I fully expected Saturday night to be rowdy in a place like Coober Pedy but there was no noise at all after about 10pm.
I slept like a log till about 4am when the rug rats next door started to ark up at full volume. I just laid there telling myself that they'll be on their way shortly but the noise continued. Just when I was thinking 'those poor parents' THEY (the parents) started to yell and scream as loud as the kids. Monkey see, monkey do. This continued till 8am when they finally departed, and then the neighbours all gathered outside my unit to discuss 'the shits in unit 23'. Great start to the day.
I head up to reception to ask for a 'quiet' room for tonight and I get asked to check the bike. Several cars were broken into during the night and the security footage shows 3 guys all over my bike. Just what I wanted to hear.
Everything that's not bolted on gets taken into the room each night. After a thorough check there doesn't appear to be anything missing. Lucky me. I get a knock on the door half an hour later and spend some time talking to the local constabulary who assure me that this sort of thing 'rarely happens round here' and anyway, they recognised the idiots from the security footage and when they sober up and return home they'll be arrested.
(The view outside my room) Somehow I find it hard to believe that crime 'rarely happens' round here.
(The view outside my room) Somehow I find it hard to believe that crime 'rarely happens' round here.
I spend the morning doing washing and the afternoon sightseeing around town (I even went to church) but to be honest, it's just so hot I don't stay out in the sun for long before returning to the comfort of the air-conditioned motel room.
Everything you see here is within 2 minutes drive from the motel, right here in town. I have never seen a more desolate place. It's so barren and unearthly they often have movie crews here filming sci-fi's depicting far off worlds.
Unable to cope with the heat of the day I return to the motel, collect my washing, and curl up in my room with a road map and pen to plot the next stage of my journey.
In the morning I'll make for Port Augusta and decide whether to head across to Perth or keep going south to Adelaide.
