When you think of Australia,
I would imagine one of four images come to mind: The Sydney Opera
House, Uluru (you may know it as Ayers Rock), The Great Barrier Reef or
kangaroos. Visitors to Australia are often trying to maximize their
time down under. Many don't realize that Australia is equivalent in
size to the contiguous states or Europe. It is difficult to experience
all that Australia has to offer in just a couple of weeks. That being said, I am always surprised to hear people took the time to travel to the center of Australia to see Uluru (named after the tallest peak, Mt Olga) are just over 15 miles from Uluru. I had read very little about The Olgas before my journey to the center of Australia. As my wife and I watched a sunrise over Uluru I kept turning my head and looking at the odd grouping of rocks off in the distance. As soon as the light show on Uluru's face completed, my wife and I jumped in our truck and headed for the Olgas. We spent much of our day exploring this great attraction.
From the outside you see smooth
domed rocks that are the size of small mountains. You would be
short-changing yourself if you simply viewed the Olgas from the viewing
area. Plan ahead and bring a day pack and plenty of water and plan to
spend several hours exploring the Olgas by trail. We chose to hike the
longer "Valley of the Winds" trail. Midway through this five-mile hike
an inner hidden gem reveals itself to you. Within these dry rocks is a
lush valley of rolling hills, creeks and trees. Hiking the Olgas is a great way to spend a day that should be book-ended with sunrise and sunset viewing of Uluru. Uluru is absolutely magnificent to watch as the sun changes the color throughout the start and end of the day.
A favorite experience for visitors to Chicago or tourists in their own city is taking a Chicago Architectural boat tour on the Chicago River. Chicago is a city rich with architectural heritage and there is no better way to enjoy it then from the river. Take in the historic Wrigley Building, Chicago's tallest building the Willis Tower and the newest addition to the riverfront Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago.
