After a fun evening in Sydney, we caught the Metro to Sydney Airport. We were off to our next destination; one that I had been looking forward to for a while. Our flight left on time for Ayer Rock Airport……our next stop, was the oft mentioned “Outback“…..no not that Outback, but the town of Yulara.
Even though our flight left at 930am and arrived just 2 hours later at Ayers Rock Airport, we were fed a pretty substantial meal.
It was a short 10 minute shuttle from the airport to where we were staying; the Desert Gardens Resort at Ayers Rock Resort. The actual name of the town is Yulara, which is the village which serves as the hub for folks visiting Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park. Yulara was established to serve as a centralized village in the late 70’s as a way to help protect and preserve the the sacred sights and ecosystems in the area which were being heavily damaged by tourism. In 1984 the government ended all leases for the motels around Uluru and ownership was transferred to the Aṉangu people, the traditional Aboriginal owners of the land. The Aṉangu then went ahead and leased it back to Australia for 99 years.
We arrived a bit early for check in and decided to take a short walk to the village. I’ve read that folks have complained about the walk to the village, but come on, we’re in the Outback and this is only a 10 minute walk into the village!
We’d see sign saying “Palya” everywhere. I came to find out that much like what I grew up understanding what “Aloha” meant, Palya means “hello”, “welcome”, and “goodbye” among other things in the dialect spoken by the Aṉangu people.
The Missus enjoyed the shops….
And we got some “stuffs” here…..
Of course, right????
While checking out, the really nice lady working told us that there’s a daily bush food “experience” at the movie theatre at 1pm and it’s free! So, we decided to head on over. It was on the way back to the hotel anyway.
We arrived at the Arkani Theatre just as the show was starting….there was a movie first and then folks were invited to a table where folks went over how food was gathered and prepared. It was pretty crowded so I didn’t take too many photos.
It was a fun experience.
After which we headed over to our room which was ready…..
The rooms were fine; we wouldn’t be spending too much time in them anyway. Hard to believe that this used to be the Four Seasons Resort here! And even though the main road is out the back; there was a view from the back that we loved. Can you see it?
I had made reservations for something I thought might be fun for the evening; the Wintjiri Wiru Sunset Dinner. We met our bus which took us out of town about 10 minutes or so. Upon arriving; we were led down a walkway.
At the end of which, I finally got a good look at the reason we wanted to come here.
Yes, it’s the massive monolithic Uluru, rising out of the flat plains of the Outback.
The evening started with that view and some cocktails and appetizers on a deck.
With Uluru in the distance.
There were some interesting canapes; like the Gin Infused Cucumbers with Green Ants.
Really chlorophyllic, with a kick. The ants were really tangy and sour.
That Lemon Myrtle Crocodile Curry Hand Pie was potent. Super citrusy – lemony!
All the while watching Uluru turn bright red in color as the sun went down.
We were walked over to a bleacher area.
Where dinner hampers were awaiting us.
We saw the folks prepping for the light and drone show.
And the variety of food in the hamper was interesting.
Not sure what the heck shrimp was doing here as we were in the Outback, but those Saltbush Marinated Olives were so complex in the brininess and savory tones. The dried bush tomato with ice plant and paper bark was so intense in acidity, with a mild smokiness. The smoked emu with saltbrush and chili crust was fine; but we both really enjoyed the blackened pepperleaf kangaro, which while being fairly lean, had a pleasant gaminess, and the pepperleaf added a mild numbing sensation. We’d see this on a menu later in the trip and made sure to order it.
All while watching Uluru “evolve” as the sun set. Watching this really helped me to understand the sacredness of this red sandstone monolith standing above all, to the indigenous people of the area.
And turning around we could watch the sunset over the plains…..
Now, as you know, I’m from the islands and am quite used to amazing sunsets; but this is in a league of it’s own.
As the sun went down; the wind started kicking up. So, the drone portion of the “show” was cancelled. Still, there were all the light displays.
Though some were complaining…..we really didn’t care…..the main thing to us was watching that sunset over Ulura. I don’t personally know of anyone else whose been here…..but I wish more folks would go.
And, we had a sunrise excursion to Ulura the next day! Man, we couldn’t wait for that!
Thanks for stopping by!