Hope

As I write I find myself waiting and thinking about life and how fragile it is. Reading Chris Furlong's blog has helped me focus on life in a more positive way. 

http://365.christopherfurlong.com/day-189-successful-habits-you-need-to-know/

Firstly, he speaks of self validation. "Finding validation from within means that you are freeing yourself to trust in your life’s purpose, when no one else does." And this I can say I have done as I wait. I trust in the people around me to help and not hinder. Sweet words are like honey to the heart! Despite difficult circumstances of the day I have faith in those around me. If nothing else today has been a wake up call - do what you love. Life is too short! 

The second is body empowerment. Truth in this is that our bodies are amazing. Filled with veins, arteries, nerves, muscles, tendons and bones. What a complex piece of work we are. How awesome are our doctors, nurses, surgeons and microsurgeons and anesthesists. We must look after our bodies. Physically, emotionally, feed our brain and nourish our soul. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit! I'm out to do more in this area. 

Chris talks about how "Anything can change instantly" and today it did - 7/7/16 is a date I will not forget. Living in the moment means we are all there - all present and all caring, listening and kind. I'm left thinking I will only do what I am passionate about. Challenge in its self! Are you doing what you love?

Today time management and organization didn't matter. It's life that matters. Another day will see me get some of my jobs done. Another week I can organise my office. Today I am fully present supporting someone through a very tough day. Day 1 of a long series of challenges. But I'm faithfully fully believing for a miracle. Pray for one too!

Today I choose to LIVE LIFE!

Today I found Tanya Aliza's blog and watched some periscopes. She spoke about deciding your fate - your success is what you are in control of. She has inspired me to think about how I can make it happen and get resourceful and get things done. Today I have been learning to be in control of my calendar, my life and ME! I also like Chris Furlong's blog, instagram and motivational writings. When I read this quote I simply know there is nothing left to take away so now I need to get to wrok on me and my life!

Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away. – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Did you make a schedule for July? Or does your schedule get dictated to you? I need make a personal schedule and be disciplined to stick to this schedule more than anything while on LSL! no one reads this so this is my way of becoming accountable as I have yet to achieve my goals while away from work!

I've made a list - now to act on it each day!

While I have loads of time I need to make sure I find 30min minimum a day and stay accountable (need you to help me on that) and put in the effort! Writing begins today! Ready, set, GO!

Decide you are successful - I believe in ME!
M

Day 10 - At sea

Morning! Getting ready this morning I was wondering how the water was processed! How do they calculate how much water is needed for 2500 people showering and cleaning teeth? How big are the water tanks? How do they get it right? So after some discussion I learnt that they have a desalination plant on board. I'd love to see how it works! 

After a huge restaurant breakfast (pastry, eggs Benedict, salmon bagel and a jam bagel) I know I will never eat this much again in my life. We're starting a health plan after this cruise is finished! As bouyant as I was feeling nothing prepared me for the next few hours of our day - a zultanite silent auction. More about that when you see me!

Super day catching up with the Vila tour guests where we happened to meet up with Ty, Deb, Mel, Elianna and Elicia who would you believe are traveling with Tom and his wife Jan who used to live at Karma seas where mum and John are now! Small world!

Enjoyable time playing mini golf with kids and watching them try rock climbing. Followed this by a few hours in the pool with them - good to give Mel a break from the girls too! Late lunch with them all on the windjammer restaurant where I displayed self control and had Mexican wraps!

We enjoyed a formal might - thanks Dad and patsy for my pink kooki dress - loved it! Wonderful night in the Romeo and Juliet dinning room and enjoyed great company with professor rusteym, Helen, Taylor and Ashley. So are you wondering what I ate? Entree consisted of mushrooms for Tim, pate for me! And wait then we enjoyed lobster together! Now just when you think I couldn't eat more, you guessed it - I ate the bomb Alaska - great night!

Enjoyed the "Rock On" dance party with the Scottish group of travelers so we had a fun time trying to understand one another! A great social cruise and sad there is only one more day at sea!

Today we are in Vila, Vanuatu

This morning we enjoyed breakfast on the balcony where we enjoyed watching the ship dock about 5km southwest of the town centre. We prepared ourself for a huge day of touring unaware that this was going to be as awesome as it was to be. We took sunscreen, snorkels, towels and water but next trip we're getting human chamious' as we learnt how awesome they were today!

Wow is all I can say! We got off the ship quite early ready to meet Mel Issa who I had only met virtually through Facebook. This has the makings of a disaster but we were prepared to cop that on the chin. Nothing prepared us for the meet and greet we were faced with on the docks as we exited the gates and entered the markets! This was where I thought I was to meet Mel and her two girls - after walking the entire length of the markets I had convinced myself that we were not going to be able to find her. Then after walking back through the markets again we were surprised to find Mel! What a relief as I was not keen on having to negotiate a tour on our own! The day could not have been better! Firstly we met our van driver, Sam, who arranged for an air conditioned vehicle to drive us around the Efate island. This was one of 83 idyllic islands of the Vanuatu archipelago. We had Australian dollars and Vatu currency so were feeling very fiscal when we converted $200AU across to VUV! Sam took us to a village firstly - an authentic Melanesian village where one of the elders explained his heritage to us. There were four families and the respect for "family" was so important in their culture. We had to follow a track in the beautiful jungle and were surprised several times by the native villagers in costume sporting spears and shouting at us! We made our way through a gnarly banyan tree to a fire walking demonstration. Just amazing to learn about local remedies derived from native herbs, roots and leaves. We were shown how to catch fish, make twine and use spider webs too. 

