In the bush country

Belu Maheshwari

Australia, or better known in cricket parlance as Down Under, can be roughly divided into three distinct geographical areas. Urban cities, mostly situated next to the Ocean on South East side of the country like Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, Gold Coast. Then, there is the bush country, with huge rock formations and the flora being hardy shrubs, bushes and plants, which survive the extreme of climate. The third is the Outback, which is hundreds and thousands of kilometres of individual farms, which rear animals and staple crops, where some owners have their own helicopters and small planes to go from one part of the farm to another.

The cities are modern but real Australia is the hinterland, where aborigines, or the original inhabitants of Australia, live. In the middle of the country is one such tourist destination called Uluru, or Ayers Rock, three hours by flight from Melbourne or Sydney. The major attraction is the sandstone rock formation or inselberg, about 10 km in circumference. It is a homogeneous mound, a giant stone monolith. There are no sliced areas.

The first settlement roughly dates back to 10,000 years ago though the rocks are said to be 60,000 years old. The rocks have crevices, springs, waterholes and caves, which have been adorned by paintings. These paintings, which are not easy to understand, are embellished with many tales. Over the years, the paintings have been restored keeping in mind their ruggedness. The whole area is aboriginal land, a sacred hill, of great religious significance to the indigenous people.

History lists three tribes having resided in Uluru, who combined are called Anangu. There are many folktales related to the mound. There were violent battles between the indigenous people and the British settlers. It was only in 1985 that the Anangu were given land rights by the government, though since 1993, a dual policy is being followed with land rights of the aboriginals but management of the park lies with the government.

The local population of the town is less than 5,000. However, it keeps brimming with tourists, who have been coming here since 1936. Roughly four to five lakh tourists visit annually. They are mainly from Australia, the US, China and Japan. There are many tour operators who take you around the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park, a Unesco protected heritage site as the area where the rock formation is called. The countryside is rugged and sandy, with desert conditions. The mound can be climbed from one side. This will, however, not be allowed from October next year as climbing on the sacred rock is not approved by the Anangu. The height of the rock is 348 m. There have been many deaths while people attempted to climb the rock, which is open from one side to the public. These rocks, which were first sited in July 1873, are colloquially called the Olga. The rock changes colour with the rise and setting of the sun.

Another attraction of the town is the Field of Lights, which has solar lights fitted over 12 acres forming a kaleidoscope before dawn. The aboriginal habitats also form a part of the tour, where their culture is highlighted. You can meet the aborigines, talk to them and see their art. Some of them speak good English, others a little broken but they can communicate. The Australian government is trying to educate them, getting them jobs, besides giving back their land and integrating them into the mainstream. All this while letting them retain their culture and tradition. The aboriginals, however, are resentful of their lands being taken over. They are not too keen on integrating into the mainstream. Alcoholism remains a major problem among them. Poor diet and poor living conditions are also issues. Uluru has a number of organisations working among the aboriginals but they are facing an identity crisis.

The nearest big town Alice Springs is about four and a half hours drive. The place has a desert climate. Mornings and evenings are pleasant. The day gets warm in spring and summer, which is from November to February. In winters, the temperature can go below 5 degrees.

More than 73 species of reptiles have their habitat here. Snakes are worshipped by the aborigines. A tale told to all visitors is about Kunu, the woman python, who fought Lira, the venomous snake, to take revenge for killing her brother. She won the fight.