Uluru, Kata Tjuta, King’s Canyon and Alice Springs

Ivan, Gottfried, Kolbe, Paul and I traveled to Alice Springs in the red, sunburned center of the country for a holiday following the long retreat. Ivan is a good friend who is an explorer at heart. He has a passion to see new things and gain new experiences. From the border towns of Slovenia and Italy, he is a gentle person who has a nice way of interacting with many. Gottfried is an Austrian with a good sense of humor. He is a very kind man with a generous heart. He is so neat, tidy, and organized. Kolbe is from Korea. He has a boisterous personality at times, but when you get to know him, his heart is incredibly gentle. He loves to photograph and he had a mystical retreat-like experience to his vacation. Paul is a Bohemian intellectual who requires much alone time. My best guess is that Paul enjoyed many parts of the holiday and good times of our companionship, but it often seemed like there were four of us and Paul. So many times I wanted to pull caringly and gently Paul aside to ask him if he realizes how he comes across to us, but we tried to respect him and care for him as best we could. After all, you do have to wait until a person is ready to receive some caring conversation. All in all, we enjoyed many of our conversations with him and we shared great laughter.

A desert?

The central part of the country received more rainfall this past year than in the past five years put together. The place was so lush and green. We did not see much of a desert-like area at all, but water was high in the streams everywhere we went. We saw a number of camels and wallabies and a few kangaroos. Alice Springs had a very wet season just before we came, but the weather cleared up the day we arrived. This seems to be a theme with me. Everywhere I go is spectacular.

The first night at Alice Springs we stayed at a campground run by Brendan Heelan. We offered Mass for him for his generosity to us. We were grateful to Paul for bringing hosts and wine for Mass, but he placed the wine in a former mouthwash container that gave the wine a unique taste. We all felt cleansed after attending Mass.

Uluru

Ulura (formerly Ayer’s Rock) is the big attraction in the area because it is the largest rock on earth. There are many theories about its existence, but it seems to be a rock legacy that did not erode as quickly as the other rock formations around it. It does dominate the landscape and is considered sacred by the aboriginal people. I wish I knew why it was considered sacred.

We were told that is would be amazing to just gaze upon the rock as it would change almost minute by minute. So we watched and looked and it stayed the same. People told us of the purples, and pinks and reds that it would become, but it pretty much stayed the same color.

We walked the base and we can see why only one side of the rock is shown in photographs. It was an easy two hour walk. Many people scaled the rock even though it is the people’s wish to refrain from rock climbing.

Kata Tjuta (The Olgas)

Kata Tjuta (silent J) was a terrific climb. It was a great series of rock formations that had many oases in it because of the springs and billabongs and the great recent rains. It was so fresh and Gottfried would say that it looks like central Europe’s hilly regions. We each shared good stories of our retreats with one another as we walked. I liked this place much better than Uluru because of the great diversity of flora and fauna and the varied rock formations.

Gottfried spotted a kangaroo hopping along the side of this gigantic rock. It looked like it should fall off the ledge, but it was hopping at such great speed. That night, we lodged at the Ayer’s Rock Campground, which caused us to laugh. There is nothing but wide open space and great expanses of land everywhere we go, but four grown Jesuits checked into this one room with two bunk beds in a space that is only five feet by seven feet. We gave Ivan the big room because he snores occasionally.

The resort area of Uluru is nice, but I wanted to see where the people lived. I went to the library and the rural area of town where 700 people live. They are there for the resorts. The population swells to 1,000 at the end of April through September. I tried to arrange Mass there, but the people said they just celebrated the Easter Sunday Mass. After several attempts to organize something, I realized I was working harder than was needed.

King’s Canyon

King’s Canyon is by far the nicest place to visit and the park is free with no commercialization around it. I would ditch Uluru and focus on King’s Canyon if I were the Australian tourist bureau. The walk was harder than the others, but not at all difficult. It gave us great diversity of rock formations, views, and places of interests. The Garden of Eden has a nice pool where many swim to refresh themselves. We were all very happy with the trails and sights. Unfortunately, we drove from Uluru to King’s Canyon and then back to Alice Springs in one day. We were never so happy to get out of the car as we were that night. We stayed with the Marist Brothers at Alice Springs.

Alice Springs

The Marist brothers bought us a beer at the Finkle and Bull or something like that, which is right across the street from the parish. It was a hopping place. A Catholic woman thought we might be priests so she came over to say hello. She works at one of the local Catholic schools and she delighted us with her enthusiasm and zeal.

We checked into Campfire in the Heart and had a tasty meal of kangaroo over rice with David that night. We slept very well. They have a nice prayer room at their place and we all felt so comfortable. We talked with David about the situation with Aborigines, but I still have more questions than answers. The next day we hiked Simpson’s Gorge and Standley’s Chasm. At the chasm, we had a fabulous lunch that cost next to nothing. We all tried to tell them to increase their prices, but they seemed content with what they offered.

The next morning we took it easy. Mass was beautiful because it was such a mixed congregation. Two adults were being received into the church and two were being baptized. The parish priest (from Ghana) invited us up to bless and welcome the new folks into the church. His homily was good; the spirit was great; we heard a new song that was written about God’s presence in the area (For You); the house was packed. It was lovely.

We then had lunch at a very nice Mediterranean restaurant and took off to see the original Alice Springs. The temperatures were so lovely. We sat by the water and notice a woman drive her car onto the grassy area. She got out of the car and dropped off some stuff and drove away. She was dressed in all black except for a red hat. Ten minutes later two other cars drove to the same area and when the four people got out of the cars we noticed they were dressed in black as well. The five of them formed the Alexandria Quartet (why not Quintet?) and they played in concert for 2.5 hours. We listened for an hour and then headed back to the house to prepare dinner. It was a lovely afternoon. We lucked out as this was their second time in three years that they decided to put on the concert.

I left with a very good impression of Alice Springs. The place was so lush and green. It is a city of 25,000 people and it has a lot going for it. I could live there if I was assigned there, but I know I would feel isolated.

Aborigines

I do not know what to make of the Aborigines in the area. I realize that when I consider their situation, I impose my western worldview upon them. The situation seems so sad, but maybe they are not sad. The society seems to tolerate them, but there are security guards to keep the indigent people out of various stores or to keep moving in the malls. Yes, there are other better integrated Aborigines around, but the sheer numbers of wandering Aborigines are the ones who catch your eye. Australia has wrestled with this better than Americans have wrestled with the plight of the Native Americans (or the original immigrants.) I have to be careful not to impose my value systems upon other peoples whose lives and the meaning of their lives I don’t yet understand.

Canisius College, Pymble

While I enjoyed my holiday, I was so delighted to return to Pymble because it is home for me. The familiar smells and sights made me so happy. Adrian and Joe were there to warmly receive us and we were also greeted by our other brothers there. I had difficulty sleeping because I was so just happy and grateful to be back home.

We had a Seventieth Birthday party for Joe Sobb the next night. Joe is such a fun man and a bright man. He has a smile that makes you want to smile. The place was hopping with many guests and we decorated the dining hall and recreation room to celebrate Joe’s life. He’s a good man.