Oh my, what a Chasm.



Jake and Dillon at Satndley Chasm

We had a wonderful week here in the Alice.  The weather had cooled off a little bit, but not for long as it will be over 100 everyday this week.  We were able to watch the Superbowl (Yeah Giants) but unfortunately there were only Australian commercials.  The boys started martial arts classes, they have really been enjoying that.  Over the weekend we headed out to the Ghan Train Museum on Saturday to find out it will be closed for the month of February, so I will save the post for a later date.  We were able to spend the rest of the weekend outside though, which was quite nice.

Emily Gap



Aboriginal painting on the rocks



Saturday evening we decided to head to Emily Gap for a picnic dinner.  The Gap is about 10 km east of Alice Springs, it is the first gap in the mountains in the East MacDonnell Ranges.  Emily Gap is situated on Aboriginal land, and is reportedly the most sacred areas in the Alice Springs region. According to legend this is the site where the giant Yeperenye Caterpillar emerged and created much of the local landscape.  There are paintings on the rocks to symbolize these caterpillars.  This was a beautiful spot.

After the picnic we headed back to feed the wallabies like we had done our first week here.  This time we saw a red kangaroo, an obvious male, so we kept our distance.  The Rock Wallabies were amazing; there were about 5 or 6 that had joeys in their pouch.  This time Jake and Dillon not only got to feed the moms, but they were actually petting the joeys as well.  They were thrilled!



Standley Chasm





On the trail to the Chasm



Sunday we headed off to Standley Chasm, this is about 40km west of Alice Springs. They offered three hikes, easy, medium and hard – we chose easy which was about a 20/25 minute walk each way.  As I was talking to the boys, a fly flew in my mouth – they thought that was hilarious!!  Standley Chasm has been gouged from tough sandstone by the floods that, over untold millions of years, have surged down a narrow tributary of the Finke River system. The result is a deep red cleft, with slopes on either side rising 80 meters above the floor. Regardless of the weather or time of day, the Chasm is at its most dramatic an hour either side of noon on a sunny day. It is at noon that the desert sun is perfectly aligned, drenching Standley Chasm in a shower of brilliant red light, the sheer walls glowing from the reflected sunlight to create a breath-taking display.





Simpson Gap



Simpson Gap



On the way back home we stopped at Simpson Gap, this is about 17 km west of Alice.  There is a bike trail that runs from Alice to Simpson Gap, it is supposed to be a very popular trail.  The Simpsons Gap area includes large areas of Mulga, as well as a stronghold for over 40 rare and relict plants. It is also an area that has important spiritual meaning for the Arrernte Aboriginal people, being where several dreaming trails and stories cross.  While walking towards the gap we spotted a kangaroo in the middle drinking water – from where we were positioned he had to hop by us to reach the safety of the mountain, he was only about 15 meters away.  This area was beautiful, I love the trees and rocks and this time we got water.  The boys walked across the rock path through the water, they thought that was fun.  This gap had great picnic areas so I know we will be back as the weather cools off.


The boys after crossing the water.



To eat or not too eat.

When we first arrived in Brisbane, Australia, it was early and we were all tired and hungry – after we checked in to the hotel we decided to take a walk and find something to eat.  The first restaurant we came to we stopped to see what was on the menu, I immediately knew I was in a foreign country after seeing it.  I was so amused I had to take a picture of it and I am still trying to figure out what a spatchcock is!!!! 

Our sponsor was kind enough to leave food in our house when we first arrived in Alice, so we got instant exposure to some Australian foods.  In the fridge there was a bottle of Brekky juice, I spent about 36 hours trying to figure out what the hell a brekky was when I realized it was “breakfast juice”.  Please keep in mind I was jet lagged.  The bread is amazing; it is fresh bakery bread so while it tastes great it lasts only a few days.  I have learned to freeze ½ the loaf and keep the other in the fridge.  There is no wheat, it is white, seeded, or something in between – not sure what it is but it tastes good. Oh and I love the olive oil, it comes with a built in spout so when you pour it in the pan you look like the chef’s on TV. That image was immediately ruined when the oil splattered out of my pan and flames shot up from the gas burner!!!

Everyone knows I love cheese and nuts, we are still working on finding favorites.  Sharp cheddar is called “strong and bitey”, medium cheddar is “tasty” and I do not think there is a mild.  The Velveeta type cheese here is called Cheddar??? Feta does not come crumbled but at least they have it.  The packaged shredded cheese has a weird texture so I think I will be shredding it myself. We have not been able to find salted almonds or in the shell sunflower seeds as of yet, but they have other delicious nuts here.  The grocery carts are called trolleys and they continuously slide to the side, it is hilarious watching the boys push them along.  The fact that we are in such a small, remote town means things run out quickly – I was at the store Monday and there was no lettuce, spinach or packaged salad. 

What I have learned is that Americans are all about convenience, Australians are not!  If you want carrots you buy a bunch and peel them the old fashioned way, no prepackaged baby carrots for the boy’s lunch boxes here. No packaged apple slices, no pizza crust, no lunchables, no frozen breakfast food, and there are very few snack foods.  This is not necessarily a bad thing, but we are struggling to find fast breakfast ideas.  Everyone cooks from scratch, so hopefully I will be an amazing cook by the time I return to the states. 

What I miss so far – crescent rolls!  Pinterest ruined me by showing me tons of snacks and desserts to make with crescent rolls, there will be none of that here. Oh and bacon, the only bacon here is like Canadian bacon, and there is also no breakfast sausage.  Dillon misses lemonade more than anything; if you order lemonade you get Sprite!  Jake misses American hot dogs and chicken nuggets, they have nuggets but he says the texture is different.  We tried to find marshmallows the other day to make rice krispie treats but all the marshmallows are flavored. When you look at the recipe on the “rice bubbles” box here they make their treats with caramels. 

We have found something that is awesome though, the TIM TAM – it is the most amazing chocolate cookie you will ever have.  They come in white chocolate, double chocolate, caramel and honeycomb.  We have tried them all!  Believe me we are not starving, we are just having to adjust our shopping lists and menu.

My new favorite song this week:

Pluto Jonze -Plastic Bag in a Hurricane

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xUWZVTVelk