Alice Springs Desert Park

[Martin Hash]

Alice Springs, in the middle of the Australian continent, is famous for its heat & deserts. Luckily, an uncustomary wet spell had greened the hillsides, when my wife, Gwynne & I, visited the Alice Springs Desert Park, which otherwise would have been ignominious but for the notably high admittance price. Australia is expensive by world standards but who can afford to take their family for $85? Actually, I was more impressed with the creatures outside the enclosures than inside, like the lizard that ran on its back legs & a fat skink sunning itself on a bench.

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Otherwise, the kangaroos ignored us, and we spent as much time listening to people talking as we did with the wildlife, but it was when a Stone-curlew walked in front of us at the Bird Show. Notably, everyone wears a wide-brim hat, which is both fashionable & functional, the temperature is high, approaching 110 degrees, so everywhere you go are swimming pools & sexy accents. Personally, I used an umbrella.

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