DAWN AWAKENINGS

Since we've bought some computer time, even though the day is only half over, I thought I'd tell about our morning adventure.

We got up at 5 am and hopped on a bus at 6.  It was still dark.  We drove through the bush from a two lane road, onto a one lane road, and eventually onto a one lane dirt road.  Charlie explained that Gene Shoemaker died on a one lane outback road.  We survived and ended up at a dune.  We had tea, orange juice, a breakfast sandwich, and a scone while we waited for the sun to come up.  The sunrise on our dune revealed Ayers Rock (Uluru) and a host of weird birds.  An Australian mocking bird and a quail like thing.

We then drove close to the rock, eventually driving all around it.  We stopped at several sites.  The first, a climbing site.  I wasn't really interested in climbing Uluru, but after looking at the chains leading to the top (it was blowing about 25 km/h to boot) I was REALLY not interested.  The local people view Uluru as a sacred site and aren't happy about people tromping to the top.  So I was not a coward, I was respectful.

Our second site was a close up of the rock (it's sandstone covered in wonderful lace like etched areas and caves).  We got a bit of Aboriginal folklore, and a peak at teaching-paintings on the inside of a cave.  There was a large pool of water nearby as well.  We've learned a lot about hunting kangaroos as well.  From the first bunch, rub some people smell on a boomerang, toss it up wind of a group of kangaroos.  They think your on the upwind side and run towards you.  Clever!  Today we heard that as the kangaroos pass on the way to the water hole, you count them.  Then, when they leave, count again, and kill the last one out.  That way, they don't realize that the slow poke got gacked, maybe he was just lost, and they'll return to the water hole.  Clever again!

We stopped at a cultural center.  We only had a half hour which really wasn't enough time, but interesting as well.  The locals stop by when they feel like it, so no one is really sure what will be explained, if anything.  We listened to a woman explain the local seeds that she collected, and what they were used for.  One of the most interesting pieces was her mortar and pestle.  The rock for the base could be any rock around, but the grinding stone she held was precious and was handed down mother to daughter.

Back to the bus, and one more "post card" shot of Uluru in the morning.  We had some fruit as a treat.  Back to the hotel, and here we are writing of our adventures.  Tonight we go off on the "Sounds of Silence Tour".  We'll get dinner, an Aussie-miscellaneous-animals-to-eat Bar B Q.  After dinner we'll get a talk about the Southern Sky.  I'm really looking forward to that, although, I'll probably freeze solid and not hear it.  It was extremely cold this morning, and not all that warm now.