Sam then drove us (driving is a sport and glad to say we survived several near misses) to a turtle sanctuary where we were treated to a surprise - garlic steak for lunch - while we waited for this to cook we fed the turtles. It was wonderful to understand how much damage the turtles went through after the Cyclones in March 2015. This sanctuary has two 150 year old turtles and when the next clutch of eggs hatch will be protected and as they grow are reintroduced to the natural habitat. Awesome day!

This was followed by an afternoon of snorkeling and swimming at the blue lagoon. It was so clear and cool and refreshing. We swam to the other side and back and did rope swings and just had fun! Sam took us to the shops where we realized just how cheap the duty free shopping was! Then had a refreshing drink with a couple we toured with, Mark and shareen, before making our way back to the markets and our ship via a water taxi. 

Ending a great day we had a beautiful dinner. Marz and Eric made our day with a group setting with Helen and professor Rostrun and carol and Jim from edinborough and Taylor and Ashley from cranbourne. Tim had seafood chowder and a rack of lamb. I enjoyed the prawn salad which I followed up with Gouza's that were divine - won't share how many I had - but I didn't share them with Tim!

Then it was off to the show where we watched Rock Rhapsody - the hits of Queen. It was quite good and I was having fun being entertained by this little girl in front of us. We heard songs such as we will rock you and Rick of ages but the best was bohemian rhapsody finale. 

Just when we should be going to bed we saw the acrobatic show in the centrum. The dancers and aerialists held a 20 minute show called "Seasons" where ropes and swings were used to emulate the seasons across the year. What a day!

Champagne Bay

Wow we woke to such a great view as we arrived into champagne bay, Vanuatu. The spectacular sunrise from our room was awe inspiring and I have to say was one of the reasons I woke so early!

Breakfast today was an omelet and salmon bagel and we thought we should eat up so we'd be ok off the boat! Well, after our tender boat ride to the island we were treated to huge markets with lobster, crabs and bugs. It looked phenomenal but smelt different and there were flies all over it - we selected fresh fruits and coconut instead - I'm sure you'd do the same. However, someone wanted a hot dog and I do hope it doesn't repeat on him. 

This place is divine such a serene and picturesque location that I found myself taking so many photos that I filled up my phone! We spent the day in and out of the water and took snorkeling gear with us. How pleased were we that we bought snorkeling gear! We saw many many different types of fish and coral in the reef areas just off shore. Amazing sights and were so blessed!

Upon our return by tender to the ship we had some pool side snacks and sat on our balcony enjoying the view. We watched the anchor being cranked up and were facibated at the weight of the anchor. Ok well Tim was!

Tonight was a tropical theme night. We dressed in pink with floral decorations I bought at the markets! We had a new table tonight and didn't stay for dessert as we were so tired from all the swimming and snorkeling. Tim ordered the prawn soup consume with pork medallions and I enjoyed a light Cesar salad followed by Asian duck. It was bed time for one exhausted boy!

So I decided to make my way to the Ansolutely Fab production - a tribute to British musicians such as Elton John, dusty Springfield, Robbie Williams, tom jones and Shirley bassey! I was very tired after that! Feeling very blessed - 8 days at sea with no dishes, no cooking decisions, no washing and or ironing! 3 days let!

Day 7 - at sea and loving it!

What a day we have had! Huge! It all started for me with a fabulous breakfast consisting of healthy fruit and a salmon bagel. I know that I should have been attending the vitality stretch and conditioning classes but the food has been phenomenal. 

Today I attended the water color class and I have to say that I'm enjoying it very much. After this we had a great day beside the solarium going in and out of the fresh ocean pool. It was tough but we even had to have our beef sliders and blue cheese salad beside the pool. Just a glorious day!

Finished off with a formal night where I enjoyed the prawns and a seafood main! Then it was off to see the comedian, Phil "trust me" Cass, who chopped a man's tie in half and had us in shock when he reattached it! Amazing! A late night but a lot of fun!

Day 6 on the tropical seas

Today, Monday 4th January saw is enjoy another sea day. With another time change our clocks were slightly out by an hour! Never mind as this led to another sleep in and a day of wifi so I could catch up on my Jamberry power lectures! Win win. 

After a late breakfast of fresh fruits and a individually made ham cheese and tomatoe omelet I made my way to the art class again. Today we made some beach landscapes. After this it was time to meet Tim up in the Viking crown deck where we booked our selves in for a special dinner at the Chops Grille - the place for steaks (more about that later), and then organised a mango mock tail for me and a boddingtons for the boy!

We enjoyed a casual lunch at the Brasserie 30 where I enjoyed seafood linguini and know I've put on weight this cruise but the good food is too hard to say no too. Today I didn't have dessert at lunch and felt good about that!

