Rachels' Thoughts

Climbing Uluru was interesting and challenging. When we were climbing we had to follow white lines which showed the easiest way up Uluru. The view at the top was exquisite. You could see long distances – seeing Mount Conner and Kata Tjuta which were both over 30 km away. The steep bits on the way up now became a different challenge – coming down without toppling over.

Tilmouth Well was great fun as we ate around an open fire with our friends from Melbourne. The food tasted smokey but good. Our friends slept in a swag. In the morning and at night we lit a fire. At the Indigenous church, we got our skin names. Mine is Napaljarri. We went Witchetty Grub hunting with Nancy and you had to look for the Witchetty Grubs in the roots of the Witchetty Bush. All Dad found was centipedes and a spider’s nest. After that we made a humpy. It was interesting to see how they were made. I went inside and dusted the footprints off the dirt floor using a small branch as a broom. It was very hot inside the humpy.

Nancy cooked up the Witchetty Grubs in the coals of the fire we had made. I tried one but I thought it tasted disgusting! I was surprised that Mum liked it. She usually hates things that come out of the ground and the coals without being washed!

The humpy was made out of the same bush as we found the Witchetty Grubs under.

Our friends taught us a few Warlpiri words which we were able to speak and be understood. Ngaka –Nganka-Niyarni (see you later!!)