Territory and Outback - Litchfield & Darwin

So our last 2 days of tour - we got up bright and early and jumped on the bus and headed off to Litchfield National Park to see the termite mounds....I know it sounds weird but they were cool - 2 types of mounds can be found here - cathedral (or castle - can't remember!) and gravestone - I will let you figure out which is which!!

It was a very quick stop before getting back on the bus and heading to the beautiful Florence Falls for a swim in the lovely cool water and watching the boys climb and jump off like the crazy fools that they are!

A quick bite to eat and then back on the bus to head towards Darwin with a quick stop to make a small purchase..



(which is now safely installed in Mr & Mrs M's house in London!) before getting to our lovely hotel and preparing for our night out of general drunken debauchary (and a slightly moody half an hour from me because I didn't want the tour to end!). It all started so well and then ended up as a bit of a sweaty mess!!

Next morning it was up and off to a museum and a quick city tour of Darwin before heading out to get some lovely shots looking over the bay...

Then back into town and it was a fond farewell for some, whilst others disappeared without a trace! Caroline and I then pretty much walked the city before heading back to the hotel to meet up with the remaining crew to head out for dinner and say our goodbyes.

Contiki Territory & Outback it was a pleasure (and an experience) to spend 2 weeks with you guys and I have very fond memories that are going to last a lifetime! That bloomin swag is definitely one of them!!

Territory and Outback - Kakadu National Park

So I need to finish off the blogs about the NT Tour, been crazy busy with work but will fill you in on that one later!

Last time I blogged we had arrived in Kakadu at the lovely Aurora Kakadu South Alligator Hotel and had hit the hay for the night after getting the boys to remove the dead frog from our room...I really need to learn to

The following morning we got up and headed off the first of 2 cultural centres that day. The first was the Bowali Visitor Centre and mainly focused on the flora/fauna of the area and after we had spent some time here it was back on the bus for a short ride before another hike to see some aboriginal art work in situ.

It was great to see the real thing on the rocks and get a better understanding of what the different art stands for. I have probably said this before (but I can't remember and can't be bothered to go back through the blog!) but we only ever get the children's version of the aboriginal stories as the elders of the traditional people don't communicate the full stories to many people. It is still fab to see it in real life though - amazing that it has lasted so long!!

A few pics from the art near Namanjolg's Feather - Daberrg...

I can't remember which way round it was but I think we then headed to the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre for more information on the local area and the importance of it to the locals. It was then back on the bus and off for lunch at a hotel before our fab crocodile cruise around Yellow Waters.

We saw quite a few crocs on the cruise as well as seeing the amazing wetlands that they live in. The ones we saw were pretty much sunbathing and we learnt information about them from the guide such as they can't open their mouths very quickly so they tend to sit in wait with their mouths open ready to snap at anything that might get too close....it was not going to be me!! One of the crocs was maHOOsive and we could only see half of him half his body and tail was underwater and the guide reckoned he was a good 4m long...eek!

Pictures of the beasts and the birds that inhabit the Yellow Waters area...

After the croc cruise we headed back to the hotel for a chilled night in the hotel and a dip in the pool...which whilst hanging around we were all fairly surprised but pleased to see a kangaroo hop through the garden area of the hotel (didn't have my camera on me). Another lovely dinner of caesar salad (with a cold poached egg which I still don't understand!) and then off to bed as another early start in the morning as we headed on the final leg of our journey to Darwin.

Territory and Outback - Katherine & Edith Falls

We arrived in Katherine to our hotel where it was quick shower and change before heading out to the pool for a pizza party - very much fun. Half of us chilled whilst the others played a game of Kings (never heard of it before the tour!) which ended with Falk being chucked in the pool...quite comedy.

The next day it was off on a 2 hour cruise of Katherine Gorge - very beautiful and only one crocodile so happy days...its amazing what mother nature can produce....





It was absolutely stunning and there are lots more photos on my FB page...

After we had done this we jumped on the bus as we were heading up to Kakadu that night so after some more time on the bus we were able to stop off at Edith Falls.



Being at the end of the wet season (which from what I can gather has been rather long this year!) we weren't able to go to the normal swimming pool so we went for a bit of a hike to go to a plunge pool which didn't have croc's in it...and boy after that walk did you need a swim....was super hot and when we got there I was in that water super quick...

