Uluru - Kata Tjuta (AUSTRALIA) - Red sand

Alice Springs - Yulara - Uluru - Kata Tjuta - (Northern Territory - Australia)
07 December - 12 December 2015

There's not many places that can compare to what is offered by Central Australia, leaving Alice Springs out of that all encompassing statement of course because for all that is unique about this environment, the small town of Alice simply just does not live up to an of those expectations. As much as you want to say about outback Australia, the larconic, slow paced nature of them 'country' folk holds no real interest other than deliberately creating a place that inspires inane boredom. The best thing about Alice Springs is the drive out of town - apologies Alice, you're just not that interesting, even if once a year you run along a dry river with fake boats!

Our first mistake, not taking that damn right turn.

When your drive for over an hour, stop in a little country town and have a jackaroo give you the answer 'Hmm, you should have made a right hand turn just before the airport, you'll need to go back 100kms' - to the question - 'Can I get to Uluru from here'....you kind of know that you've made a bit of a blunder.

Jillaroo Inga - 'on the job' - Alice Springs - Northern Territory - Australia

Alice Springs - Northern Territory - Australia

Alice Springs - Northern Territory - Australia

Not the Sturt Highway!

But on our way to somewhere!?

Northern Territory - Australia

Lets back track a little and fill you in on the story.

My understanding was that Uluru was to be a 4-5hr run from Alice Springs on the Sturt Highway....now...that's the STURT HIGHWAY. I knew this. I'd travelled the Sturt Highway previously, I had an expectation of a comfortable run, and yet, about 30kms outside of the airport the highway I expected to be supporting our drive gave way to construction, which gave way to a wide dirt road. This didn't feel right. I mean, you're driving in Central Australia, you expect sand, dirt and flies but can you readily expect a highway to disappear from existence? Somehow I tricked myself into believing that the Sturt Highway was being rebuilt and put it down to the Northern Territory being the Northern Territory - dirt highways can be expected, no!?

That brings me to the small town of Santa Teresa which is nearly as remote as the town of Santa Theresa that I use to visit near Parque Ambue Ari in Bolivia (but that's another story). This town was established as a Catholic Mission in the 1950's, now, this town in the middle of nowhere has a permanent population of 555 inhabitants, which probably makes it a sizable town (for the Northern Territory). When we turned up there however it came on the back of a wrong turn in Alice Springs, a wrong turn just outside the airport in fact. When the jackeroos informed me of my mistake they had a bit of a laugh and said, 'If you keep going out that way you'll get yourself to the Simpson Desert'...Cheers boys, I'll keep that in mind.

An hour later we were back in Alice Springs after taking a 2hr detour. Left turn after the airport, onto the Sturt Highway - which looked bloody obvious now that I was on it.

The actual Sturt Highway - Northern Territory - Australia

Cruising the STURT Highway - Northern Territory - Australia

Mount Conner - Northern Territory - Australia

Three hours later we were on Mars!! This country is Martian red and that's no exaggeration. You just don't find colours like that anywhere else. A rich blood red that completely surrounds you. Impressive as it is desolate, this country is made for photography.

We made it to the Emu Walk apartments in Yulara a couple of hours before our first tour was set to commence, and this one was a gem. 

There's different ways to get up close and personal with Uluru. Bus tours, self drive, walking, all great options. But I chose something different for us. On this afternoon we jumped on the back of some fantastic Harley Davidsons (Harley Tour) and had ourselves a motor bike tour around the rock. Man, what a cool experience. These bikes are beasts and when they let them out on the long, straight lined NT rounds, there was nothing like the wind rushing past you as you traversed the landscape with Uluru acting as the gravitational pull.

Harley Tour - Uluru - Northern Territory - Australia

Harley tour - Uluru - Northern Territory - Australia

Uluru - Northern Territory - Australia

Uluru - Northern Territory - Australia

Uluru - Northern Territory - Australia

Uluru is impressive. Standing 863mtrs high and nearly 9.4kms around its base, its imposing, especially in such a flat landscape. Even more so than its statistics however is its colour, both on its own and with the rays of a setting sun beating down on it. As we parked the Harleys at one of the many viewing points and watched the sun fall, the colours changes and shifts were unfathomable. Deep, rich colours set against the typical outback blue sky, punctuated by some dry greenery of the desert landscape, engaging in both its mood and presence. 