The afternoon was filled with wifi madness and my Jamberry lecture (week 4 of Power Jam) and we both enjoyed chilling on our balcony - all very relaxing really. 

Then it was time to go to dinner at the Chops Grill. It has a reputation for having the best steak on the high seas. It was a glorious night and were served by Pol who was so helpful! We watched the most glorious sunset and just loved every minute of it!

Tim and I shared carpaccio, bacon (like pork belly) and scollops for entrees. Then we both enjoyed tender steaks with sides  of garlic mash, pan fried mushrooms and creamed spinach - yummy! Then just when you can't possibly eat another thing out came out dessert!

You can tell by the messy table cloth that we had a great meal! What a night topped off with meeting Kelly and Steve serendipitously and the Swing City production starring the Royal Caribbean singers and dancers with the amazing 8 piece orchestra. 

Feeling relaxed! 

A new day - a new sea - a new life

Well I love my Michael bouble songs. And today is a new day for me! Tim on the other hand had too much fun (2:15am) for me! 

It's Sunday 3rd January 2016 and I've had a great idea about doing something new each day. Today after breakfast (granola French toast and a small crossont) I attended the art class again and have been amazed at how relaxing water painting can be. We looked at pigmentation and used water brushes to make a sea horse!

I then attended the shore excursion presentation on Fiji and Vila that proved to be informative yet unfortunately unnecessary due to cyclone Ula traveling in an easterly direction. This meant that after lunch (a windjammer buffet where I had a yummy chicken giros) our captain however had to make a difficult decision and seek a protective alternative port to dock in. We were informed that the ports of Lautoka and Suva we're going to be replaced with tender boats to champagne bay. Even though we'll miss the cultural haven that we are led to believe Lautoka is we can now enjoy a new tropical port that I was planning to include on a future cruise! Win win - and I'm sure given more time the regrowth of the past cyclone will enhance future trips. I did learn that Lautoka was predominantly an old sugar town and is now heavily influenced by India. We will miss Tivua Island and our guided snorkeling tour but can do so much more when we go back. In actual fact a week here on the future would ensure we see the orchid gardens, sabeto the Fijian village, the sabeto mountains and even know that we can taste kava, kakoda ceviche and the oily milky Fijian curry another time. 

I did get to play with Jamberry nails. Our room attendant, Ana, has been a cabin hostess for 17 years. She commented on my nails and I was able to do her nails in her break. I felt honored to help another lady feel loved and beautiful. I even found her looking at the catalogue later in the day. 

Spent a great afternoon by the pool and overcame my fear of the crashing waves in the pool - it has been a bit rocky due to the cyclone. 

Then off to dinner (prawns for entree and chicken for main - Tim had cheese sticks and lamb).  Tonight we were both tired - early night and a welcome sleep! 

Noumea - a touch of France in the South Pacific

Today we awoke to land and it was great to know we were in New Caledonia, home to the second largest coral reef. After my lecture on all things dangerous today was the day - snorkeling was to be tried. After our buffet breakfast we were ready to organize towels and day bags to explore Anse Vats Beach and Baie de Citrones. To our surprise we docked at container bay and took a shuttle to the cruise terminal where we were able to easily organize tickets to Duck Island. 

Once tickets were purchased the queueing began and I'm sure OHS would not have liked the situation we found ourselves in when waiting for the sea ferry today! But we smiled and enjoyed the scenery, blue skies and sandy beaches while waiting again. 

This is s picture of us finally leaving for Duck Island - no safety checks or life boat instructions. But very pristine indeed. Once we arrived we were surprised to see so many different types of fish in the reef just swimming along side us. There were colourful coral trout, parrot fish, clown fish and so many other different species all in one place. 

We had lunch near the water and enjoyed a huge feed of muscles with fresh breads. Something so huge and yummy that we were blown away!

Returning to the boat in time for our spectacular departure meant we could watch the sunset from our room.  Amazing day filled with amazing underwater experiences. 

Dinner at Romeo and Juliette's for a prawn cocktail and followed up with a delightful  lamb and beef tagliatelle that turned out to be an awesome choice great dinner guests Included an 88 year old couple and 23 year olds (Cassandra and Terry) from crambourne lots to chat about. Not to mention another new couple to the left! Great to feel that humanity is psi tube warm and caring.

Watched the musicians on show )fabulous entertainment) and then made our way to the Viking Crown Lounge on deck 11 to meet up with the fabulously entertaining Scottish and English group we've been adopted by. 

A midnight finish for me means later for Tim! Loving the bed towel art! Thanks Ana!

We are sailing...

Day three at sea and we are still sailing. It has been pretty rough but I seem to be managing quite fine! Slept like a baby being rocked gently by the ocean. With the weather being so tropical dressing is easy - skirts and tops! 

Breakfast is always interesting as you are placed an tables with other passengers. Today was a quite table and quite an empty restaurant. Either many are suffering from alcohol exposure or sea sickness, or possibly a combination of both. Eggs Benedict was my flavor of choice today. Cooked beautifully. 