There was a current from the waterfall that took you on this nature made water slide which was great fun, although I did learn that doing front crawl in a strapless bikini is not the best plan! So after exposing myself slightly (luckily underwater)I decided to jump out and watch the adrenalin junkies from the tour do some climbing/jumping action by the falls...




It was then time to head back to the bus....needed a quick shower after the walk - was blooming hot by that point and then onwards to Kakadu National Park where some of the tour went on a sunset scenic flight which I decided against - not that great in big planes so little planes are a definite no no! The rest of us had a quick trip to see a Uranium mine in the area then it was back on the bus for all and on to our hotel in Kakadu for a yummy dinner of fish and chips and then a bit a chill by the pool - only a little one as there were lots of mosquitos which seemed to like me so I headed back to the room.

Territory and Outback - Yalara to Katherine

So having said goodbye to the lovely Andie and to our bed in a box at Yalara it was back on the bus, a quick stop at the same rest stop as we had been to on the way to Yalara and we were back in Alice Springs for a chilled afternoon.

We got back to the hotel in Alice Springs early afternoon and had a nice relaxing time chilling by the pool and generally chilled out before getting ready for a night out at the Overlanders Steak House. A fab restaurant where we had a lovely dinner followed by a bit of dancing and sing song to "Give me a home among the gum trees" and then we all had a go at the wobble board (the one made famous by Rolf Harris) which really works your arm muscles!! Twas a lovely evening and we all headed back to what we hoped would be a nice restful night's sleep before a long driving day the next day....boy were we wrong!

Caroline, Lou and I were sharing a room again and although we had heard the stories from the other touries about the mice, bugs and general disrupted sleep when we had stayed at the hotel a few nights before we didn't think anything of it....that was until I was woken up at about 3am feeling something in my hair followed by hearing a scurrying. I thought little of it and went back to sleep. Lou then woke us up about half an hour later and told she had been listening to a rustling in one of the bags on the side. We looked through it and couldn't find anything (even with Lou's bag being emptied outside our front door!) so we would stood chatting for a little bit and before the gasp could leave my mouth a mouse shot out from under somewhere and hit Lou on the foot before going under one of the beds....much screaming and jumping on beds followed before we all settled a bit to try and work out where the bloody thing had gone. Lou went into the bathroom and Caroline and I were chatting and the next thing we saw was the bloody mouse climbing the curtain...much more squealing and pointing followed and then we couldn't work out where it had gone! So we decided to hedge our bets and push 2 of the single beds together as far away from any surface possible and the three of us decided that seeing as sleep was unlikely we would watch a movie. This must have been a true sight...the three of us in the 2 beds...absolute comedy! After about an hour I gave up and crawled back into my bed but only slept on the half away from the curtain and we all had a bit more sleep before getting up to get back on the bus.

Apparently there is a bit of a mouse infestation in Alice Springs! If I ever go back I will be staying in a hotel that has many floors and I will be at the top!

So on the bus we got and headed off on the first of 2 long driving days to get up to Katherine. We had a few stops...the first being to grab some lunch at Wycliffe Well (local UFO site and boy were they playing on it!) before heading up via the Devils Marbles to Tennant Creek. The Devils Marbles is very nice and as much as I feel bad for saying it...I was so looking forward to getting some sleep at the hotel in Tennant Creek that a stop to see some more red rocks wasn't particularly high on the old priority list! Here are a few shots of the marbles.....




We then jumped back on the bus and headed onto Tennant Creek where the rest of the group headed out for a night at the local pub which after hearing that when Contiki comes into Tennant Creek it is put on Facebook and loads of the town come out...this was followed with the explanation from Justine....Ladies, the odds are good but be warned the goods are odd! Caroline and I decided that after our lack of sleep the previous night we would have a grannie night in and were tucked up in bed by about 9pm watching Jonathan Creek...oh yeah I know how to live. So we were nicely tucked up in bed and our roomie had come back in and very fortunately put the chain on the door as I woke up at about 1.30am by Caroline jumping out of bed and rushing to the door as it opened and a random guy tried to get into our room....she slammed the door in his face and we were all a little bit jumpy!! We found out the following morning that two other rooms had been bothered by him as well!!

So after another disturbed nights sleep it was back on the bus and onwards to Katherine. We had a stopped for lunch at Daly Waters that has the most remote traffic light in the NT's and also the biggest burgers but I only have a photo of the traffic light!

