In Uluru

It is 44 degrees today and rangers' notices hung on isolated poles in the desert invite people not to go hiking today under the scorching sun. Red desert all around this solitary road. It is hard to believe that road sign on the left-hand side warning that the same road can be subject to floods. "When it rains every 7 or 8 years, it does happen" confirms Jenny, our tall, blond, solid local driver for today.

Snakes, lizards, scorpions and the other regular inhabitants of the area have all disappeared: who can be so fool and stay out there with this weather? But those fools have travelled thousands km by plane, car and coach only to see the show of these million-year-old rocks, shaped by the movement of the Earth and by the forces of nature, change colour as the sun marks the different hours of the day.

The show does not disappoint and, accompanied by a glass of good Chardonnay at sunset, the foolish tourists can happily go back to civilization with their load of pictures and heat-induced headaches.