VISITING MPARNTWE INFORMATION (ALICE SPRINGS) The Heart of our Country

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1 VISITING MPARNTWE (ALICE SPRINGS) INFORMATION The Heart of our Country

2 Contents Transport... 1 Around Alice Springs... 2 Shops in Alice... 2 Things to do Uluru options/ extensions What s it like in a town like Alice?... 3 Accommodation... 4 Dance Venue... 4 Cultural Considerations and Guidelines... 4 WELCOME The following information is to help you get the best out of your dance and stay in Alice Springs. We have attempted to cover most aspects of what you might need to know for your trip to this special part of the world. However there may be things we have missed. Alice Springs is a place of the unexpected with a magical sense of mystery, so we invite you to be resourceful, creative and flexible. All the information here is also available on the tourist Alice Springs websites or you can contact us directly for specific questions beingdance@gmail.com Transport You ll probably fly into Alice Springs. Make sure you have booked a flight to Alice Springs and NOT Uluru. Uluru is 500km or a 5hour drive south of Alice Springs. If you want to visit Uluru, you will need to extend your stay in the Red Centre for up to three days to catch the tourist bus out there! (Or you can fly in and out of Uluru and add extra days to travel between the Rock and Alice.) Fly If you fly into Alice Springs, you can easily catch the shuttle bus from the airport into town. There is only really one direct flight per main city in Australia (Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide and Darwin). They all arrive between 11 and 12pm usually. It s advisable you fly in the day before the event if you can, so that you give yourself some space to arrive and be familiar with your new environment. If you are booking from an International destination, we suggest you include your domestic flights on the one ticket as it is cheaper and if a flight is cancelled you are assured the rest of your flight can be changed. The main operator coming into Alice Springs is Qantas. Virgin do fly, however they don t always have direct flights every day. Shuttle Bus It s really easy to buy the shuttle ticket at the airport and shuttles co-ordinate with flight arrivals so no worries about getting into town. $16.50 one way. And return package possible NO public transport There is NO public transport from the airport to the town. It is about 15km outside of town and takes about 20mins for the ride. Taxis Taxis are easy to get they wait for the incoming flights. Cost about $45.00 to town. 1

3 No Uber Uber does not operate in Alice Springs. Car Hire There are loads of car, camper and 4WD hire places in town. We will be car pooling for dancers from town to the dance venue so that you don t need to hire a car just to get you to and from, and you really don t need one to get around town. This is good however if you want to go exploring before or after the workshop or prefer to be independent. Main car hire places are budget, Thrifty, Hertz and Central Car Rentals. Around Alice Springs Alice Springs is really small! You can walk from all the hotels into town in about 10mins! You don t need a car to get around town if you are happy walking or catching a taxi. There is little to no public transport. The dance venue is 20km out of town, no public transport to the venue. We will be offering a car share for people staying in town to the venue so you don t need to hire a car to get to the venue. You will need to bring everything you need with you to the venue as you won t be able to pop back into town during the workshop hours. There are no shops near the venue you are deep in the desert and that is its beauty. Shops in Alice We do have shops here that sell everything you will need. We have Coles, Woolworths, K Mart and Target plus loads of outdoor camping shops! They all open early and close late. Take away shops and restaurants are varied, but close early and are only in the town centre. Some of our favourite places to eat include: Breakfast & Lunch - Star of Alice cafe a bit out of town so you need a car, but great food. Only open Fri, Sat & Sun - Water tank café Funky atmosphere with a recycled shed and garden. - Page 27 and Epilogue Melbourne vibe cafés, right in town down the Mall open most days - Tea Shrine vegan café with simple food, mainly for lunch. On Gap road - The Royal Flying Doctors Café Near the hospital - The Goods Great coffee and simple toasties Dinner & some lunches - Montes serves bar food and has a funky atmosphere (corner of Todd street and larapinta) - Epilogue Open at night and serves a variety of dishes from as menu that changes regularly - Hanuman Situated in Double Tree Hotel, an Asian Fusion restaurant with yummy curries - Indian Coles complex and the flavours of India - Thai Pad Thai in East Side and Sadadeen Thai, over in Sadadeen area Things to do. We recommend a few things to do whilst you are in town. We have left the program open for you to explore the town on Saturday morning and you might like to do these things. v Stay in bed and breath the eucalypt scented air and bath in the clear blue sky and glow of red rocks. v Eat a breakfast at one of the many cafes around town and connect with dancers! Visit the Art galleries there are amazing galleries in town to look at desert art. Open Saturday morning. 2

