Packing in the action, Tuesday saw me visiting the Tjakupai Aboriginal Cultural Park. There was a nagging feeling at the back of mind as to how this might turn out and I think that was fed when I got there. The Tjakupai are the local aboriginal people and some of the people working there are from that population. Some are from neighbouring groups. The visit to the park is fairly structured, there are presentations, demonstrations and shows laid out for you to take in and learn more about the aboriginal way of life. This included a talk about the local art - it's not all dots that's the technique used in the centre around Alice Springs; didgeridoo playing; a talk about weapons and tools; boomerang throwing (I was useless); spear throwing (I didn't even try); a dance performance and a show and tell talk about food and medicines. But, it was all very superficial and brief, probably to cater to the attention span of the average tourist whose first language is not English let alone Australian with an indigenous accent. Any of these activities lasted 20 minutes at the most. I was left wanting more information and detail. It was all good entertainment, the didgeridoo player would make an excellent stand-up comedian if he ever wanted a new career, but it was lacking something. There is building and refurbishment work going on so hopefully it will change for the better.
After the Park, there was a journey in a gondola planned. I hadn't been in one of those since my skiing holiday. Next door was Skyrail, a 7km cableway (gondola to me) taking you up over the tree tops of the tropical rainforest to the aboriginal village of Kuranda. Unlike my usual experience, I got a gondola to myself. This meant I could take as many pictures as I liked of the rain and cloud-stricken scenery. There were a couple of stop-off points, our coach driver had helpfully suggested to give one a miss as that opportunity would come up again later. I took the first and went for a damp stroll on a boardwalk through some rainforest. Fascinating to see close-up the total chaos of vegetation, all lush and unusual to the eye used to the gardening section at Homebase.
It was a slow chug or glide up to Kuranda, no baying thousands of skiers impatient to get on their way, but we did arrive eventually. The village is in the land of the Tjakupai people and it became settled when a railway line was being built. I think the wikipedia entry is fairly succinct in describing it as "a vibrant "Village in the rainforest" with tourism being the current backbone of the local economy". It also says "...was popular with alternative lifestylers, a theme which still runs through the local community today". Yep, right on that one too. It's a small village, set upon making you spend more money. There's a mini-zoo, a butterfly sanctuary (I nearly went in but balked at the price of $19), a bird place, along with lots of retail outlets and galleries. To be fair, I did find a very good gallery with decent art in it, including some interesting ceramics by a local person. I even dithered long and hard over the practicalities of buying ceramics and getting them home unbroken; sense prevailed and my bank balance was happier. I didn't feel inclined to explore too much mostly because it kept raining on and off, so I may be doing the place a big dis-service. Possibly not.
The return journey was on the Kuranda Scenic Railway. Now this was good. An old train running from a beautifully restored station. The line runs down the side of two gorges with peeks out over some jaw-droppingly wonderful scenery. As suggested by Mr Coach Driver, the stop at Barron Falls was worth waiting for. I had heard it wasn't doing much but I think all the rain we've been having has woken it up a bit. We went across a bridge in front of another falls but I can't remember the name! I enjoyed the train journey far more than the Skyrail.
Overall, a pretty good day. When will it stop raining?
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