Lunch break over we headed onwards to Elsey National Park where we had a lovely dip in the thermal springs which was most welcome having been on the bus for most of the day...

Then back on the bus (told you it was a long couple of bus days - hence the lack of photos) before heading on to Katherine!

Territory and Outback - Yalara

For those of you don’t know, Yalara is the name of the purpose built resort near Uluru and Kata Tjuta and we were there with the tour for about 3 days I think.

On the bus journey from Kings Canyon to Yalara we all got very excited when we saw this out of the window...

This is Mt Connor (aka Fuluru). It is bigger than Uluru (but not taller) and is also has the flat top that you can see in the photo. It is also currently not available to the public as it is on private property so this was as close as we got....saying that on the other side of nowhere were these beautiful salt lakes...



We stopped here for a little bit to take pictures but mostly to stretch the legs from being sat on the bus and not sleeping because of the evil swag!

Anyway we journeyed onwards towards Yalara where we stopped for lunch and I was finally able to buy a belt having forgotten to pack one...you always forget something don’t you! So quick Pizza stop and very little conversation because we were all pretty much zombies and then onwards to our “bed in a box” as Justine described it! The roomies were together again so me, Caroline, Andie and Lou all got to the room and chilled for a little bit before most of us headed back down to the bus to go to a cultural centre and have a look at Kata Tjuta. Caroline made the decision to kick back and chill at the resort...a worthy call me thinks! We look pretty good for little amount of sleep me thinks!


We walked the Valley of the Winds which is one of the few walks you can actually do at Kata Tjuta because it is not fully open to the public....in fact Aboriginal women of certain groups aren’t even allowed to look at it (I think that is what they said!). It was only a short walk which I was very pleased about because my rubbish ankles were playing up...not too badly but I am guessing the canyon hike and this one weren’t great for it as they weren’t exactly flat ground! Anyway...here are some pictures from inside Kata Tjuta....




We then went back to the resort for a free night where we had probably my favourite meal of the whole tour. Cook your own Kangaroo! It was great you went up to a counter and picked what meat you wanted and then you bbq’d it yourself....I have no photos because I left my brain in the room when I came to dinner....tiredness had properly kicked in! I need to wait for everyone to put theirs up on FB! So after dinner we (the roomies) decided it was time for bed so we all went back and got ourselves ready for some sleeping...when talking about the time and convinced it was at least 9pm which was semi-reasonable to go to bed we sadly discovered that we were all mistaken and it was in fact only 8.20pm...we know how to live! My excuse is having to be up super early the next day for sunrise at Uluru.

We got up bright and early...all feeling much better for the first of a few Grannie nights and headed down to the bus where we headed into the national park. The reason we were up before most other people was to be the first bus to arrive at the viewing point which was fab as we got a great spot and some great shots....





So once the sun had risen we then went to another visitors centre and read about the history and meaning of Uluru. With a specific request to read up why they don’t like people to climb it....luckily for us (not that I would have even attempted it) it was closed so base walk it was!! Now the base walk is normally about 9.6km but according to Toronto Matt we walked further because the trails we were on were further out and the ones nearer the Rock were closed. I don’t know – all I know is it took us about 2.5hrs to walk round it and I had to have my ankle strapped because it was getting really rather sore and I didn’t want to risk it....it was a classy look but worth it...

Again I have no photos as I hadn’t charged my camera so it ran out at the end of the sunrise so no base walk shots....sorry! Check FB in about a month and there will probably be some of me tagged!

Anyhoo back to the hotel we went and a quick bite of very delicious lunch and then off I went for my helicopter tour of Uluru and Kata Tjuta. It was fab...there weren’t many optional activities on this tour so I thought what the heck! It was great if a little bumpy)!! So here are some aerial shots.






So once back at the resort it was off to the box to get all glammed up for a Champagne Sunset at Uluru....so much fun although I think we kind of forgot about the rock...although this was the only time we got a picture with all the tour people as Andie was leaving us the following day :o( Oh and to say we disturbed the peace adn serenity for all the people with their tablecloths and proper glasses is an understatement!



Then back on the bus and heading back to the resort for a party at the viewing platform by the hotel and lots of dancing at the bar! It was a good night!


Next morning it was time to say goodbye to Andie and journey back to Alice Springs....most people were feeling a little jaded but we managed one last roomie shot before we went!


That was a bit longer than I expected it to be but we saw a lot in 3 days....hope you enjoyed it!