No, we didn’t see a dingo today. But we ARE in the Outback, the great red center of Australia. Where Meryl Streep famously lost her baby to a dingo. This area is also home to 4 of the 10 deadliest snakes in the world and the second largest lizard in the world. No, we didn’t see any of those either, and let’s hope it stays that way.

Today, we traveled to Ayers Rock, home of Uluru, the spiritual center of the Australian Aboriginals. Ulura is a massive red rock rising off the desert floor; it’s the second largest monolith in the world (the largest is somewhere west of here). We checked into our very nice hotel and rested up a bit. It’s hot here, but “it’s a dry heat so it’s not as bad.” Why do people say that? It’s still freaking hot. Our room is really nice, with a beautiful balcony. I’m not sure when we’re going to use it (see previous comment about it being hot). Supposed to be 104 tomorrow.

We took in the massive monolith and a few other local sights via a sunset tour on camels. So, riding a camel is basically like riding a bigger horse. They’re pretty docile, just plodding along in a line since they’re tied to each other. Mine was named Nicko and mom’s was Kahn. The sunset was pretty, but I’ve seen better in OK and TX. Of course, riding through the Outback adds a certain mystique.

We have an early morning tomorrow, so that’s it for tonight. Yawo.