Popped into my nice airplane ticket issuing agent Air New Zealand yesterday as I wanted to do some departure date tangoing. They then forwarded me to Singapore Airlines as they were the actual ones with the booking for that particular leg of the journey, I shall now be leaving Australia on the 10th August as opposed to the 22nd August as originally planned. I will be in Melbourne till the 3rd August where I will then head to Alice Springs for a week and hopefully get round to going to Uluru (née Ayers Rock). Flying for the second time via Virgin Blue (I used them to get from Brisbane to Melbourne), whom kick arse (cute air hostesses) as far as budget airlines go. ;)
The stay in Singapore has also been cut down from 2 week to just the 1 week. It’s a small place that could be covered in about 3 days and having had a bit more thought, it’s easier to make my trips into “The Big Green” (Mainland China for those not familiar with Cantonese colloquialisms) from Hong Kong. I’ll be arriving in Hong Kong on the 17th August and this stint shall be the longest stay to date as my exit date from Hong Kong remains the same, that being the 26th September. Outbound, as it’s a late evening flight, I won’t be arriving in Dubai till the wee hours of the 27th September. After a short 5 day stay, I should be arriving back in Blighty in the morning of the 2nd October! :D
Oh, and I’ve just realised it’s been a full calendar month since I left Northampton… I can say for sure it certainly doesn’t feel like it. Though I’ll be glad I’ll be off to preliminarily non-English speaking countries soon as Vancouver, then Brisbane and now Melbourne are starting to feel all a little to much “home from home”, not to mention the prices of the decadent West is really hammering my budget! :P
Uluru is great, you have to see it at sunrise, I was only 12 when I went. Also you should go see Kata Tjuta (Olga Mountains) while there (in the same national park). I didn’t go to alice springs rather stayed in the town closest to Uluru, Yulara. The Uluru national park is amazing, though you have to respect that the park belongs to the Australian Aborigines and is a sacred place.
Be sure to conserve water when out there though, and get a fly net, you will need it! It’s probably a good idea to also have a pair of sunglasses.
Comment by smithy_dll — 04:03:11 UTC on the 30th of July, 2005
When I was trying to arrange the trip up that way, for the life of me I couldn’t remember the name of the nearer resort… Yulara. As Sod’s Law dictates… I remembered after I arranged the flight down to Alice Springs. Ho-hum.
At the very least I’d like to go see Uluru with Kata Tjuta being a bonus if I can do that too. I know the sites are sacred to the Aboriginals… I’m going there with the knowledge I don’t wish to climb Uluru anyway. :P
Comment by Jonathan Stanley — 10:25:13 UTC on the 30th of July, 2005