour with stops at Camels Australia (STINKY!) and other stops en route to Uluru. The annoying thing was that all the other tour buses stopped at the same places at the same time, reinforced my decision not to do a tour of the Centre because I wanted to go at my own pace. On the way we passed Mount Connor or 'Fuluru' as the driver called it, due to the number of people thinking they saw Uluru only to find out it wasn't. Without having seen Uluru first I could see the confusion but not once Id seen Uluru. From about 50km from the rock we started getting sightings and no matter how many thousands of photos you see, there's nothing like being there-even when 'there' is still 30 miles away.

Checked in to Outback Pioneer Lodge (20 bed dorm $30 night is the cheapest accommodation at Yulara---monopoly anyone?? There is no competition since all the accommodation is owned by Voyages and called Ayers Rock Resort. There are places you can pay upwards of two grand a night and all I ask is WHY!. Anyway...) Dumped my bags and went to sort out the shuttle. Once I was confirmed for a 5:30 PM pick up I decided to have a walk around. Found a common room with power points, a necessity since laptop's battery was flat and I knew camera would be after sunset, the kitchen and a kiosk among a million other resort facilities. Also saw a sign to 'Uluru Lookout' and went for a look. Amazing. Here we are 20km from the Rock and 50 from the Olgas/Kata Tjuta and both looked amazing in the afternoon sun. Of course I got itchy for sunset and to kill the time I went into the town centre to get some stamps and see how 'expensive' the food at the market was. It was cheaper than WA. I came away with a 600ml (20oz) bottle of cold water, a 600ml bottle of Diet Pepsi-also cold- and a box of muesli (granola) bars for a total of $6. Not bad at all. Also I bought a sandwich while waiting in the line for the tour desk and that wasn't too bad-a salt and vinegar chicken wrap. I kinda like staying at the resort, all sorts of facilities like having a duvet for FREE.

5:30 finally came and I was collected by the shuttle and we made the rounds of the other facilities to collect the others and we headed to the park. The coach sunset viewing area is chocka with people and coaches but I took a detour to see the rock up close before heading back. Was shocked at how different the surface is on either side-one side is distinctly smoother but still not smooth. I also saw the path up the rock, which makes no sense to me. The Anangu people request that we do not climb since they feel responsible for visitors' safety and due to cultural reasons and you hear this over and over, it's even printed on the park pass yet they have installed a chain to help climbers.

Took a ton of photos but the photos don't capture the feeling of being there. The Power of the Rock. Tomorrow is a 7:15 departure for a morning walk around Kata Tjuta and then I plan to find my way back to the park for the afternoon either with someone from the resort or hiring a bike to explore it before sunset. Then Thursday is 6:15 pickup for sunrise and a morning exploration of Uluru before heading back to Alice.

17 August 2005: Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
236 Photos Taken
87 Kata Tjuta - Valley of the Winds Walk
44 - Uluru and Kata Tjuta from Kata Tjuta Lookout
87 Uluru Sunset

189 Kept

Yeah, really could have kept fewer of Uluru sunset but it was just AMAZING with the nearly full moon overhead. But before I get back to that I just have to say that I have taken over one of the tables in the common room-using laptop, charging camera battery, cell phone and iPod, remains of dinner (PB&J) and bag. Ugh. Too much stuff, WAY too much stuff. My mission for while I'm in Adelaide is partially to go through the bags and make a package to send home with clothes I'm not wearing and or throw them out. The repair work on the jeans didn't work so they're going in the bin. But anyway.

Was picked up at 7:15 today and when I went outside I was very glad that I opted not to camp, it was FREEZING out. It quickly warmed up and by the time we got to Kata-Tjuta (about 50k away) I'd shed my fleece and over the course of the walk I'd shed the long-sleeved top as well. Kata- Tjuta means 'many heads' apparently due to the number of domes. I was glad that we stopped at a viewing area on the way back because the walk, while beautiful, does not allow you to grasp the big picture because you are too close. Today was definitely my walking day, or one of them, as I walked 5.5k at the Valley of the Winds and 5K later in the day. 10.5k or 6.3 miles. I was happy.

After the walk I came back to Yulara and chilled for a bit. I earned it after the walk, I also earned a more substantial kangaroo and sweet chili sauce wrap since PB&J while having protein, does not get you through the day. My new godsend is muesli bars, especially 'chocolate coated cherry and coconut muesli bars'. Yeah, cherry ripes. But they have muesli, therefore they're healthy. They're also the Black & Gold brand so they're cheap!

After some mucking about I decided to head to the Park and get a second sunset.

18 August 2005: Uluru Sunrise and Walks

179 Photos Taken
154 Kept

Well I said to two friends before I left that I figured I'd take at least 500 photos over these three days and I was right. The odd thing is, it doesn't feel like many. Weird. Up at 5:15 to pack and check out before being picked up at 6:15 for the shuttle to sunrise. Was actually like a taxi because I was the only one on. Sunrise crowded but I wasn't that impressed, saw photos from some people who'd watched from the lookout at the resort and their photos were better because they had the sun rise over the dunes whereas we had it behind us and lighting the Rock. Still, not a bad sunrise.

From there he dropped me at the Rock and said he'd be back in three hours. I opted for the Liru walk to the Cultural Centre to learn some more about the area but I was disappointed. A lot of what's there is in the brochures and so much is left unsaid due to it being knowledge for 'initiated men'. I can understand that, it's the same explanation I've been hearing since Katherine about the art but in a sense I can't help but think about what's going to happen when the older men die off and the younger ones have no interest in learning, so much will be lost.