4 Olive Pink Botanic Gardens -Walk around the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens, eat at the café, touch the native plants and climb the hill that looks over the town. Has a café! Telegraph Station - Long 3km walk out of town to the Telegraph Station first settlement in Alice walk all along the river and then have a coffee! Has a café! Desert Park (will need to get a lift/taxi to Park about 5km out of town, $32 entry fee). Amazing place to experience desert animals and talks. Has a café! Simpson Gap Short walk to Simpson Gap will need to get a friendly local to drive you to these - but worth the visit. Vast rock walls, water pools, sacred sights astounding desert experience of space, light and quiet. This is also on the way to the dance venue. Uluru options / extensions. Uluru is not in Alice Springs its 500km away. If you ve come this far to the centre its worth extending your trip to include this wonder of the world. You can do the trip in several levels of style from basic swags to luxury 4 star. Here are some links to a few companies that can make your trip fun, easy and affordable. Uluru accommodation and tourist activities, Larapinta Trail walks There are companies that can help you if you want to walk sections of the Larapinta trail, from the champagne evenings to the carry everything in your back pack style. Other activities Other activities if you wanted to extend your stay Outback ballooning Camel trek Kangaroo tours What s it like in a town like Alice? Culturally, weather, the town, distances etc.? Alice is beautiful, magical and inspiring. It s rough and you need to be street smart. It s hot and cold. There is no water in the river and there are 30,000 people living here and that covers all sub cultures. 3

5 Alice is small - it s about 6 blocks wide and 6 blocks long, with small residential areas along its sides. It s a regional hub for all the central Australian remote communities. It has everything you need in a town. It s not particularly fancy but has a strong Do It Yourself (DIY) emphasis - if you want something doing. This means that there are lots of eclectic and interesting people and opportunities to create and be resourceful. Leaving town and going out bush is awesome fun you usually need a 4WD if you want to get off road. Phone reception stops about 15km out of town but there is Wi-Fi everywhere in town. It s set up to welcome tourists and visitors. The main tourist information centre is You need photo ID to buy alcohol and you can t buy alcohol before 2pm. You will meet Aboriginal desert culture and people living in the everyday!. Adelaide is 1500km south of Alice and Darwin is 1500km north. So it s a long way to the next city. It can be 30 degrees in the day and freezing at night, sometimes below zero wear layers; wear a woolly hat and a sun hat!! Accommodation There are many accommodation options in Alice Springs. Here is a link to a great overview of what is available. You may decide to communicate to others who are attending the workshop to see if others would like to share. You can post on Soul Motion Australia Facebook page to see who else is coming. Air B & B great accommodation available B&B make sure you get one in town if you don t have a vehicle Caravan and Camping Site all out of town and provide awesome opportunities to start gaze into the night Hostels all great value, always a viable option if you are social Hotels quite a few in town - you will need to book well in advance as they get booked up Billeting - If you go to and fill out a Billet request form (at the bottom of the foundation workshop information) we will do our best to find a local host in Alice Springs for you. Please read the form properly before you decide. Dance Venue The dance venue is awesome. It is located 20km outside of town nestled against towering red rocks, sheltered by ghost gums alongside one of the oldest creek beds in the world. This dance floor is unique and traditional to Alice Springs. Just so you know it s not a wooden floor. It s the bare beautiful land. This floor of red earth and sand will be soft and comfortable on the feet and body, not too dusty and there will be plenty of shade and comfortable places to lye down. There won t be time to pop back into town at lunchtime, and there are no shops at the venue! You are in the arid lands!! So bring everything you need with you each day. There will be plenty of water there. Bring layers as the temperature will vary through the day from cool in the morning (2 degrees) up to 25 degrees in the day. Please read carefully the workshop details on the webpage to get a better understanding of what it will be like and how to prepare. Cultural Considerations and Guidelines The Central Arrernte people are the traditional owners of Alice Springs, a place rich in culture and heritage. 4

6 The Arrernte (pronounced Arunda) people are the traditional owners of Mparntwe (Alice Springs). They have been here since time immemorial. In the beginning, Altyerrenge - ancestral figures - created the landscape and its features, as well as Arrernte Law. Arrernte people continue to live in Mparntwe, observe that law, look after the country and teach children the Arrernte language and the importance of culture. According to the traditional owners, the landscape was shaped by caterpillars, wild dogs, travelling boys, two sisters, euros and other ancestral figures, and as such contains many sites of importance to its traditional owners. Please be aware that there are many sacred sites and spaces in and around Alice Springs. So please don t pick up natural objects as souvenirs and take them home. This can be both disrespectful and cause harm to you if taken away from site. Also please don t just take photos of people. Having a relationship with someone first is vital and you can t do that just by asking for permission, because culturally someone will always say yes. There is generally no word for no in Aboriginal culture. For more information you can visit some of these websites: