Guest post by Jay Aggarwal: The Allure of Uluru

Photograph by Jay Aggarwal

You don’t know what to expect until you actually see it. The journey to see the ancient monolith is quite something. A 4 hour card ride from Alice Springs Airport and you feel that every sight you are passing could pass as a painting or postcard. It’s an alien world being in the red centre. But it’s not until you lay eyes on one of the natural wonders of the world that you really feel the extra terrestrial vibe of it. Surreal yet beautiful. Shaped over millions of years from river debris of limestone, it’s like a chameleon that changes it’s colors during the ebbs and flows of the day. I was simply spellbound, some might think even infatuated.

It’s part of a vast national park called Uluru – Kata Tjuta. Well preserved and maintained, this fragile landscape is intertwined with the spirituality and dream time stories of the Arrente aboriginal people. A highly informative cultural centre gives visitors a chance to delve deep into the history and culture of the place. How bizzare and awe inspiring an experience it would have been for the first aboriginal people to come across Uluru.

Walking around the big rock allows you to see , feel and hear the different perspectives of what this natural wonder has to offer.It was sad leaving this place, but I was rewarded with other beautiful and breath taking structures in the red centre such at Kata Tjuta, Kings Canyon and Ormiston Gorge. A trip to the red centre is a must, it will leave you richer than you were before.