So after the cultural centre I walked the 2K back to the Rock and decided to do the Mala Walk, as I wouldn't have enough time to do the whole circuit. Climbing was out of the question for respect issues, a point I later debated with an obnoxiously loud American guy back at lunch. Mala walk was amazing. Mixed feelings about being so close to the rock. On the one hand it lets you appreciate the intricate details; the effects of erosion, the gorges, the path of waterfalls when it rains...but on the other hand you're too close to get the big picture. So when you go you definitely need to see it from up close and a distance.

Headed back at 10:30 to the Resort to get some lunch and wait for the bus back to Alice. Loud American family from Texas yammering on about how "George Bay-ush saved us". Ugh. Loud. Obnoxious. Rude... Shocked though that they came to the rock since they were so anti aboriginal, etc. Oh well.

Got bus, back in Alice.

Also a big THANK YOU to the anonymous person who extended my paid account. Those two months will be perfect because by then I should have regular 'net access of my own. I really appreciate it.

Quick Update

2005-08-20T01:15:55Z

- Uluru was amazing, even moreso than I'd imagined. Will upload some
pics from Adelaide when I get there.

- Ran into Ohad while wandering around Alice yesterday, he flies back
to Israel on the 23rd. Will be weird not running into him in every
other city without planning it.

- Paid account about to expire, never thought that would happen. When
I go back to 'net cafes I'll have to hope for cookies that behave
since I've gotten far too used to posting via e-mail. At one time I
thought it would be the icons I'd miss, but no it's the posting by
e-mail. I'm weird, I know.

- Off to catch the Ghan, will be a nice change from the bus which I'm
bloody sick of after 22 hours on Sat/Sun and six hours each on Tues
and Thurs.

Revised Itinerary...

2005-08-09T14:24:42Z

In case anyone's looking for me in the next week or so:

10 August: Fly to Darwin arriving after midnight on the 11th. 11th spent in and around Darwin

12 August: Day Trip to Kakadu

13 August: Bus at 7:15 AM to Alice Springs. Arrive 5 AM on Sunday the 14th.

14 August: Sleep, tour Alice Springs

15-19 August: some combo of Alice Springs and The Centre. Uluru tour now a no-go so not sure how I'm doing that yet though this and this are a possibility. Not thrilled with greyhound, not at all.

20 August: Ghan to Adelaide arriving on the 21st around 9 AM. From there, plans to be decided. Possibly Kangaroo Island but I'll see as we get closer.

Should have cell service in all but Kakadu and Ayers Rock who knows about e-mail though...Catch up soon. Got some pics from Mindil Beach at sunset including the one above but I'll upload those when I'm on highspeed.

Also, sk_travels_2005 is back and functioning. Little tweaks. Plus Wordpress is so much easier to get working (apart from excerpts) than Movable Type.

skinglist @ 2005-08-07T15:00:00

2005-08-07T05:33:05Z

TravellingCari is back, the old mess is dead and will be gone as soon as I can take it down and reclaim the space.

If you have a blog that you want me to add, let me know. Not adding LJs there.

Productive morning, it's too hot to do anything but this and plan the next leg of the trip. Details forthcoming once confirmed. And yes, I managed to log in to post this, almost forgot I had icons to use :)

Massive Update

2005-08-06T10:30:00Z

Not that I expect anyone to read all of this...

Insane update from the last week or so.

Photos at:
WA:
Broome to Kununurra
Bungle Bungles
(Purnululu National Park)

NT:
Katherine Gorge (Nitmiluk)

This is why I don't usually make plans? It's easier not to make them
and then just go with the flow than to make them and then have to fix
them when they break. Finally got fed up with the guy from Oasis Air.
He kept rescheduling/postponing/cancelling the flight over the Bungles
from Halls Creek because he got better offers from people wanting to
fly over the meteor crater. OK, fair enough from a businessman point
of view but I think it's lousy customer relations. So I finally gave
up on that but not on the Bungle Bungles. Booked a trip with Alligator
Airways and because it lands in Purnululu and we get to trek some and
have lunch in the gorge it sounds like it will be a better tour.

So I reluctantly left Broome. I think about ten days is the perfect
amount of time to spend there when you're not a beach person. By
Sunday I was bored and too hot to sit by the pool or at the beach so I
went into town and killed some time there. I think that was also a
factor of the once you know you're moving on you want to get going not
be stuck in limbo but the Greyhound didn't leave until 7:30 so I did
spend the vast majority of the day reading. It was even 'too hot' to
read! Speaking of reading I read a heap of books in Broome: 1st to
Die, Second Chance, 4th of July, Lifeguard (all James Patterson),
Undomestic Goddess (Sophie Kinsella), No Shitting on the Toilet (Peter
Moore). In retrospect that doesn't seem like a lot over ten days but I
think there were more and all of those were in four days. James
Patterson is crack, he really is. Oh yeah, there was also the Harry
Potter in a day day on Saturday.

Anyway boarded the bus and the driver said he'd put on a movie once we
got past the Roebuck Plains roadhouse and some people groaned when
they saw what it was. Personally I loved Sweet Home Alabama even
though I've seen it about three times. Put on the iPod in the
cheesiest parts but I still love it. Spent a chunk of time comparing
it to 'Undomestic Goddess' because there really are just so many chick
flick/lit plots :) He did say the movie would end when we got to Derby
and that after that it was 'sleepies time' and he was right, but I
could not get comfortable. I was up every hour on the hour. Had
debated bringing the sleeping bag on the bus with me but ultimately
decided I didn't want to have to roll it when I got to Kununurra. By
about 12 was wishing I had done because I was freezing and once I was
wearing my fleece I had no pillow AND my toes were freezing. Bloody
AC! Was wondering why I hadn't thought to wear socks and realised this
was the first time I travelled in sandals I think. Or at least Port
Hedland to Broome was during the day so it wasn't so bloody cold. So
now at 7:45 I'm ready to sleep.

