Flies, Flies, Flies, and Uluru!
Trip Start
Jun 07, 2008
1
146
188
Trip End
Jun 28, 2009
Where I stayed
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park,
Northern Territory,
Australia
Friday, February 27, 2009
We walked all the way around the rock, stopping to learn from our guide about the Anangu people who live closest to the rock. They tell stories about their ancestors and past and the two main "gods" of Uluru are two snakes, Kuniya (a woman rock python) and Lira (a venomous snake)
Us at Sunrise at Uluru
. Maybe they worship snakes because 8 of the 12 most dangerous snakes in Australia are found at Uluru! We did not see any today. We did see some of the Aboriginal stories in cave paintings, which were interesting. We did not climb the rock because to the Anangu people it is sacred. It is not against the law to climb it, but the route to go up is also the route used by the men for holy ceremonies. No Anangu women or children can climb up Uluru. Uluru was made sacred by law in 1985 and given back to the Aboriginal people so their law rules at the rock.
Aboriginals think that the Uluru was created by their ancestors when they were making big piles of sand. They just kept piling it up and then they slid down it and made marks with their fingernails. Uluru is huge - it is made of sandstone and used to be a giant mountain. But it has now eroded to what it looks like today.
Aboriginals used to hunt with long spears and boomerangs. They used the spears to kill kangaroos. If they got it in the heart, it died, but if they got it in the leg or somewhere, they could tell which one to follow by looking at the tracks of the one dragging a spear
Lu and me hiding from the flies
. Only men hunted emu and kangaroo. But women hunted snakes, lizards, rabbits, and lots of other small animals. And they also eat witcheries, which are like big fat worms! We went to the Uluru Cultural Center after the hike and saw an Anangu woman painting a story and also learned more about the culture. And we got ice cream and hid from the flies for while before we went back to the hotel for lunch. Our guide said the flies are the worst they have been in five years. They are looking for water, which is why they go for your eyes, nose, mouth, and ears and your sweat. It is pretty gross! Lu and I covered ourselves with the red dirt to keep them away, too, and got really dirty! That was fun!