Enjoying a complimentary bottle of champagne the moment was truly enjoyable. 

Cruising back to Yulara

Pulling 130km + in the outback

Yulara - Northern Territory - Australia

Yulara - Northern Territory - Australia

Yulara - Northern Territory - Australia

The next day we headed out to Kata Tjuta, also known as the Olgas. These are a set of large ochre coloured dome formations both intriguing and mesmerising, and in some way, more interesting than Uluru. The issue however, which is replicated at Uluru, are the amount of flies in the area. It actually gets to sickening proportions and ends up detracting from the entire experience. Apparently in the Winter months its not bad at all but he we were on the precipice of Summer and whoa, it was awful. My advice to anyone that wants to know, invest in some fly nets! Repellent won't do anything but fly nets will be the investment that just keeps on giving.

Kata Tjuta - Northern Territory - Australia

Fly spray - WASTED - you can't kill over a BILLION of them

Kata Tjuta - Northern Territory - Australia

That evening we spent an absolutely magical few hours at the Sounds of Silence dinner experience. It's an event where the desert pretty much becomes your dining room and all that protects you is the canopy of the night sky. Starting with a few glasses of champagne prior to dinner, we were lead to a beautiful 'dining room' with Uluru framing the backdrop majestically. Sitting down to a gorgeous three course meal, with indigenous performers and then a fascinating walk through the universe in complete darkness by a local astronomer, the experience was magical. Whilst the price of $225 p/person sounds quite high, as a total experience I would more than recommend it to anyone, and, would be more than willing to do it again.

Drinks prior to the Sounds of Silence dinner - Yulara - Northern Territory - Australia

Sounds of Silence - Northern Territory - Australia

Uluru - Northern Territory - Australia

What its like to get a feel of Mars

Sounds of Silence dinner - Yulara - Northern Territory - Australia

Sounds of Silence - Northern Territory - Australia

On our final day we got up before sunrise and made our way out to Uluri to watch the sun weave its own magic on the rock. Seriously, what else can you add other than to state the obvious, a truly impressive experience to watch the change of moods and almost feel as though this inanimate object is alive. 

As the morning extended on we decided to walk our way around the base of Uluru in its entirety. Now, I'm not much into spiritual things and I waiver more to the side of disbelieving, but as you may know, there are areas around Uluru that are held sacred to the Aboriginals and specific sites were it is requested that photos not be taken. About half way around the base we encountered one of those areas and for some reason we wanted to take a photo, I can't recall why, and even still, in this day of technical excellence and expertise, somehow the cameras on our phones failed. The photos that we took were blurred or had severe technical issues. Call it coincidence or call it something else altogether but it felt as though we were being given a direct message.

Uluru - early morning

Uluru starting to wake up

 Sturt Highway - don't hit your kangaroos when travelling at 150kms....it's going to be bad news all round

Storm coming in over the desert - Northern Territory - Australia

In total we spent three days in Yulara and the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, for me, an absolute must for anyone that wants to see 'something else' outside of the major cities. In all honesty I'd be hard pressed to split either Uluru or the Great Barrier Reef as a preference. Both are remarkable places and should be enjoyed for all that they offer. No need to doubt, just get yourself there!

Great Barrier Reef (AUSTRALIA) - if it's big then it must be GREAT!

Airlie Beach / Reefsleep / Great Barrier Reef / Shute Harbour - (Queensland - Australia)
27 November - 01 December 2015

How great are things in Australia?

We have things that in our mind are so large, so extensive, that any other word other than 'Great' would just not do the place, location or thing justice.

There's substantial mountain range on our Eastern coast that runs over 3500 kilometres from Southern Queensland to Central Victoria. It's so impressive and formidable that imbued them with a name that befits their 'greatness', the GREAT Dividing Range.

On our Southern coastline there's an enormous open bay. It's of epic proportions, the aftermath of Gondwana breaking apart from Antarctica. So extensive, so formidable that we called it the GREAT Australian Bight.