Woke up around 6 (before my alarm, what's wrong with me!) and was glad
I did because the sunrise over the Kimberley was wonderful. We stopped
for breakfast at the Turkey Creek roadhouse and from there it was a
straight shot to Kununurra. Driver invited us to move up to the front
seat if we wanted a change of scenery and took him up on that. He had
a great commentary, turns out he and his partner are travelling
Australia. Partner, really hate that word. Sounds so awkward.

Got to Kununurra a little after ten and was met by someone from the
backpackers—I managed to get in and out of his van without getting
stuck, that never happened at Cable Beach backpackers. Yeah, backpacks
a bit tall these days. He took me through town and then we went back
to the hostel. Vegged out for a bit but then realised it was only
11:30 and I really wanted to stretch my legs. Had a walk through the
usual haunts – Visitor Centre, not for brochures but to release We of
the Never-Never since it turns out that the main character in that
book is buried near Kununurra, supermarket and the Salvos shop. Got
three books including a Marian Keyes, the third book in the Sisterhood
of the Travelling Pants series and LP Northern Territory for $1. Yeah,
good deal. Also ran into someone I'd met in Port Hedland. Small
country this is at times.

Wandered back to the hostel and spent a few hours with my legs in the
pool while reading Girls In Pants and finished that after sunset.
Sunset was not so spectacular and I've been spoiled by the Cable Beach
sunsets. Came back had some dinner and like I said, itching for a nap
now. Is just as well because Bungles tour picks me up at 8:30 AM
tomorrow. Why does that seem late?

2 August 2005: Bungle Bungles

282 Photos Taken
239 Photos Kept

I really could have been more selective, but the honest truth is that
I'm just too tired. Today was a long day. WONDERFUL but long. I really
think the Bungles are my new 'favourite thing' at least until
tomorrow. But really, they're fabulous. I had seen photos of them
before but until we landed, they weren't real. Even looking back at
the photos now, it's not like standing there among the Beehive Domes.

Was collected at the backpackers at 8:30 AM and after a few more
pickups and drop offs we arrived at Kununurra Airport where we were
collected in small groups by pilots and taken out to the planes. Don't
ask me about the plane, it was a plane. It had wings and an engine,
two actually and a door. And it flew, except for when he didn't want
it to, and then it didn't. A plus to being short and the lone
singleton on the plane—I got to ride shotgun. Way cool! Amazing to see
all the gauges and gadgets on the dashboard. Planes didn't fly that
high but ooh my poor ears! We wore headphones and the pilot pointed
out a lot of things that we passed over and I dutifully took heaps of
pics.

I'll admit that when we flew over the Bungles, I was a little
disappointed—'that's it' came to mind, and I was immediately glad I'd
chosen a tour that landed and allowed some walking time. Plus I really
think I'd have added my own decorations to the plane if we flew for
two hours. Flight was smooth enough but I don't like small planes.
Well I don't like flying at all but I especially don't like small
planes.

So we landed at Bellburn Airstrip in Purnululu National Park—classic
example of how Australia is confusing with the place names when
transitioning back to aboriginal names. Its really enough to make your
head spin. They're technically called the Bungle Bungle Ranges in
Purnululu National Park and the walks and chasms—Cathedral Gorge,
Echidna Chasm, Piccaninny Creek...still have English names because
there's a bit of a debate between the two Aboriginal groups in the
park over who owns which area and which language will be used.
Purnululu apparently means 'shifting sands' but I don't know in which
language. Honestly, I named all the photos Bungle Bungles because it's
easier. Even here if you say 'purnululu' a lot of people say 'what?'
but they know exactly what you mean when you say Bungle Bungles or The
Bungles. I feel like I should use the aboriginal name in cases where
the area has been handed back to the traditional owners (i.e. Uluru)
and even in cases where it hasn't but it's virtually impossible to
pronounce some of these names at first, ie the aboriginal name for
Katherine Gorge, which I cant pronounce or spell hence when I arrive
tomorrow I'll be calling it Katherine. I remember the weird stuff like
the name means 'cicada dreaming' but not the name. Anyway.

We were taken to our 4WD for the day and headed past Elephant Rocks to
the Cathedral Gorge Car Park from where we started our walk
to...Cathedral Gorge. Was a short and easy walk, maybe 1.5 K (less
than one mile) but we went via the Domes Walk and the start of
Piccaninny Creek and it was HOT (34 C) so it was lovely to walk slow
and get into the relative cool of the Gorge for our lunch break. The
acoustics in the Gorge are wonderful and one of our group was a
professional singer so she treated us (accompanied by one of the off
duty 'copter pilots who had a guitar) to Amazing Grace and The Rose.
Was amazing.

We stayed there about two hours before making the walk back. Had
afternoon tea at the base camp (watermelon and orange cordial—way too
hot for anything hot) before heading back to the airstrip. We flew
back over Lake Argyle and the Argyle Diamond mine. Some of the tours
stop there but I really don't care much about diamonds unless they're
on my finger. Got back to the airport and got a ride back here where I
proceeded to spend 20 mins in the shower trying to get clean. I'm
gonna need a scrub after Katherine. I really am.

Yes, that's a bad photo of me in there, but it's the best of the
bunch. I know I don't have a hat shaped head but the heat and sun here
are strong and I think unflattering pics and hat hair are preferable
to another sun headache.

4 August 2005 - Katherine Gorge

90 Photos Taken
72 Kept

Yeah, I took a lot of photos of what is essentially a hole with water
in it. A pretty hole, but a hole nonetheless.

….

Backing Up Again

Arrived in Katherine from Kununurra around 6PM and was met by the guy
from Kookaburra Backpackers where I'd booked. Turned out that Ohad,
Guille and I were going to all be at the same place even though we
didn't think we'd be. And the Kookaburra is the YHA in town even
though we didn't know it was.

