AUSTRALIA
Day 10 of our Australia Coach Tour
It was an easy day and we got to see some really cool stuff! We went out to Alice Springs Desert Park and our aboriginal guide showed us some really awesome stuff. We first saw a movie about the aboriginal belief of how the world came about. When the movie was ending, the screen began to roll down to the bottom like a car window, revealing clear glass behind with an astounding view of the mountains right behind the building. It was breathtaking.
From there, our guide took us to an outdoor area where he showed us the tools that his people traditionally used as hunter/gatherers. It's amazing how simply they lived do still today. He said if his people run out of things they need such as food or medicine before they have money to purchase them, they return to the old ways and live quite nicely. Their native language is taught in the home as first language, but they all learn English, too, but as a second language.
He said the men never carried water on a hunting trip; they knew where water was and went there. Water is heavy to carry and they'd burn more energy carrying it than they'd gain from having it on them. They were going to where the water was as that's where the food would be anyway. The tools they used were simple and usually had multiple purposes. They moved around within their area so as not to ruin the land or the hunting, so they needed to have as little possessions as possible to move with them. :) They had no need of "stuff" like most of us seem to need myself included.
From there we went to the Nocturnal House where there were many displays of the dessert inhabitants who are only active at night. We only had 15 minutes in there, but we could have spent much longer. From there, we went to the Free Flight Program where a young lady showed us several very fascinating birds. There is one bird - a black kite - that is the only bird that can break an emu egg. The girl put the egg down on the ground and the kite came very quickly. He immediately started looking around on the ground for a rock to break the egg open. It took him a few tries, but he got it open and ate the contents. The birds were very cool and some flew up and skimmed our heads. :D Very fun! I took movies and my batteries ran out as my card got full. I changed everything and got back to it. lol
The School of the Air was next on our day. Never thought about it, but a great many of the children in Australia live many, many miles from a town where they could attend school. They take classes, originally via short wave radio, bt it's now progressed to computers and web cams. It's fascinating! They test in the top 10 percent of the students in the entire country. It's a great thing.
We had lunch at Bojangles Saloon with boots attached to the ceiling by their soles and money on the ceiling. I couldn't get into the bathroom as the handle was on the side where the hinges were. The toilet seat was clear plastic with razor blades all over. When washing my hands, I turned the handle and the water came on in the sink next to me. The hand dryer worked normally. I looked at some of the other seats in there: barbed wire, huge spiders, etc. Fun place. Hehehehe
Found the quilt shop and bought a few things, but the fabric here is VERY expensive! Even with the favorable exchange rate, it was very high. Some great stuff, too.
We went to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Every Aussie is eligible for the service at no cost. Because the distances here from point A to point B are so great, people were dying before help could arrive. They currently have four aircraft and they are equipped like a hospital with a doctor on board. Many, many lives have been saved using this service.
We were back at the hotel by 4 pm with nothing further scheduled. We'd had tons of food for lunch, so we've had some time to relax and try to catch up on some things. We don't have a really early departure time in the morning, but I think it's going to be an early night, anyway.
See you all tomorrow. Anyone who doesn't want to recieve these updates, please let me know, and I won't pester you further. :D
'Nite!
It was an easy day and we got to see some really cool stuff! We went out to Alice Springs Desert Park and our aboriginal guide showed us some really awesome stuff. We first saw a movie about the aboriginal belief of how the world came about. When the movie was ending, the screen began to roll down to the bottom like a car window, revealing clear glass behind with an astounding view of the mountains right behind the building. It was breathtaking.
From there, our guide took us to an outdoor area where he showed us the tools that his people traditionally used as hunter/gatherers. It's amazing how simply they lived do still today. He said if his people run out of things they need such as food or medicine before they have money to purchase them, they return to the old ways and live quite nicely. Their native language is taught in the home as first language, but they all learn English, too, but as a second language.
He said the men never carried water on a hunting trip; they knew where water was and went there. Water is heavy to carry and they'd burn more energy carrying it than they'd gain from having it on them. They were going to where the water was as that's where the food would be anyway. The tools they used were simple and usually had multiple purposes. They moved around within their area so as not to ruin the land or the hunting, so they needed to have as little possessions as possible to move with them. :) They had no need of "stuff" like most of us seem to need myself included.
From there we went to the Nocturnal House where there were many displays of the dessert inhabitants who are only active at night. We only had 15 minutes in there, but we could have spent much longer. From there, we went to the Free Flight Program where a young lady showed us several very fascinating birds. There is one bird - a black kite - that is the only bird that can break an emu egg. The girl put the egg down on the ground and the kite came very quickly. He immediately started looking around on the ground for a rock to break the egg open. It took him a few tries, but he got it open and ate the contents. The birds were very cool and some flew up and skimmed our heads. :D Very fun! I took movies and my batteries ran out as my card got full. I changed everything and got back to it. lol
The School of the Air was next on our day. Never thought about it, but a great many of the children in Australia live many, many miles from a town where they could attend school. They take classes, originally via short wave radio, bt it's now progressed to computers and web cams. It's fascinating! They test in the top 10 percent of the students in the entire country. It's a great thing.
We had lunch at Bojangles Saloon with boots attached to the ceiling by their soles and money on the ceiling. I couldn't get into the bathroom as the handle was on the side where the hinges were. The toilet seat was clear plastic with razor blades all over. When washing my hands, I turned the handle and the water came on in the sink next to me. The hand dryer worked normally. I looked at some of the other seats in there: barbed wire, huge spiders, etc. Fun place. Hehehehe
Found the quilt shop and bought a few things, but the fabric here is VERY expensive! Even with the favorable exchange rate, it was very high. Some great stuff, too.
We went to the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Every Aussie is eligible for the service at no cost. Because the distances here from point A to point B are so great, people were dying before help could arrive. They currently have four aircraft and they are equipped like a hospital with a doctor on board. Many, many lives have been saved using this service.
We were back at the hotel by 4 pm with nothing further scheduled. We'd had tons of food for lunch, so we've had some time to relax and try to catch up on some things. We don't have a really early departure time in the morning, but I think it's going to be an early night, anyway.
See you all tomorrow. Anyone who doesn't want to recieve these updates, please let me know, and I won't pester you further. :D
'Nite!