Then I decided to join the art class with watercolorist Karen Cooke. I leant how to use negative space to draw daisies which was a bit of fun. This also gave us some space which was good. 

The shopping on board is a big part of the day but glad to say my will power is still strong on this front. So avoiding the centrum shops I decided to attend a lecture on dangerous marine creatures of Australia and the South Pacific led by a secondary QLD teacher named Lauren Coleman. Not sure this was a wise decision as I left feeling more traumatized about this. But learnt a lot about how to manage encounters with sting rays, Sharks, cone shells, stone rush and blue tinged octopus. Just stay away and don't touch anything. Now I plan to observe from a distance but feel super scared about snorkeling tomorrow. 

Group lunch at Romeo and Julie's was a yummy salad made on the spot, fish wraps and cherry crepes. I could get to like this. Convinced I'm developing s love for food and wine I headed to the walking track and did 5 laps. Must try to do this each day!

Then it was time for the solarium pool! Time to wear my new sea folly bathers and read, swim, sun and repeat. This was perfect and a must do again on the next sailing day I have. Tim found some grinds at the bar while Kerry Greenwood and I reacquainted ourselves with Corinne in her book!

So dinner was again a wonderful three course meal with a view to die for. I started with the Scollop soup, tempura prawns and seafood followed by a bananna creme brûlée- more walking required. 

This evening we were adopted by Tim's new friends who turn out to be Englishman who are very funny, and enjoyed the show "Boys in the Band" who I thought were fabulous - a take off of back street boys, the jersey boys who did covers from the Beatles, Jackson 5 and the bee gees. This was backed up with the comedy show - a late night adults only session with Mike Bennet. It was very good and touched on coping with depression too. A touching story embedded with hilarity and fun. 

An awesome day! Love sailing!

My NYE - I own the rights

Well I've had my first night at sea and can say that I've survived the swells that the Pacific Ocean brings with it. The NYE day 2 at sea started with a bang...breakfast in the Romeo and Juliet dining room where we enjoyed breakfast as a group. One lady was not well and we were able to advise her to take the free sea sickness tablets so I hope that helped her. Breakfast for me was not a classic big breaky like someone had but rather the fast fresh bacon and scrambled eggs which I forgot was still a huge breakfast!

Today has been quite windy with a SSW 23m/hr gusts closing the pool and deck 10 for part of the day. We enjoyed the shopping and took part in the winter wonderland sales in the centrum where we finally bought lanyards for our sea passes! Something we swore we would not do. 

During the shopping talk we learnt all snout duty free shopping and had the chance to see an amazing color changing stone called zaltanite. The ring on display was only $28,000.

After all that the dinning room was closed  so we went up to the buffet. Lunch  consisted of a selection of Asian dishes and noodles for me. After lunch we tried to get to know the ship a bit better and found ourselves exploring the top decks where the view was amazing. 

New Year's Eve Tge NYE night was spent on sea with a fantastic special menu where I enjoyed lobster and Tim had steak. Then we went to the evening entertainment called "Invitation to Dance " starring the dancers who were fabulous. Even met a lovely couple also traveling (Kelly and Steve) who helped us see the night through!

Proud to say we did make it to midnight and we enjoyed champagne all evening long. 

Sail away...sail away... Sail away

So can you hear Enya singing that song? I can and we have just endured the boarding process and are waiting to go on the Liberty of the Seas, a Royal Caribbean ship departing from Brisbane to Fiji. 

We are so fortunate to have Australian passports and have good health to be able to travel. Further more this trip is a bonus as our last cruise took us back home. If you don't know this story ask me later! 

Big thanks to Dad for driving us here and must thank google maps for ensuring we went to the right place. It is always interesting to navigate unknown roads from the back seat and this was indeed an interesting drive. 

I look forward to journaling my trip away and know limits to wifi may mean posts are done in bulk as I access the Internet!

For those of you wondering I am so far the only person wearing Jamberry nails 

Book Review - "I love you more"

While away I started reading this book by Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott. It was full of great quotes and strategies that help you manage relationships in life! 

http://www.lesandleslie.com/

Quotes I like

All beginnings are lovely. French proverb

We have been poisoned by fairy tales. Anais Nin

I am convinced that life is 10% what happens and 90% how I react to it - we are in charge of our attitudes. Chuck Swindoll

People are just about as happy as they make up their minds to be. Abraham Lincoln

Our greatest fear is not that we will discover that we are inadequate, but that we will discover that we are powerful beyond measure. Nelson Mandela

Many of life's failures are people who did not realise how close they were to success when they gave up. Thomas Edison

New skills

XYZ formula - in situation X, when you do Y, I feel Z

Common subtle saboteurs today - busyness, irritation, boredom, drift, debt and pain

Tools to battle bad things - ownership, hope, empathy, forgiveness, commitment

I like making improvements in my world and I hope you like some of these too!

Dalhousie Springs to Coober Pedy - opal capital of the world...

