uluru - one of the world's largest monoliths, and australia's number one tourist attraction. most tourists climb 'the rock', but gk and i decided to just walk around it and look at all of the caves and cave paintings. (approx. 10 km walk. in many areas, there are signs saying that if you take photos, you will be fined if you're caught, because many of these places are aboriginal sacred sites.) while staying out here in semi-desert, we found out that there would be a meteor shower one night. we lay on our backs not far from here, just looking up at the sky, shivering a bit with the coolness, and no one else was around.
kata tjuta (think it translates as 'many heads') - a collection of big, softly rounded rock formations. it was an enjoyable walk through here, on a very hot, perfectly blue day. by far my favourite experience out in central australia. there weren't as many people at kata tjuta as at some of the other places, but in part that was because of the heat. it was probably over 37 C early in the day, and i think by 11 am the entrance to the kata tjuta walk was barricaded.
i remember two women we came across while walking. one was with her husband, and another was on her own, just photographing the wildlife. both had kind faces, and they were the kind of people that i could sort of imagine being friends with, that things would be peaceful, natural. i think that seeing them had some impact on me, contributed to me having a good day.
at the end of our long, sweaty walk, we went off the path, gk pointed out a mistletoe tree, and then did a lot more than kiss me against it.
this little creature is called a thorny devil, and resides in these parts. gk photographed this one while he was working out here, and i very much like his photo. this thorny devil is apparently bigger around the midsection than they generally are, and gk speculates that it might have been pregnant.