DAY ONE - Melbourne to Alice Springs

Sunday, October 6

Qantas Airlines brought us to sunny, dry and warm (but some might think it hot) Alice Springs this morning.  We took a taxi to our lodgings then walked into the town center. The town center is also known as the Central Business District or CBD in Australia.  In the CBD we stopped by the visitor center to get some information about our upcoming Red Centre Way drive. 

From the town center you can go just about anywhere, and we chose to visit the nearby "Residency."

Central Australia had its own administration from 1926 to 1931 and this was the home of the one and only Government Resident and Vice Regal Representative of Queen Elizabeth to ever serve in this position. Alice Springs is currently in the Northern Territory of modern Australia. The Northern Territory remains a Territory and not a State because the majority of the population voted against statehood in 1998.

The walk to the CBD was shaded by eucalyptus trees and took us along the Todd River.  As you can see, there is a lot of sand there but no water!  There is a saying here that if you have seen the river run with water three times during your lifetime, then you are considered a local resident.