Tuesday finds us on the road at 8:55am. We are already travelling 20km faster than we were last night at 7:30pm and at least in daylight we can see the track. We are not even travelling for 4min and we come across our first bog hole whole Peter and Tim both navigated their way through - the remaining cars took a side track which was safer. Having made our way through quite a wet track we find ourselves waiting for a car that can not get through. This gives us a chance to clean the windows! Peter gets on the radio to check who gets through it all and finally all seven cars are off and running. I think Tim proved his point and we will be the whip in the the convoy to Dalhousie Springs.

The track to Dalhousie Springs in the day time to easy to read and we find the turn off and have 61km to go so at 9:11am you would imagine this to take an hour if we can do 100km/hour on this dirt track. After stopping three times to tell people about the lack of diesel fuel we arrived just after 10:30am.

What a stark difference this environment is at Dehousie Springs. It is a pond that gets heated by the Great Artesian Basin by the 80+ mound springs. The water is filled with minerals and when the water evaporates it leaves a white cover on the dirt. The water is about 34-38° and up to 14m deep with a flow rate of 160L/sec at a hot 43°. I swam beside fairy martins that were flying around me skimming the spring surface and then flying off to the trees. Tim and I also saw a long nosed dragon in the carpark. There are also goby fish in there that nibble your toes. A free natural pedicure, dosen't get better than this!

We decided to relax here for a while and had lunch here too! What a hot day and a hot swim we had - Robyn and Leah have been saying how nice it is first thing in the morning and late at night but we can always come back...infact I love my spa at home so much that I think I can tick this place off the list today.

We are on the road again and are aiming to get to Oodnadatta which is only 177km away. It is an adventure and certainly the roads are challenging and very corregated. We stopped on the way to look at the Delhousie station ruins where a young 15 year old Essington Lewis was sent by his father John Lewis to this location in order "to make a man of him." It was one of the most northern pastoral leases a very remote and isolated place. Interestingly the afgan camel traders left their mark behind too as there are date palms here. They cut many away and only keep the male plants inorder to keep them from breading. Date plams are an introduced species and take up too much water.

By 3:15pm we made it to Oodndatta where we refuelled and waited for the others to turn up. Tim raced Peter at the sandy straight and won, but that won't be general knowledge unless you have read this blog. Peter then took the remaining cars off for a sand dune drive this enabled him not to have to admit that Tim won! (And I thought I was competitive) this is where we had agreed to stop so that we could actually slow the pace down and sit back and set up during daylight having time to put everything up and see exactly what we were doing. But at Oodnadatta everyone knew we only had 195km till Coober Pedy so we were the only ones at 5pm who wanted to camp and this could be dangerous we said our goodbyes to the group. But over the 2 hours of waiting we had a loose sump on Rob's car, Kim had a shock absorber issue (lost nut and bottom shock rubbers and washers). Chris had fuel issues so in the end we drove with the group onwards to the next goal - Coober Pedy. This is actually good as we have Dave's drinks and water, Chris's fuel and Pete, Dave and Peter's jerry cans and even Pete's ladder. And Leah's maps (just remembered this onE as we parts ways sorry Leah and Peter) and will drop them back I promise. Best we come along then! 

We made it to Coober Pedy with the sun setting to our right and the low lying city lights glowing in the horizon. This area is so flat, then you are confronted with mountains of rubble of the mining. We thought we might  have two nights here but we have so much gear on the the ute that parking would be unsafe. And after much tooing and froing it makes sense to get home and start unpacking and cleaning up the ute (and getting washing, ironing, uni, assignments etc) ready for the surburban life we lead. It feels good to know we are homeward bound now and think we will begin the 17hour trip home!

I have leant a lot on this trip, everything has been new - especially the bathroom experience. Now at the end I can unload chairs off the ute, set up the table and help with the tent. This has been challenging physically (I have loads of new muscles), emotionally (learnt a bucket load about each other) and spiritually (been nice to sit and read and reflect on life) especially as we travelled at Easter time. I asked Tim what he has learnt about me on this trip and I evidently ask a lot of questions and complain a lot! I can only improve ready for the next trip, oh I mean character building adventure!

Coober Pedy to Burra then homeward bound

Wednesday 23rd April 2014 and we are homeward bound. We left Coober Pedy this morning after a quick wander around at 11am. Coober Pedy is the opal capital of the world and with a population off 3,500 people it is a surprisingly small town. We did some opal shopping and as we are keen to get home and we will come back and do this town properly and do the track to cediuna and swim with the sharks.

Glendambo was where we stopped for some lunch and just kept on going. We have been travelling with Dave, Robyn, Tristan and Andrew along with Gary and Deanna. We stopped along the way at Woomera where I was shocked to see that it is a ghost town these days with a population of 100-400 depending upon the airforce work there. I cant understand what happens with all the old infrastructure in this town with an old theatre (complete with 1950s original furniture, deco signage and all the original timber signage) and all the buildings. It walked around this place and felt so weird. All of a sudden I turned around Robyn was gone, I had this bad feeling that aliens had taken her away. It was a freaky place. Surely a simple government change will not close a town - I can not get over this and will do some more questioning about this place. I know Chris M grew up here with his family as his father worked in the defence force. The supermarket was open and the single employee was there in a shop that reminded me of the 1950s in design and shelf size. So much recent history is not being covered in our schools. I am interested in the Woomera Prohibited Area and can see why this place was chosen but even though it is remote I think about environmental damage that misle and weapons testing has done.