....so, there's a road on the Victorian Coastline. It winds along a gorgeous part of the Australian coastline. In fact it's known as one of the best drives on the planet. The road is known as the GREAT Ocean Road, and well, you can probably figure out for yourself how and why the name came about.

How about the GREAT Barrier Reef then ...how about it?

Landing at Prosperine Airport - Queensland - Australia

Airlie Beach - Queensland - Australia

The largest living thing on earth, visible from space, a 2300km ecosystem comprising thousands of reefs, islands, multitudes of fish and sea life in every conceivable colour. It is one of THE draw cards of Australia. Outside of the major cities of Sydney and Melbourne this would have to rank as the most impressive site that we have, and without question, worthy of utilising 'Great' to adequately describe its inherent beauty and complexity.

I'd never been this far north on the Eastern coastline. In many ways I'd vetoed my rights to explore Australia by placing other less well known, less formidable places in front of what was homegrown. An unnecessary and in some ways ill considered bias. So our visit up here was as much about me discovering what Australia had to offer as opposed to showing Inga the lay of the land.

Airlie Beach - Queensland - Australia

Airlie Beach - Queensland - Australia

Our first port of call was Airlie Beach. A cute resort town on the Whitsunday coast, smack in between the major towns of Mackay & Townsville. Typically Queensland in style, you walk the streets in shorts, thongs & singlet, anything more labels you as a foreigner, or worse, someone from the Southern states. 

In Airlie Beach we stayed at a place called the Withsunday Forest Retreat. Holy cow, it was insane. Aside from the fantastic views out onto Pioneer Bay, the house itself was just unbelievable. Perched high on a hill, surrounded by lush deep green vegetation, the house, for an AirBnB was so far beyond what you could expect to encounter. A swimming pool in the living room, a pool table, cavernous and vast, the walking in wardrobe for our room was bigger that the our living room in Seven Hills. In Sydney a house like that would see you parting with $3-$4 million, but up here, maybe $1.5m or so. It was a sight, let me tell you.

After a couple of nights in Airlie I'd booked us to head out to reef and spend one night on a pontoon, floating right alongside the reef, sleeping in a 'swag' and just admiring the stars. This for me was one of THE highlights of our time in Australia. If you're interested in reading more then I'd suggest you have a look at the link here -  ReefSleep.

ReefSleep - The Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

ReefSleep - The Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

ReefSleep - The Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

ReefSleep - The Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

ReefSleep - Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

ReefSleep - Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

The cruise from Airlie Beach our to the reef took perhaps an hour. Thankfully mother nature had conjured up a treat and produced two gorgeous days for us to fully enjoy the experience, and my, wasn't it impressive. 50kms off the coast our boat pulled up a large pontoon that rested in an azure sea of tranquility. The surface looked liked glass, so calm and settled. It was hard to believe that you were so far off the coastline and the only movement being created was from the boat docking onto the pontoon.

During the day there's quite a number of visitors to the pontoon, not that it makes the stay uncomfortable. There's plenty of opportunity to get up close and personal with the reef, which we did. With wet suits and snorkelling apparatus provided it only took a few moments to discover the full wonder of what lay beneath the water....and my, what a discovery. Surreal colours, startlingly vibrant, remarkable in their intensity. Fish of all shapes and sizes and coral so spectacular that other places that I'd visited previously, by comparison, simply don't rate....not even close. This place was and is a marvel of creation and I'd truly done myself a complete injustice by not having made it to this part of the world sooner.

ReefSleep - Great Barrier Reef - Queensland - Australia

The true reward of the Reefsleep is what you get when the masses depart back to Airlie. Complete ownership of the lagoon. Due to the restriction of numbers the total people on for that afternoon were myself and Inga, a girl from Sweden, Greg Grainger, Russian free diving champion and actress Marina Kazankova, their 2 man film crew and pontoon staff. It made for a thoroughly pleasurable afternoon. The waters that had previously had tens of swimmers were now all ours. The serenity and quiet of the moment allowed us to experience the reef at our own leisure, enjoying what was beneath the water and also just floating in a sea of calm. An unparalleled experience.

