outback

Going into the Australian outback was pretty high on our priority weekend list here.  We had no idea where to go or what there was to do, but when you think of Australia, or at least when I do, I think “OUTBACK”.  I also think “Crocodile Dundee”, ‘kangaroos”, “Olivia Newton John”, “Nicole Kidman” “koalas” and either start singing that  Men at Work song (always the part about the Vegemite sandwich) or the old commercial jingle for Outback Steakhouse (let’s go Outback toniiiight…). 

I digress.

So, after some research we discovered that THE thing to see in the outback or ‘bush” as anything outside of the cities are referred to, is Ayers Rock, also known by it’s Aboriginal name Urulu. 

It was going to require another day of vacay to make it happen and in all honesty, I was a bit worried about what we were going to do all weekend. I mean, we were going to see a giant rock in the middle of nowhere Australia with literally nothing else around for hundreds and hundreds of miles.

Fortunately, this giant rock was unbelievably breathtaking…

Glowing orange during sunrises and sunsets, this sacred Aboriginal monolith was just incredible.  It seemed to somehow get better every single time you looked at it from a different angle or in a different light.  I can’t explain it, but **hello**, look at this thing…

Just surreal.

It wasn’t exactly by itself out there in the desert, as Kata Tjuta (the Olgas) were just 20 or so miles away and equally impressive in their own right…

Our only complaint the entire weekend was the insane amount of flies that plagued us relentlessly.  I’ve never experienced anything like it and I pray we never do again.  We literally had to constantly wave in front of our face and then countdown to be ready for a photo…

0ne, two…

three…

 

Let’s just say when a fly actually landed on my face in the plane as we were about to touch down in Sydney I was on the brink of a nervous breakdown.  Not cool, flies.  Not cool at all.

We got to learn a little about the Aboriginals from the area, not too much though, because it seems everything about their culture is a secret.  I appreciated the fact that they draw a distinct line at how far they will commercialize their culture, but I  couldn’t help wanting more. 

Drawings from a cave where young Aboriginal males are taught “tjurkurrpa”, the stories of their ancestors that make up their laws of living…

Although they have all been so different from the next, I am always enamored with deserts and this one was no exception.  They had an unusually heavy rainy season and the lush greens were such an incredible contrast to the surroundings.  

I took about a billion photos so be sure to check out the album from this weekend…

the daily(ish)

This little guy is a wombat…

I. WANT. ONE.*

*or 4-5 of them.

the daily(ish)

I’ve only recently started observing Lent, as in actually giving something up for it. Recently, as in this is my second year. Last year I gave up fried foods. It was tough and that was exactly what I had intended it to be.

This year I gave up desserts or I guess sweets in general. No candy, no ice cream (ugh!), no chocolate (double ugh!), no cakes, no pies, no puddings, no crepes, no cookies, no gum, so cinnamon rolls, no donuts, no muffins, no toffee, no caramel, no…okay, you get the point and I’m only torturing myself further.

I’ve developed a real sweet tooth on the road with all the different desserts and flavors available, but aside from ice cream, chocolate is still my biggest temptation.

This is our hotel’s welcome gift each time we check in…

I didn’t eat any, but I did make the Wife take it to work with her the next day. This year has been even more challenging than last.

Thanks be to God.

the daily(ish)

Jules feeding a piggy little kangaroo...
We had all three fed her numerous times, but she was carrying around a rather large joey in her pouch, so she deserved the extra helpings.

cue the didgeridoo…

We’re off to the outback this morning!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

**Yes, I actually had a pic of a didgeridoo in my files. It was a crazy night celebrating our dear friend L’s b-day a few years ago! Best b-day party- ever! Miss you, L!!

the daily(ish)

T-minus 15 days until the Bestie arrives!!

Cannot wait!!

life list

I will never forget a conversation I had with my dear friend, Hody near the end of our first year of travel...

Hody: Where the heck are you going to want to go on vacation after all this travel?

Me: Weeelllll, I definitely want to go to camping in Botswana and have a meerkat climb up my body and sit on my head!

Hody: What, in the hell, has happened to you?

Now, I will preface this with the fact that camping is my dear friend Hody’s idea of hell on earth. But, as I thought back to the conversation I realized that camping in the desert of Botswana to have a wild animal crawl up my body wasn’t exactly at the top of my list before we starting traveling.

The thing is, it is now. It is actually #7 on my life list.

I’ve been toying with putting my life list on here because I think it’s kind of personal but hey, we’re friends, right?

I think a life list or bucket list or whatever you want to call them is a great idea. I don’t know about you, but I LOVE crossing things off a list AND in all seriousness, I think it is so easy to get caught up in the day to day and forget all those little (or big) things we really want to do in this lifetime.

I started working on this list 5 or 6 months ago and will hopefully continue to cross off and add more as life goes on. I’m blessed that so many of the things I would have originally put on the list (Taj Mahal, Petra, Manchu Picchu, etc.) I had already been given the opportunity to do/see.

The Wife even started working on hers, but since she actually has a job and then has to travel like a maniac every weekend, she’s understandably not quite finished. I’ll post hers when she’s done. You can find it up there under the "Life Lists" page.

What’s on your life list?

the daily(ish)

View of the harbor and Hyde Park from our hotel lounge…

Yes, we suck.

a quick note of thanks

I was perusing our blog stats the other day and noticed some traffic coming from another blogger’s site.  Being the nosy person that I am, I went and discovered a very nice mention of our two blogs that inspired someone else to start their own.  I couldn’t find any way to comment or contact so if you’re reading…

Thanks, Eating in Neverland.  You, in turn, have  inspired me to be better about updating our food blog because I truly believe you can learn so much about a people and dig so much deeper into their culture by what they eat. 

ask complain and you shall receive

Well, how's about that? The schedule actually came out yesterday!

We're bound for our first repeat destination...



South Africa!

I found out last night that Malaysia was being handled by regional people leaving SA as our second choice for the round. We always leave a country saying what we would do if we came back, so we've already got quite a few weekends in mind. I hope they all work out!

I'm also thrilled that another spouse will be there with me again! Although I'm always happy to have company, it means that much more in Joberg because there is little to do in the city that is safe.

If you're new to the blog you can read about our last time there in 2009 here and here or you could just look at my wrap up of our time there here.

Main goal for our return- finally see the dang leopard!!

Ooh and buy this really cool wooden bowl serving thing that I didn't have room for in my luggage last time.