Checked in and dumped the stuff. Kookaburra reminds me a lot of
Hokondo in Honolulu mainly in that each room has its own kitchen and
shower/toilet. The lack of a common kitchen cuts down on some of the
social aspects but means no huge queues for stuff and no one pinching
your stuff either. After dropping off our stuff, we decided to head
into town. Guille wanted a restaurant, Ohad wanted an ATM and I wanted
Woolie's but knew that if we found the Thai restaurant I'd be sucked
in. We walked the length of Katherine and back, about ten minutes at
our relaxed pace—no Murphy Street, no Thai Restaurant. The guys
decided to have Chinese and I didn't really want it so I went to
Woolies. A bit nervous about being alone in town but it was fine, got
more hassled when I was with the guys than when I was alone. Still, an
eye opener. Don't know what it was, but something about Katherine/the
Northern Territory really did feel different about WA. Definitely in
the minority as a white person and while that shouldn't have freaked
me, I'll admit it did. Fear of the unknown, I think. Yes, I know
that's a borderline racist feeling, but again I don't think it's
entirely my fault—we hear so often to be afraid that we automatically
are.

I'd really hoped that I'd learn something from the visits to Beagle
Bay and Lombadina but the tours are sanitized for tourists, geared to
a historical perspective, and led by a Nigerian priest and an Aussie
tour guide so not much learning was going on. There's an opportunity
to volunteer at a camp in Arnhem Land and that's something I really
wish I had time to do but not this trip. Whoever would have thought
eleven months is too short to get everything done. Also a friend's
sister has some aboriginal studies books that she's going to let me
have a look through and I think that's better than nothing. Shrugs.
Anyway.

Back at the hostel I booked a tour to the gorge, which is one of the
only reasons to go to Katherine. LP makes the town seem worse than it
is, mentions the running water as a highlight but it's a cute outback
town. Grew up around the gorge. And it had Target, haven't seen one of
those in a while. Granted it was a Target Country and I never went in
it, but the fact is there was one.

So early on Thursday I caught the shuttle to the gorges—about 30K
northeast of town—with six others from the hostel—Ohad and Guille who
were planning to canoe, Dave and his friend planning to canoe, Tanja
who was planning to spend a few days camping and trekking and Sally.
Sally and I were lazy, we were taking the four-hour adventure tour,
which covered three gorges, some aboriginal rock art and some walking.
Not lazy, educational.

It was fairly cool when we boarded the boat and headed down the gorge.
Nothing really that spectacular, but I can say I've done Katherine
gorge now. In between the first and second gorges was some nice rock
art. This is really the first I've seen because I couldn't actually
make out the ones pointed out in Cathedral Gorge in the Bungle
Bungles. And speaking of rock art and aboriginals, the name for
Katherine Gorge is Nitmiluk. Whee, remembered and (I think) spelled
properly.

Tour was four hours in total and culminated in the chance to swim. It
was hot but I opted not to. True there are very few salties in the
river (hasn't been one in a while) but there are freshies and whether
they have a taste for human or not, they have teeth. Was not going in
so I watched from the bank. Sally and I had great ideas for going to
the lookout after the tour but it was way too hot so we headed back to
the visitor's centre and passed the afternoon in the AC learning about
the area and just BSing.

Got back to the hostel and needed a shower. As I said in a text to my
friend, I'm a city girl. I can only deal with so much dust and right
now it's on everything. I need laundry and a few days in a proper city
to do basic shopping. On the plus side I did find a 500mL bottle of
shampoo in Katherine for $1.85 so no longer rationing 'til Brisbane.
This is good. I refuse to be a member of the great unwashed. Have read
two books recently—Sean and Dave's Long Drive (Sean Condon) and No
Shitting in the Toilet (Peter Moore)—that commented on the washing
habits of backpackers and even though I know we're not all that bad,
it makes me realise how bad the group in general comes off. Right.

5 August 2005: Darwin

It's about 3000Ks (1800 miles) from Adelaide to Darwin in essentially
a straight line. A straight line in fact that has two ways of
travelling—the Stuart Highway which is paved from end to end, or the
Ghan Railway which goes a few times a week in each direction. You'd
think that the distance should take a week to cover, maybe two or two
and a half with trips to the centre. Not me, that would be too easy. I
left Adelaide on 9 June and got to Darwin on 5 August. 67 days. Nine
weeks and four days. Yep, you could say I took the long way around via
the coast of WA. And I don't regret a moment of it.

I didn't make it to Wyndham which is the northern most town in WA
because I saw no particularly good reason to go there but I did do the
WA coast from Cape Leeuwin south of Augusta, which is the most
south-westerly point on the Australian mainland to Cape Leveque which
is near the tip of the Dampier Peninsula north of Broome so I think
that counts for something. And I saw a lot in these 67 days.

While waiting in Katherine to catch the bus to Darwin I was chatting
to Sally and Dave who were headed west to Kununurra. Got into a
discussion on tours and what they cost. Getting to be an old
discussion already. I mean there's no right or wrong answer, but I
really wonder why some people travel. Tours do cost money, but in the
end isn't part of the reason you go overseas to see things. Yes, it's
a working holiday but there's still the word holiday. And it goes back
to what I said when I was travelling in Japan. It's not cheap but it's
cheaper than flying home and flying back here to do it again.

There are always things you have to cut out of a trip, you can't do
everything but things like WA and the NT are things I'm making sure to
get in. If I have to cut anything more it will be aspects of the QLD
coast because that's relatively easy to do in another trip but I know
I won't have the time to do another trip all around Australia so I'm
trying to take in as much as I can. That reminds me, mental list
that's been kicking around for some time now.

Things I'm Really Glad I Was Able to Do/See
-Purnululu (Bungle Bungles) - idea stuck in my head since I heard of
them and I'm glad I made the tour happen despite issues with original
operator. They are without a doubt the best natural wonder I've ever
seen.

