Tripping with Judy

“Palya”! Or… Welcome, and it’s another busy day in Australia with an early wake up alarm again at 5:00 AM.  We are heading for sunrise at Uluru, the heart of Australia! This 11,000’ red sandstone tower, taller than the Eiffel Tower or the Sears Tower in Chicago, a World Heritage and UNESCO site, towers above the desert floor commanding your view and respect.  A sacred place and also the site for their Creation Story multiple ceremonies are conducted here for aboriginal men, women, and young children. We see the pink and orange glow of impending sunrise as we near Uluru.  It stands quietly sentinel…waiting…as I walk to the lowest viewing area.  I want to see Uluru from the bottom looking up among the shrubs and grasses as generations of people have done before me.  I want to be still…and just be. It is difficult to explain how I felt or even write about it.  It was a spiritual moment, and even though I have loved every moment and adventure of this tr...

It was Tacos & Nachos Night at the Juicy Rump last night, the restaurant in our hotel.  What a great name, and the tacos were good too!  It was filled with ”gray nomads”, and I was happy to be among them! As we leave Alice Springs, we stop by the ANZAC (Australia & New Zealand Army Corps) memorial commemorating men and women who have served in the armed forces, and plaques designating the various conflicts since 1901…Boer War, WWI & II, Korean, Vietnam, Indonesia, 1st Gulf, 1st & 2nd Afghanistan Wars, Peacekeeping.  ANZAC Day is celebrated on April 25.  Aussie soldiers in WWI were called “diggers”, and all veterans have carried that name ever since.   The ANZAC “biscuit” or cookie was popularized during WWI when mothers, wives, and girlfriends sent them to their loved ones fighting abroad.  Made without eggs, these sweet biscuits made with oats and golden syrup traveled well without spoilage.  They are still a popular biscuit especi...

We are flying over a barren red swirling landscape on our way to Alice Springs almost in the middle of the Australian continent.  It is odd when I see a rainbow below and only one lone dirt road with an occasional crimson tendril snaking off.  I don’t see asphalt almost until we land! Officially, we are in South Australia Northern Territory, but everyone calls it the Northern Territory.  When Australia was divided into states, the NT was given its own time zone…1/2 hour behind the eastern part of the country!  Some said this was to give cricket players an extra half hour of daylight to play. Alice Springs airport is the largest in land mass in Australia.  During COVID, it was covered with parked aircraft.  Airlines sent fleets here since the isolation made it inexpensive and the dry environment wasn’t damaging to the planes. 30,000 people currently live in Alice Springs.  In 1970’s, the US took advantage of this  landlocked city to build a l...