We all were up bright and early at 5:30 AM to catch a flight to Alice Springs, which pretty much right in the center of Australia. We had to take two flights, Melbourne to Sydney, Sydney to Alice Springs. We were met at the airport by a local guide, Damian or Damo, with a large 20 seat,  four-wheel drive van that we would be in for the next several days.

We toured the Alice Springs Telegraph Station Historical Presereve and learned that Alice Springs was set up in 1871 as a pivotal link along Australia’s Overland Telegraph Line, connecting Darwin and Adelaide. It is almost exactly in the middle of Australia and was selected because there was water just below the surface which made it a desirable location.  All materials were brought in by camel caravan until the railroad came through. Before the Alice Springs Telegraph station was established, messages to England went by sea voyage which would take weeks. Telegraph reduced this time to 5 hours.

While in Alice Springs, we also toured the School of the Air which has provided remote learning for Outback children since 1950. They currently provide remote learning for 105 pre-K to 9^th grade students in an area the size of Texas. Our next stop was the Royal Flying Doctor Service which provides free emergency aeromedical evacuations and healthcare services for people living in rural and remote communities in Australia. There are currently 81 aircrafts providing this service.