As the sun dropped to in the West we had ourselves a truly magnificent sunset, fiery reds, burnt oranges and hints of purple over. We sat there in awe, the pontoon hardly even moving, as we sat back and soaked in our surrounds. With the sun falling away the moon rose from the East casting a bright powerful light across the seascape. It also just so happened, as Marina advised us, that we were in the right location to witness the coral spawning. This was a once in a year event taking place on the full moon in November, it was the reason that the film crew were staying on the pontoon as they were awaiting the chance to film for a documentary.

 Shute Harbour - Queensland - Australia

Shute Harbour - Queensland - Australia

That night we spent on the top deck in our swags, looking straight up at the night sky. Not a bad day in Queensland I have to say.

The next day on the pontoon was much the same. After breakfast the boats came in at around 10am. We spent most of the day lounging about, not really rushed and just making the most of the gorgeous setting. Around 4pm we made our way back to Airlie and to our new digs in Shute Harbour.

Shute Harbour was a nice enough area itself. If were had a vehicle with us then it would have been thoroughly enjoyable but due to the lack of regular transport it made the hike to and from Airlie Beach somewhat arduous. Next time I'd do that a little different.

Still, the show stopper here is the Great Barrier Reef and all I can say is that it's a MUST!

Gold Coast (AUSTRALIA) - The Jurmula of Australia

Gold Coast (Queensland - Australia)
19 November - 22 November 2015

I first made it to the Gold Coast as a 12 year old. As a family we drove up the Pacific Highway, stopping at Port Macquarie & Byron Bay on the way. Back then it was still the recreational catch-all for people wanting to have their fun in the sun. Sand, surf, night clubs and varying degrees of debauchery, that at that age I knew nothing about, it was the golden strip that drew people from all over Australia, and, from all over Japan. Back that it was Japanese investors driving the market in the South East corner of Queensland rather than China.

To me the Gold Coast always had its place in that enigmatic Queensland ad, 'Beautiful one day, perfect the next'. I'd often wonder whether that proclamation was actually true, outside of those moments where I'd be watching the Coolangatta Gold (the 1980's film) and then realising that the actual race of the same name existed. 

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

Making it to the Gold Coast was kind of like making it to Adventureland. Being a kid that grew up 50kms from the nearest beach in Sydney, entering this world was the stuff of fantasy. Better still, the hotel that we stayed at for those few days, the Baronnet, was only a short walk away from Cavill Mall where Grundy's Arcade was located. A playground of entertainment just waiting to be exploited with borrowed 20 cent pieces from my father. Coupled with visits to Sea World and potentially Dream World, how the hell could life get any better?

All of those memories underpinned the premise for taking Inga to Surfers Paradise.

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

View from the Q1

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

What sold it for her, which took me all of 2 seconds to find out, was the sun. There was sun, sand and surf a plenty. How much more does a Latvian require in life. Oh yeah, perhaps there was also the fact that average temperatures on the Gold Coast in Winter were 15 degrees (that's a mild Summer in Riga). There was no more thinking to be done. This place was already a winner!

Drinks at the Q1

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

Surfers Paradise - Queensland - Australia

Our time on the Gold Coast was fun. There were the obligatory stops at the theme parks, Sea World, Movie World & Wet & Wild, cocktails at the Q1, mindless meanderings on Cavill Avenue, a stop at the Hard Rock and I even had the chance to introduce Inga to a good 'ole friend of mine, Jay Ryan. It didn't surprise me one bit when Inga put it to me that 'she wouldn't mind living here one day'....and I tell you what, last year (2018) we got awfully close. We did purchase an investment property on Hamilton Avenue in 2016 and really investigated a move to the Gold Coast last year. In fact, we came very, very close to signing a contract for a dual level apartment on the Broadwater. Looking back now that decision might not have been the best in terms of my own working opportunities, and whilst I was willing to make the commute to Brisbane on a daily basis, knowing what we have in our lives now, well, that decision would have been brutal for all.

Never the less, the Gold Coast still remains on our radar. If opportunities for work become more readily available then I can't say that a move there won't happen.