ALICE SPRINGS

We arrived in AS on Tuesday afternoon and set up camp then did some shopping.  We spent a fairly quiet day yesterday although Royce did fix up the mirror that had come down.  There are a couple of ring necked parrots hanging around the caravans - one caravan in particular (probably because they feed them most nights).  They also attract a large number of top knot pigeons and galahs.
We woke to light rain early this morning and the rain gradually increased in intensity for some of the morning, eased up a bit and then we had rain off and on for the rest of the day.
When the rain first started this morning we noticed several of the pigeons deciding to take a bath.  They lay down on the road, rolled to the side and lifted their wings!  It was quite comical but if you didn't know better and just stumbled across them you would have thought they were all dead!
We had heard a forecast of strong winds and heavy rain in AS today so we put up our annexe this morning - just to be on the safe side!  As it turned out there was not much wind, spasmodic rain but very high humidity.
We indulged in a bakery lunch then headed to the Reptile Centre where we all got to hold a snake and a couple of the lizards.  A juvenile Spencer Goanna has the run of one of the rooms in the Centre and you can pat him.  There is a large display of snakes and lizards and also a salt water crocodile, a frog and freshwater turtles.  We then went to the Pioneer Women Hall of Fame and that was very interesting.  There were some very tough women in the early days of the outback settlements!  I am very glad I didn't have to be one of them - what a hard life they led.
We came home and Royce and Raymond had a cat nap then put up Raymond's annexe while Hazel and I visited KMart and did some shopping.
We went to Heavitree Gap Tavern for tea (it was lamb shank night so that was all you could get) then came home, pigged out on scones, jam and cream, had a cuppa then cleaned up and now doing the Blog.
We may head off to do some exploring of the East Macdonnell Ranges tomorrow - depending on weather.
Something (mosquito? ant?) bit me lots of times on the legs last night and they have come up in large red welts that are so itchy they were driving me crazy this morning, so I had to buy Stop Itch and I have been piling that on all day today.  I will be so glad when they go away!