Way have done seven hours of driving and when we got to Port Augusta we all stopped for some KFC

We have kept coming along the Stuart Highway and made our way past Crystal Brook, Stirling and finally Burra where we met Kim and Travis for dinner at the La Pecora Nera - an authentic Italian wood oven pizza eatery (3 Thames St, Burra PH - 88922886) wheee they were out of pasta (as it is made fresh each day they hadn't expected over 80 covered so none for us) so we had their wonderful pizzas and shared breads, antipasto and about 5 different pizzas. Met a lovely family who have been helping in an indigenous community on Horne WA/NT boarder adm discussed my growing concerns with the ever widening fan between us and them. (Big discussion about the last round up in the 1980s)

We stayed at the motel in Burra as we could simply go straight to bed, sleep, be warm, get up early, shower (hot, nice and unending) and go again. Today, Thursday 24th April we have about 900km till home. We have gone through Morgan, Renmark (nothing to declare as we are coming into the state and not leaving) and have 142km till Muldura where we will need fuel and food. This treck home is hard, I am hot and bothered with the sun streaming in on my side of the car and we are obviously both tired and irritable and keen to get home and relax. But relaxing will not be on the cards as the will be so much cleaning and unpacking to do, washing, cleaning, sorting and a whole new world of camping gear to store and organise!

Mapping has never been a strong point of mine but navigating through Mildura I found that my skills and memory were accurate and this enabled me to get us onto the A79 Calder Highway successfully. We then made our way to St Arnaud and then turned onto the Calder Highway through Avoca, bypassed Ballarat on the Western Highway onwards to home. It has been a huge trip and a huge day of driving today and we are both looking forward to seeing Shelby and Matt who has been looking after the house. I will have to calculate how many litres of fuel we have used but it would be up near 1400L at a guess. The odometer is reading is 7380km but Tim is not 100% sure of that calculation as it has 79,800 on it and had not tarred it since being serviced. We have certainly done a lot of kilometres and are feeling it now that we are home!

Thanks everyone who was a part of this trip, thanks to those who have followed this blog and commented and thanks to all who have read about this trip. A wonderful adventure! Thanks again David, Robyn and Peter for the wonderful track research and support.

PS. The red headed spider we saw at the mining quarry off Binns Track was a red headed mouse spider - they dig a mouse like burrow and is very poisonious but not aggressive. We saw a male one and have photos on the Lumix camera.

PSS. We survived the trip with only three car washes, six loads of washing and heaps of sleep.

PSsS. Where to next? Wait and see!

Curtain Springs to Mount Dare (not Dalhousie Springs)...why you ask?

Last night we stayed only 83km from Ayres Rock but having left Yalara at 5:30pm we were not in the mood for much driving. We found Curtain Springs and it was a free camping ground, very rocky but a close place to set up camp (in huge dark) and get dinner on (sumac steaks at the springs) and relax after a huge day. The sunset was lovely and the rear of the rock was at the south east of us (a shape you wouldn't recognise) and Tim and I could sit back and enjoy.

This morning we woke to a lovely sunrise too - so golden and red compared with yesterday so in a way I wish we had another night at The Rock (we were mean to be there for 3 days in the original plan) as we would have seen something even more spectacular. Tim and I will come back to this place as there is so much more to see, do and experience culturally and environmentally - it is not about a climb or walk challenge for us.

Before breakfast we had a pet come right up to us! Dave tried to feed Fred! I then got some bread to feed him and as soon as I presented some he started coming at me with his neck raised and eyes focused on me. I can't believe how big the feet on an emu is!

We have a long drive infront of us today and it is nice to drive just under the speed limit and relax with the air conditioner on low and it is only 8:57am and we are already in shorts and t-shirts. So off we go as we have a long way till morning tea break at Kulgera Roadhouse. We have done 192km and find fuel here for $2.09 so 50.94L more has cost us $106.46 a bargain really! Kulgera has a beer garden and it is officially known as the first and last pub in the Northern Territory - wonder if Tim will have a beer? A great stop where the owner was so helpful and allowed us to refill the water tank on the roof with the boar water. This is perfect as our plans have changed...we are now heading from the springs back into the Simpson Desert. We wouldn't do something like that on our own so best to stay as a group!

We have bought some HEMA maps and today we can follow exactly where we are heading. From this we (just off the Sturt Highway) we then turned left towards Finke. On that track about 125km along we stopped to have lunch at Lambert's Centre of Australia. What a geographical achievement to have surveyed this landmark. Now back on our way only 201km till Dalhousie Springs. I can't wait as I have heard about Peninsular Springs, Hepburn Springs and can not wait until we take a dpi in the Dalhousie Springs - I am even wondering if they can do a pedicure or a facial!