- Wild Koalas, Bandicoot, Wallabies, Possum... – really all the
wildlife in the wild with the exception of roos because they're pretty
dumb. Something really cool about seeing them in their natural
world—whether it was Bel Air park, the car park of Mt. Lofty…it was
still cool. Heaps better than a zoo.

- Tour to Exmouth – originally hemmed and hawed about the cost of this
trip but in the end was worth every penny. Abseiling at Kalbarri, sand
boarding at Lancelin, meeting Prince Leonard, camping at the sheep
station... so many things Id never have gotten to do otherwise.

-Indian Pacific – been a dream since I first heard of the train when I
was here last time and so glad I was able to ride it.

Things I've Decided Can Wait

- Philip Island – I'm sure penguins are cute but it was too cold and
too far from Melbourne. Also after Monkey Mia I think I'd have been
more likely to be disappointed than amazed by the penguin parade. I've
seen penguins before and I adore them, but not quite sure this was
worth it.

-Wave Rock – really wanted to go but in the end there just wasn't
enough time on my trip south from Perth.

Things I Still Hope to Do

- Kangaroo Island – missed this on first trip through Adelaide because
tour wasn't running that week. Now that I'm going back to Adelaide,
there is a chance that this may happen. We'll see. Otherwise it's in
the 'can wait' category.

- Great Barrier Reef – really hemming and hawing about this one. I
know I should do it, but the idea of a couple of hours on rough seas
on a boat to the Agincourt Reef makes me hesitate. Will look into
seasickness tablets if I do a day trip, which I'm sure I will. Can't
come here and not do the reef though by all accounts Ningaloo is
better. IMO bigger doesn't automatically win, not like I'm going to
snorkel it from end to end.

- Uluru – goes without saying.

Had hit the hostel's exchange cabinet before I left Katherine because
I had 'nothing to read' (translates as nothing I wanted to read or
that would hold my attention for more than three seconds) and was
thrilled to find two James Patterson's that I hadn't read. Managed to
finish one on the bus to Darwin. Had a bit of an experience at the
stop in Batchelor. We stopped for 'smoko' and I went into the
roadhouse to get a soda when all of a sudden I see the bus start to
pull away. I have never run so fast in my life. Driver swears he
didn't see me get off. Still would think he noticed the empty seat?
Nah. OH well, I caught it.

Ended up getting into Darwin about five hours ahead of schedule anyway
because when I went to find out when the shuttle ran from Kookaburra
to the 7PM bus the owner asked why I was catching that bus. Mentioned
that it was the bus to Darwin and she asked what about the other three
earlier in the day, or did I really want to hang around Katherine all
day? Since I'd seen the town from end to end already and had no desire
to go to the museums or the hot springs I was very eager to get an
earlier bus. As it was Id run out of things to do in Katherine by
lunchtime. Was good to get here earlier, got on email went to the
supermarket and chilled.

Ahh yes, supermarket. Time has finally come where I cannot even
consider more pot noodles. I bought a back of the chicken ones for
$1.19 for 5 in Katherine and made them together with sliced avocado.
Had a few mouthfuls and felt like I was going to be sick. Right, no
more noodles. Hope that doesn't happen with PB&J. Looking forward to
real food in Brisbane. Also Darwin prices, Yay. Reasonable again!

It's raining. It's the dry season. This is weird.

Quick CCE Update...

2005-08-04T08:41:37Z

Bungle Bungles - awesome, great photos
Katherine - awesome, haven't seen photos yet since I'm just back from
the gorge. See free dirt and grime in this post :p

On to Darwin tomorrow for the weekend. Whistle stop tour of the NT
continues. Pics when I find non-coin-op internet and a computer made
this century.

Plans go Boink!

2005-07-30T04:40:04Z

As they are known to do on my end...

Oasis Air postponed the tour again so I told him (in a slightly more
polite way) that he could take a long walk of a short pier. With that
a bust there is no reason to go to Halls Creek so I leave Broome
tomorrow night (Wahh! I love it here) for Kununura. I stay at the
Kununura Backpackers. I'll do a tour of the Bungle Bungles with
Alligator Airways

--Depart from Kununurra in our highwinged aircraft for a scenic flight
over Lake Argyle, Lissadell and Texas Downs Stations, the Osmond
Ranges and the Bungles before landing at Bellburn Airstrip. Transfer
to an air-conditioned 4WD for the drive to Cathedral Gorge, located at
the southern end of the Bungles where the renowned beehive domes are
found. Your guided walk through this gorge includes lunch at the
Amphitheatre. On return to Bellburn Base Camp, light refreshments will
be served prior to boarding your aircraft for the return flight to
Kununurra, over Argyle Diamond Mine and the Ragged Ranges. --

Whee, then Weds I go to Katherinefor the gorges and on Friday I head
to Darwin for the weekend. On Sunday night I fly from Darwin to
Brisbane for the interview and come back Weds. Then a two day tour of
Kakadu and on to the centre. Woohoo.

Supposed to have vodafone coverage along the way but not sure about
e-mail until I get to Darwin but will do my best.

Port Hedland to Broome

2005-07-28T07:48:37Z

New Pics
Cable Beach Sunset 27 July: http://www.carianne.org/gallery/cbsun?page=2
Gantheaume Point 28 July: http://www.carianne.org/gallery/gantheaume

I have no idea where I last left off, but I think I was still in Port
Hedland. Eep. Been in Broome now for a week. Left Port Hedland on the
20th and headed up to Broome. Even though there is precisely nothing
save for two roadhouses along the 400 mile stretch of the Great
Northern Highway between the two towns, I saw some of the most amazing
scenery. Rocks appearing out of nowhere, ant hills as tall as
roadhouses, and of course heaps of red. The red in Port Hedland is
iron ore, there's no hiding the fact that this is a big mining town
and in Broome (and further north and west) it's pindan, the aboriginal
word for the red dirt. And it gets on everything. At least it hides
the purple tints.

