 Vista of Alice from Anzac Hill Day Eight April 19th 2011 A town called Alice On the road by 0730, an early departure for it's a long but not so winding road ahead. It took around six hours to reach Alice Springs but the route finding was pretty basic: right out of the Yulara Resort onto the Lassiter Highway. After a couple of hundred kilometres we turned left onto Stuart Highway for a couple of hundred more. And then right into Alice Springs. Most of the time the roads were straight and empty. But the journey wasn't dull at all. Alex explained the things we could do both in and en-route to Alice Springs. So ….. 8 Things to Do in Alice Springs:
So, we made some stops en-route: a photostop at Mount Conner, Mount Ebeneezer Roadhouse (now closed) for coffee and cakes (the Lamingtons were particularly good), and the Camel Farm for more coffee and a sandwich. Although available, none of us partook of the short camel rides on offer. I have mixed feelings about camels. As a little girl one spat at me at the back of Duffy’s Circus on the Fair Green in Carrick-on-Suir (my hometown). Now, nearly 9,500 miles from home I wasn’t going to let history repeat itself. A recording of 'the last great Australian explorer' Len Beadell provided very diverting entertainment for part of the journey on the coach. He recounted his experiences in the bush; working to open up unexplored regions and develop some of the test sites for bomb and missile testing.  A Camel with "The Hump" A bit of a tight schedule meant that there was no time to dally on arrival in Alice. We headed first for the School of the Air, a unique method of distance teaching pioneered in Australia where the enormous distances make it almost impossible for children in remote places to be educated in schools. Originally the classes were held via radio, but these days it's easier with internet and webcam technology. Then a visit to the Old Telegraph Station – where Alice Springs began – I found it very interesting. Next we made a stop atop ANZAC Hill with the ANZAC war memorial and good views over Alice Springs. The Royal Flying Doctors centre was another worthwhile visit, a very worthy organisation.  Our visit to mock-up of the Flying Doctors service, Alice Finally we had half an hour free time in ‘downtown’ Alice Springs. An interesting place, it drew a mixed response from our group. It’s probably true to say no one was particularly eager to buy a house and retire here. There are a much higher proportion of Aboriginal people here, unfortunately the ones hanging around town are the more marginalised ones and it made the atmosphere slightly uncomfortable for some. Our hotel was the Crowne Plaza. It is set in a grassed area with a pool looking over the McDonnell ranges. There are numerous buildings and you get to them by following walkways, some out in the open. Our room was a nice surprise with air con and a good shower complete with little balcony. There is a courtesy bus that takes you into Alice Springs about 2km away. The pool area is quite large with a snack bar open 10 to 5. And a piano in the lobby, where one of our fellow travellers entertained us by tinkling the ivories. Our stay here was two nights. Road km: 503  School of the Air Building, Alice Day Nine April 20th 2011 Free day in Alice, evening BBQ Wow! A free day for all, no wake up calls, no bags out! We all enjoyed ourselves, some just chilling by the pool, others visiting the Olive Pink Botanical Garden or a stroll around 'downtown'. The weather was lovely, hot but not too hot, and not so many troubling flies. In the evening most of us went to an Outback barbeque evening. It was an excellent night out and tremendously enjoyable. Seeing wild kangeroos on the property was a good start to this true Ozzie evening. We learned how to throw boomerangs, though this skill needs a bit of honing to bring it to perfection. (Wonder if they ever managed to retrieve the boomerang that fell on a roof, and rescued the other from the fire...) The star gazing was brilliant, the night sky studded with bright stars. There was an abundance of good cheer and humour, helped by lashings of wine and beer together with the steak and snags, and everyone seemed to really enjoy the evening. We returned to Alice on the coach singing along with some Ozzie favourites. Road km: 26 (BBQ) Bucket List Items Ticked Off in the above Blog post Number 57 - Continents - Australia Number 58 (2) - Countries - Australia Number 59 (5) - Hotels - Crowne Plaza, Alice Springs, Australia Related Blog Posts Blog 4 - London/ Singapore Blog 5 - Perth, Australia Blog 6 - Uluru, Australia So have you been to Alice Springs? What did you think of it? If you liked this post, please share. Sharing is caring 😊
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AuthorMy name is Mary and this is my bucket list blog ...having survived a near-death experience. I hope it encourages you to "live your best life". See how I'm completing my own bucket list items. And let me know how you're getting on with yours! Archives
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