But on the way, there is always a but, we encountered some boggy swamps. One of these was particularly bad just before Mount Dare. Tim decided that the bog was something he could go through, it was hard and a lot of harsh steering but he managed to get to the end. However, then Peter and Leah decided to go through but got bogged right at the end. The owner of the Mount Dare Hotel saw and heard what was happening and came to offer some support and advice. After tying to let the tyres down and reverse and get out on their own it was decided to winch them out. Dave set his car up and off we went! Upon arriving to the hotel we discovered that they were out of diesal so we were unable to keep going along to the Simspson Desert. Instead we found ourselves back on the road at after 5pm trying to get to Dalhousie Springs for the night.

But then, just when we only had 69km to go poor Robyn and Dave discovered that their dual cab Toyota had a severe structural failure where some bolts that hold the canopy and roof top tent had vibrated themselves loose. We all pulled over only a few km from Mount Dare. The boys fixed the car (Rob was excellent at trouble shooting) while the girls organised some wine and snacks (thanks Irma and Leah) to enjoy the sunset. And this has to have been one of the best sunsets we have had to date!

This meant we were back on the road by 7:30pm travelling in the dark on a dirty and very dusty 4WD track for possibly another 1-2hours depending on the bogs and dust! A few of us were unhappy about this, we voiced our opinion and Peter put it to a vote. I was told that as soon as one is unhappy we stop (but this caused a great deal friction) and we were setting up camp in the dark, beside the track, late at night and with not much time to cook dinner. 

Noodles for everyone tonight!

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

"The tourist come taking photo. What has he got? Another photo...he should get another lens - see straight inside. Wouldn't see a big rock then. He would see that Kuniya living right inside there as from the beginning. " Tony Tjamiwa

Tjukurpa is the basis of social, religious, legal and ethical systems of Anangu culture. It tells of creation time and how physical things came to being. What a great time I had at the cultural centre at the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park today.

The interactive visuals and displays communicated straight to my heart. I loved learning about the Yankunytjatjara and Pitjantjatjara people and seeing the display in both English and Anangu (arn-ang-oo)  just touched my heart and soul. Visiting this place has left an idelable mark on me and my life in many ways. I appreciated watching the indigenous ladies painting too and seeing a young indigenous boy tour one group though would have been wonderful for me.

Uluru (Ayres Rock) and Kata -Tjuta (olgas) are special places, not just because they are heritage listed and a natural beauty but because of the story that this land tells for the people all over the world. 

At 13 I first came to Uluru with my older cousin Ella and have striking memories that have been etched in my memory from then and are as fresh then as they are today.  And I was only 15 when the title deed land trust was handed back to the Anangu people by Sir Ninan Stephen but they received a leave for only 99 years. Is that limiting in your opinion? I understand that this is a process of joint management. But I keep thinking that this should be ongoing. Just thinking...

Watarrka National Park to Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park

Another new day, another pack up, another refuel and another drive. We plan to travel 102km on the Luritja Road and then turn off past Wallara Ranch past Liddle Hills for another 61km and then we turn right into Lasseter Highway for another 137km till we reach Yulara.

It is nice driving on solid roads and seeing the vastly different environs in the morning as last night everything was a deep red colour and now it seems not as intense and even the greens are more muted than what I saw last night. With all the rain that had happened last week while we were doing the Hay river track the wild flowers are starting to pop up. We have seen so many buds awaiting the sun to help them along.

We had only travelled maybe 60km this morning when Lee and Tim had a land cruiser dual where both boys drove side by side. It was so funny to see Tim, Paul and Lee having so much fun. But as you know all good things end in tears...

Moments after this Lee's car began to loose power and he radioed that they had overheated the engine and to go on ahead. We did for 5-10min when both Tim and I decided that really someone should be there to make sure everything is okay. We pulled over and waited for 20min but still no Lee. So we turned around and saw them coming...Lee said that he thought he had burnt a hole in the piston...after an engine cool down things were still no better...so Tim saved the day and towed him to Ayres Rock 200kmd own the road.

In this time Gary and Deanna had also pulled over and we were able to radio what had happened to the car. Peter K, who decided to get the rest of the group (6 other cars) to Ayres Rock was a long way ahead. We hope to meet them when we get there - it will not be a three hour drive for us.

We arrived at Ayres Rock towing Lee's car. What a great feeling of achievement to have arrived safe and not quite sound. Upon arrival Dave discovered that the Rock was in fact open so the rush was on to get the next 18km under our belts and get there. Paul got a lift there leaving Lee back at Shell waiting for the RACV. We then discovered that this is Lee 's (20years old) 5th time to get here and not climb the rock! We then did a u turn and I jumped out and waited till Tim got back picked Lee up and in my opinion deserves hero of the day. We all decided to climb The rock. I can definitely say that it is challenging and I have no idea how I did this as a 13 year old! The slope is so steep and in parts slippery. But I sprinted up past chicken rock and kept going until the really steep part. Lee was egging us on and he did this trip in thongs! Dave was spurring Robyn on and together we all helped one another.