Spent Thursday catching up with some friends and that evening went to
the Pigram Brothers concert. A family of twelve with seven brothers in
the band but the whole thing is a family affair. Beautiful features
(father is aboriginal, mother is Chinese) and amazing voices. Managed
to track down one of their albums but it was only available on
cassette. Who travels with a cassette player these days?

Friday I spent booking a tour and getting shoes I needed for the tour.
Wanted to get imitation tevas but my feet looked demented in the pair
I tried on so I got a pair of aqua shoes. Friday was also the night
for 'Staircase to the Moon' so Angela and I, together with most of the
rest of Broome it seemed, headed for Town Beach to see it. It was
cool, but I wasn't as impressed as I thought it would be. Too crowded
and too rushed. I prefer the CB sunset where you can linger.

Saturday was a much more low key. Someone at the hostel had finished
her copy of Harry Potter so I borrowed it and settled in to a hammock
by the pool. I didn't surface until I got a message from someone I'd
met on the trip to Exmouth and we arranged to meet at Cable Beach for
sunset—easy for me since I'm staying just up the road. At times its
easy to stay somewhere close to town but Cable Beach Backpackers has
free shuttles several times a day and the town beach runs a couple of
times an hour. When in Broome I want to be at the beach, not in town.
Sunset was amazing. There is no other word. Scurried back to the
hostel to finish Harry. Don't want to spoil those who haven't read or
bore those who don't care but poke me if you want to talk about it.
Yes, I read it in less than one day.

Sunday was an early start with a 7:05 pick up out front of the hostel
for the trip to Cape Leveque via Beagle Bay. I'd heard rumours about
the road but didn't really realise the state of it until we got on it.
It's unsealed almost from the point it meets the highway heading east
from Broome and from there it's 200K (120 miles) of dirt road to the
tip of the Dampier Peninsula. Was worth every bump though because the
beauty of the empty beaches and red cliffs hitting the turquoise water
was just out of this world.

I didn't really get much from either the visit to Beagle Bay or
Lombadina, but the church in Beagle Bay was gorgeous. So much made of
pearl and it gives you the idea of the impact pearls really have had
on the area. We stopped several times on the way up and back to
stretch our legs and we were all itching to be back to Broome, tired
and bumped out when the driver stopped one last time. He promised us
it was worth it, and it was. I have never seen so many stars. It felt
like a planetarium. Venus is also out and wow. Just wow.

Got back to the hostel around 9 had a quick dinner and shower and
crashed out. The following day was an early morning as well. Same pick
up time and it was off east of Broome to Derby for morning tea near
the prison boab tree. I'm glad I was able to see it on this tour
because it really would have killed an entire day (only one Greyhound
service daily) and the tree, while cool, was not worth a whole day.
One of the guys on the tour asked me to video him in front of the tree
and he flapped his arms to see if I could see him. Crazy Aussies. He
was dubbed Video Man because he saw all of the day's scenery via the
lens of his video camera.

From Derby it was off along the Gibb River Road to Windjana Gorge. I'd
heard rumours about this road and that was part of why I did it as a
tour. Even if I managed to hire a 4WD for a few days, I couldn't
imagine knowing how to handle it. In truth, it was heaps better than
the road to Cape Leveque. Our driver on Monday said that the road to
Cape Leveque recently was named as Australia's worst road. Eep. Still
amazes me that a first world country can have so many unsealed roads.
*shrugs* Keeps the tourists down in some areas which is a good thing,
I think, and one of the many things that sets the west coast apart
from the east. Really not looking forward to going back to the east
coast crowds. Anyway.

Windjana Gorge was amazing, so many freshwater crocs so close and was
just amazing to walk into the bottom of the gorge and see these walls
soaring above us. I'm getting near the point where I'll be saying
'gorge, schmorge' so I've limited my gorges and therefore not doing
Geikie. I don't want to be gorged out before I get to the Bungle
Bungles and Katherine. After lunch at Windjana we headed to Tunnel
Creek, a partially flooded cave and the reason I needed the aqua
shoes. Was a fairly dry wet season so water really only hit the bottom
of my shorts. Not bad and way cool to see the stalactites and bats.

After we finished at Tunnel Creek we headed back along the Gibb River
Road to Derby and then the Williare Roadhouse where we were to get
dinner. Was about 10:30 by the time we got there and nearly 12:30 by
the time we got back to Broome. Oy. Tired me. Realised I needed to
have a shower since I had Pindan all over me but even scrubbing them
in the shower didn't help. Figured if it didn't come off in the shower
it wouldn't rub off on the sleeping bag. Fell asleep but woke
early-ish on Tuesday to go into town and run errands. Spent the
balance of the day by the pool and reading. This is the life.

Wednesday, today, was a bit of the same. Ran into town to do a few
things. Came back, read and then went to watch sunset. Tomorrow I'm
determined to catch the first bus down to Gantheaume Point to see the
dinosaur footprints and walk back along the beach. It's the only bus
of the day that goes there and 8 AM is probably the only time its cool
enough to walk without becoming a pile of goo, but we shall see. Have
not really done much sightseeing in Broome. It's kind of hard because
though Broome CBD is small, the things I want to see are spread out so
we'll see. May hire a bike tomorrow if it's not too hot. But
it will be, it's nice and warm and I love this weather. So we'll
see. Was hot but I hired a bike and rode out to Gantheaume
Point and back. Photos here. Details later.

I leave Broome on Saturday and head to Darwin via Halls Creek (to see
the Bungle Bungles), Kununurra (Hidden Valley National Park) and
possibly Katherine for the gorges. Otherwise I'll do Katherine on the
way from Darwin to Uluru. Uluru is something I've wanted to see since
my last time here and I'm excited that it's getting close. Just hoping
it will be as good as I'm expecting it to be.

