Alice Springs.. and it wasnt easy!

It was somewhat of an ordeal to get here.

My last day in Darwin was spent at Litchfield National Park. I spent the whole day in and out of various waterfalls and rockpools. It was so beautiful and i was fairly reluctant to leave. It was a long day though, so by the time i got back to my hostel (about 7pm) i was totally ready for bed, and being that i left at 715 the next morning for Katherine, i figured sleep was in my best interest. Alas, it was not meant to be. When i got home some of the girls in my room were going out for dinner. I said i was just going to bed, but they guilted me with the whole "its your last night we'll never see you again" backpacker seech. Its hard to say no to. So, off we went, intending ONLY to stay at the pub for dinner and nothing else. Of course we ended up staying until almost 1am. To my credit though, i didnt drink anything but water, which was robably the smartest thing i ever did. It was quiz night, which mostly consisted of us doing embarassing things to try and win drinks (we didnt win, but were sufficiantly embarassed). So we get home, i set my alarm for 6am, and fall asleep. Sometime around 7am i actually wake up, realize i have all of 15 minutes to pack and make my way across town to catch my bus. Panicpanicpanic, and the fastest cab ride ever and i make it. As im sitting, waiting for the bus, quite roud of myself for managing to make it on time, i realize that i forgot my food bag. Not a big deal, i can always buy more food. But no. If only it were that simple. I realize, in a horrifying moment of clarity that i have left my beloved Swiss army knife in the food bag. I cry the whole way to katherine (rememeber im functioning on very little sleep) and promptly call the hostel in Darwin. They found it and will mail it to me asap.

Well im feeling a lot better at this point, until someone at the hostel tells me that because katherine is so small, sometimes the mail "just doesnt show up". fantastic. Having exhausted all the culture of the town in one afternoon (woolworths and the library), i send my days laying by the pool and slowly making my way through the enormous pile of outdated trashy magazines in the tv room. Finally, it arrives after 5 days of waiting and i am on the soonest bus to Alice Springs.

whew. I also managed to squeze in a trip to the Katherine Gorge, which was really beautiful, but WAY overpriced.

Im off today to find a job, which im told wont be hard. In fact the girl at my hostel said id have one by the end of the day "if youre not picky". waht that means remains to be seen...