We made it and afterwards at the the base while waiting for others we heard a tour guide discussing some contentious issues about the rock. There are a variety of reasons not to climb Ayres Rock - we had seen the sign but we were so excited to be here and with all of us there (3 groups already started) the race was on. The reasons include cultural, environmental and health issues. Cultural reasons include the indigenous story. One ranger thinks it will be closed in the next two years. I am glad to say I have been able to do this twice. Environmental reasons are obvious reasons why this area needs to be protected. Health resons not to climb are important as there have been 37 deaths on Ayres Rock. The climb is closed more often than open. If it is too wet, dry, cold, hot, etc and if found in when closed the fine is $5000.  The Longitude 131° Guide was particularly helpful and his tour (five star style included) costs $2000 a night - obviously guid included.

We we have had a great day! What did you do today?

Palya - the Anangu traditional welcome to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

We are here at the base of Uluru awaiting a beautiful sunset. Did you know that the National Park is recognised by UNESCO as a world heritage area for both natural and cultural values?

And many of us have set up spectacular viewing positions such as Peter, Leah, Amy, Irma and Rob who have prize positions on top of ther cars. Tim has left me here and taken Paul back to support Lee giving me time to blog about this in peace.

What a natural beauty we have in our own backyard. The rock formations and sand planes offer such a wide range of beauty. I am planning on taking a photo every 15 minutes. At 6pm this is what it looked like.

The park is a living cultural landscape and is quite unique as it has been an ancient land enjoyed by the Anangu people who have shared the traditional practices and knowledge and its area still holds powerful religious and cultural connections today.

The park is managed by Anangu and Parks Australia mixing traditional and western science to preserve the park. This is the rock at 6:15pm.

This is the rock at 6:30pm

As I am ever the romantic my dream of having a picnic complete with chairs, crackers, cheeses and dips followed by champagne has been blown away to pieces with a group this size it will be challenging to be together just the two of us. Tim did ask me to take a photo of the ute infront of Uluru - thanks to Robyn who took one of me and another of Tim so I can have one image of us from her iPhone.

And at 6:45pm this was what I saw...

What was your experience when you saw the sunset here in Uluru?

Finke to Kings Canyon

Today is Good Friday. Thank you Jesus for dying on the cross for me!

What a beautiful morning, this has been one of the most amazingly active bird locations we have been to. It is a lush and richly treed area which means food and homes for all of the different species of birds. One bird has a beautiful two tone tweet and I have particularly liked this one. Last night when Tim got up he woke me to show me how close 13 brumbies were close to our camp. They were literally only 10m away just beyond the closest tree line. Then we had the biggest dingo call we have heard to date - we are getting closer to Ayres Rock!

Last night saw us set up a very basic camp again, no awnings or verandah and we were on a mission to be packed up before the majority of people - this means no ensuite tent or chairs and at 8:12am means I will be on my feet until we depart for the next adventure that Dave and Peter take us on! And at 8:29am we are all fully loaded, tied down and Tim has even done a tool reshuffle in case we go through any more deep water. Fortunately all of the tools are okay and his old t-shirt -wrapping the compressor- saved the day! We have done 99.6km since Hermannsburg and we still have plenty of fuel. 

We are off on the track and we have been seeing these spoon like plants along the way. Peter brought them to our attention and said that someone had been planting plastic spoons, so on the next opportunity I got out and took a photo. It reminds me of the alien invaders movie where the eyes we're planted in the ground ready for the take over of planet earth!

We are the last car today and that enables Tim to seek the best photo opportunities of the ute. Look what he sent me out into by myself...

Just me so that I could take this photo of Tim and his ute...

We then found another Waddi tree plantation - a joke of the trip - but an important indigenous tree that is used for ceremonial purposes. But the car was more important even though I kept telling Tim that the lighting was wrong!

In the space of an hour we have travelled 23km and seen so many different environments - river beds lush with eucalyptus trees, bush scrub and now taller skinny looking trees and all beside the red sandy track that has been graded recently (we saw the yellow grader on the side of the road - all bashed up and broken windows - it's been here for a while) enabling us to travel at 80km.

You know what we also found today? Water! This wet clay pan was so much fun and a few people have made videos so I can't wait to see them! Here we have Irma driving Lee's car and Travis on L plates having a spin in the mud flats. We can't even see out of the side windows at the moment!

As of 11:19am we have done 44km and are seeing some very twisty tracks now. We have made our way onto Hembury track, an indigenous land area where we need permits to leave the track. We are  38km from the sealed highway and finally make it to nice smooth roads. Tyres are now pumped to 55 in the rear and 38psi in the front. We are 61km from the Kings Creek Caravan Park that is located in the Watarrka National Park. We are hoping to make it to Kings Canyon today and are loving the bitumen surface of Luritja Road. With time for a fuel refill at Kings Creek Station (2017m above sea level) we find our selves paying 254.7cents for fuel a litre.

This took us to Kings Canyon and we did the 5.5km hard walk! It took us most of the afternoon but we were rewarded with a fabulous afternoon with the sun perfectly colouring the canyon. If you have been there then you will know how spectacular it is...my photos do not give this location justice!

On the way up...

Dave contemplating the view...

Sunset at the car park...

We decided to stay at the Kings Canyon Resort Campground as it was already getting dark. Tim set up while I relaxed in the shower and for this I am grateful as it kept me out of his way and I wasn't bothering him. We enjoyed lovely salmon and steamed vegetables for our Good Friday dinner. What did you do?