Situated in the heart of Australia—over 1,300 kilometres from the nearest capital city—is the outback town of Alice Springs. The Central Arrente Aboriginal people are the traditional owners of Alice Springs, which they call Mparntwe. They believe that the landscape of the region was created by the actions of the Dreamtime Caterpillar Ancestors and other ancestral beings.

 

With the spectacular MacDonnell Ranges to the east and west, and Uluru and Kata Tjuta only 475 kilometres away, Alice Springs has become a thriving tourist attraction. The region is rich in Aboriginal culture and history, and is a major centre for Aboriginal art.

 

Although Alice Springs has hot summers with temperatures often over 35 degrees Celsius, the winters are mild and the nights are usually cool throughout the year. The plants and animals around Alice Springs have developed unique adaptations for living in a harsh environment with low rainfall.

 

The Indian Pacific train travels an incredible 4,352 kilometres to connect Sydney (on the Pacific Ocean) and Perth (on the Indian Ocean). Do you know the name of the famous train that connects the coastlines of Australia’s north and south?

 

The Trans-Australia line was completed on 17^th October 1917, when the gap between Kalgoorlie (WA) and Port Augusta (SA) was joined. However, no single train travelled the entire distance due to the different rail gauges (or widths) used by different states. This meant that at state borders, interstate travellers had to disembark and get on another train to complete their journey.

 

By 1969, a standard gauge line from Sydney to Perth was completed. The
Indian Pacific made its first unbroken journey on 23^rd February 1970, taking four days to reach Perth, and was greeted by a cheering crowd of 10,000 people!