For those of you who know me well, it will
come as no surprise that I have not posted a blog for a very long time, so it
is well and truly my turn. Alice has been a busy little town over the winter
months with festivals, fetes and reunions. Attending all the festivities has
proved to be a bit of a difficult juggle when working weekends
but we are loving life here and now it is
warming up a little, the sunnies are on as we sit outside to eat our
weetbix.
Spent a morning visiting John Flynn’s grave
and taking some really bad photos of wildflowers and rock formations (yes that
is correct Tash was not with me, thus the poor photography!!)
John Flynn was a Presbyterian minister who
established the Australian Inland Mission and became totally committed to
providing assistance to remote populations. His most recognized achievement was
the establishment of the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Interestingly the rock marking his grave
was removed from the Karlukarlu (The Devils Marbles) some 46 years ago.
The Karlukarlu are regarded by the
traditional owners to have extraordinary powers with life threatening
consequences for themselves if they should be damaged. It took until the late
90’s for the rock to be returned some 400km north (near Tennant Creek) from
where it came. The local Arrernte people found a suitable alternative from the
Alice Springs region associated with the Yeperenye (caterpillar) dreaming,
which now protects John Flynn’s ashes.
Anyone recognize this famous regatta? This
is the Territory’s longest running iconic event! A complete lack of water for
the boat races makes the Henley-on-Todd Regatta the world’s only and original
waterless regatta. Now in it 53rd year it includes “maxi-yachts”,
“bring your own boats” and “oxford tubs”.
A fun day had by all, even had Macca
from our caravan park on one of the battleboats.
Our big day that weekend was on Sunday, as
this was Alice Springs Running Festival. Yes all that preparation and
exhaustion for the half marathon
did pay off as Tash did a P.B. for the
21km run. That is correct there are no photos of Lyndi as I was needed as the
support team! After the medal celebrations we splurged and spent the night at
Lasseters Hotel Casino, which was total luxury. Tash got to sleep in a bed
where she could put her feet over the end and I did not have to go outside to
pee……. winners and grinners.