Internet access spotty until Darwin.

Pics Galore!

2005-07-26T03:56:52Z

Port Hedland to Broome:
http://www.carianne.org/gallery/tobroome
Broome:
http://www.carianne.org/gallery/broome
Dampier Peninsula:
http://www.carianne.org/gallery/dampier
Gibb River Road:
http://www.carianne.org/gallery/gibb

I have a write up, but no time to post that. So the pics will have to
do for now. Have extended my stay in Broome 'til Saturday and then
will head to Darwin via Halls Creek and Kunnunura (sp?) but will be in
touch before then.

Potter! Potter!

2005-07-23T12:55:02Z

Started the book around 9 AM and just finished not quite 12 hours
later..and that included a break of a few hours to watch sunset at
Cable Beach...Don't trust lj-cut to work posting from e-mail so
comments have spoilers.

In Broome...

2005-07-21T05:41:09Z

Slow, expensive internet so probably won't be on much this week.
Broome is gorgeous though, sun and beach and...Yeah :) This is the
life.

Oh Holey Jeans/Where Does Fear Come From (Port Hedland)

2005-07-18T02:38:27Z

Photos Here
skreidle will be happy to know I managed to use the text
feature there to describe pics there rather than here.

As I was leaving Karratha and told people where I was headed, the most
frequent question I'd be asked was 'Why?' And then when I said I was
staying more than one day I got looked at like I had six heads. I
began to worry about my choice and wondered what I was going to do if
I hated Port Hedland. Somewhere on the highway between here and
Karratha I decided that I wasn't going to let that bother me. If it
was really as bad as they said I'd either hire a car and go to Marble
Bar or 80 Mile Beach or maybe do a quick tour of Karijini. Either way
I wasn't going to stress. It also occurred to me that Port Hedland had
three backpackers and Karratha only one so could a place that supports
three backpackers be *that* bad?

Just before noon on Friday the bus pulled up at the Visitor Centre. A
guy from Harbour Backpackers, where I'd considered staying, was there
but I didn't like the vibes I got from him so I collected my crap and
headed into the Visitor's Centre where I collected a brochure for
Frog's and rang up. Got the machine but decided to walk over since it
was just around the block. There was a bed and I decided to stay. Nice
hostel right on the water, pool and all.

As for Port Hedland itself, there really isn't much. But that's good,
nothing to spend money on. I went to the park and watched the HUGE
boats came in and generally just chilled. Car hire is insanely
expensive and anyway the road to Marble Bar is closed due to the
rains. There are a few people here in the same situation as I am—can't
get accommodation in Broome yet and there is nothing between here and
Broome so we might as well stay and have been having fun. Three guys
came in last night fresh from the fishing boats so we had fresh perch
today and after a week of pot noodles and peanut butter and jelly that
was a very nice change.

There are a few odd things here though, one being the coat of red dirt
that coats *EVERYTHING* here, and I mean everything. Even the pigeons
are red. I washed some clothes today and they're already red again. Oh
well, I blend in. Could have used the washing machine but only had a
few things and I figured that if I hand washed, I wouldn't turn things
purple and my jeans might last a few more days. They really are on
their last legs though. Sniff, going to miss them.

The other odd thing really shouldn't be, but it led to a great
discussion after dinner though. The further north we travel the more
aborigines there are. Someone asked me over dinner last night what I
thought about Port Hedland and said I was 'pretty safe' here. I said
I'd feel totally safe if everyone weren't telling me I shouldn't. The
one thing I've been warned about pretty much since the word go is
'black folk/aborigines/abos' and it's a weird feeling. I can't help
but feel slightly afraid since everyone is telling me I should be
cautious but at the same time I resent not getting to form my own
opinion. I don't know if I feel nervous because I should or just
because I've been told I should. When I was in Karratha a guy had a
locksmith come out because he'd had his car keys stolen ('by a bunch
of no good abos') in the pub the night before. When I was at the park
here in Port Hedland an aboriginal woman asked me for the time and I
told her. When she'd walked away a man said 'You shouldn't answer her,
she only wanted your watch.' I was baffled. She was maybe five feet
away from me and the most non-threatening woman I'd seen.

I saw ads for work in an aboriginal community and in the ad they
stated 'no petrol' and I was confused as to why they'd state that
since it was close enough to Broome that you could drive into the city
to get petrol and supplies. When I asked I was told that was in regard
to the fact that aborigines 'often' sniff petrol and that was meant as
a sign that this was a 'safer' community. The outspoken
prejudice/racism here is unlike anything I've seen anywhere in the
world. Like American 50 years ago against African Americans? I think
this is worse than against Native Americans but it's hard to say since
I don't run into that many in New York.

The aboriginal issue has been on my mind for some months now. I think
since I heard how long it took for them to be considered citizens and
be given rights to vote etc. I've heard about the book 'Songlines' and
would really like to hear more about the aboriginal population. I also
know I need to see Rabbit Proof Fence. But it really seems unnerving
how it is here. The man who told me that the woman only wanted my
watch was probably in his 40s or so and I can only wonder how the
fear/prejudice is passed down from generation and wonder when it will
ever change.

Should be interesting as I head further north and then into the
Northern Territory…

Karratha: 14 July 2005

2005-07-15T07:29:15Z

photos here

Yeah, I've been bad about writing and posting lately. No time, or
something along those lines. I got back from down South on Saturday
the 9th and pretty much decided I'd had enough of Perth's weather. Had
been there a month and seen most of what I wanted to see. Nope, never
made it to Rottnest but I was happy to relegate that to the 'next
time' list as it's not really beach weather now and while it's pretty,
I don't think it's worth the ferry fare to ride a bike, which I could
do on the main land at any number of hostels I've stayed at recently
or possibly see a quokka. So I decided it was time to head back north
if I wanted to make Broome for the full moon.

Left Perth on Tuesday PM because the night bus stopped at Joondalup
which meant I wouldn't need to schlep my stuff into East Perth and
also I'd already seen the scenery between Perth and Overlander so
didn't mind seeing it at night—or not seeing it. So after one last
wonderful meal at Pio's he drove me to the bus stop and I re-met my
old buddy Greyhound. We'd not gone far, certainly not far enough to
have reached our first stop at Cataby, when I felt the bus pull over.
Opened my eyes and heard the driver say we were having a bit of
trouble and would hopefully be back on the road soon. Closed my eyes
and started to dose again. I swear as soon as I set foot in a motor
vehicle I fall asleep, doesn't seem to matter if it's moving or not.
So we get back on the road and stop again maybe 20 minutes later. I
hear the driver get on the radio and say 'tell whoever's coming that
we're around the corner from Shell in Gin Gin." Oh crap, we were going
to be there a while. He then put on a video and said 'this runs three
hours, good." Oh crap, a LONG while. The movie was Harry Potter, and
apparently I've never seen the first one because I don't remember any
of it. Was bummed that the replacement bus got there when it did
because he never put the video on in the new bus and I'd like to have
seen the end, even though I know HP obviously wins. Anyway.

We made up some time during the night and got to Overlander Roadhouse
on time, or close to it. Still we had to wait for the southbound bus
to come before the shuttle would leave out to Monkey Mia and Denham.
I'd seen Monkey Mia when we went through on the tour, but we'd had
just a few minutes in Denham so I opted to stay in Denham for the day.
Shuttle driver was surprised when I said I'd be catching it back but
he was lovely in that he let me leave my backpack in the trailer so I
only had the 'small' bag –which, yes, is still heavier for the day.
Denham was colder than I thought it would be so I just spent the time
finding sun and reading. Was a good way to spend the day and be off
the bus.

At 6 PM I got the shuttle back from Denham to Overlander to find that
– surprise- the northbound bus was running late. Had peanut butter and
jelly and bread with me so stayed outside of the roadhouse and waited
for the bus while chatting to two Danish girls who were going through
to Broome. Really, I didn't mind waiting for the bus. Taking the
Indian Pacific from Adelaide to Perth spoiled me and really, the bus
is just not comfortable over night, but I lived. Bus turned up
eventually and I managed to stay semi-awake 'til we got to Carnarvon
because they had Legally Blonde Two on—pretty funny, never seen the
first. Driver was a comedian, warned us to hold on if we walked back
to the toilet or around the bus since 'the cattle are out and I might
have to stop quick.' Only in Australia.

Fell asleep shortly after the Carnarvon stop and didn't wake up until
a stop during the night. Leaned across the aisle to ask someone who'd
just boarded where we were only to find out it was someone from the
Rainbow Lodge when I first arrived in Perth so that was fun. Turns out
we were at the Giralia turnoff and still had many hours to go, so back
to sleep I went. Woke up around 6:30 to find out we were an hour
outside Karratha—had made up all the time during the night.

Karratha is pretty much what I expected, a town with not much going on
but enough to warrant a day off the bus. Checked into the backpackers,
had a shower and went for a walk to the visitor centre to see if I
could get a tour to either the Dampier Archipelago or the Burrup
Peninsula. Couldn't get either so I decided to see about getting to
Dampier some 21K away to see the beach and the Red Dog memorial. No
dice. No public transport. So I decided it wasn't worth staying and
booked Greyhound to Port Hedland tomorrow.

The amusing thing that happened as I walked to the visitor's centre
which was around the corner from the town centre (read shopping
centre) was the people offering rides. Not signs or anything but the
first instance I was walking down the shoulder and walked around an
SUV when I heard a horn behind me. I looked back but assumed it wasn't
for me and kept going. Car pulled up next to me and asked 'Need a
lift? How far are you going?' I said no and thanked her, saying I was
only going to the visitor centre about 200m down the road so she
pulled back into traffic. I'd walked maybe 10m further when a red car
pulled over and the passenger asked if I needed a lift. Really sweet I
thought. Granted Karratha Road does eventually head out to the NW
Highway so it's conceivable they thought I was walking a good distance
but I was totally floored. Guess they'd been here long enough to
realise how little transport there was.

Was quite nice to walk down the road and feel the sun on my back.
Summer, I missed you!

And she's off...

2005-07-11T08:20:38Z

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of
arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather
to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, wine in the other, body
thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming 'Woo-hoo what a
ride!'""

So. So True. From this book,
which was awesome.

Anyway, I'm off.
I catch the bus tomorrow night to the Overlander Roadhouse, from where
I will catch a shuttle to spend the day at Denham,
which I missed out on due to weather when I was up north. I head back
to the Overlander in the evening and catch the bus through to Karratha
where I will spend a day. From there it's on to Port
Hedland for a day or so and then Broome!
in time for the Staircase to the
Moon. From there it will be Derby, Halls Creek and ... before
Darwin, but I'll get online by Broome, I hope.

South West Photos

2005-07-09T04:44:24Z

They're up http://www.carianne.org/gallery/sw
I have some scribbles but word and my flash drive aren't playing
nice--for some reason I can save anything but a word doc and couldn't
convert to text or anything else before laptop battery died so I'll
get to that eventually.

I leave to go north (Coral Bay and middle ground before Broome) and
then on to Darwin on Tuesday so there will be more photos soon. Will
try to get online again before that and then check in from Broome, if
not before then.

Not sure how much cell coverage I;ll have between here and Broome
since it was spotty via Exmouth but you can try and get me on there if
you need to find me.