Darwin Part 2.

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Hard to imagine that we've been in Darwin for a month. The weather has been unbelievable. Hot, but usually with a nice sea breeze, and with so much shade around, we have loved just lazing around, reading our books and magazines, falling in the pool, and generally taking in the laid back style that is Darwin. The weather guy has the easiest job in Australia. He just copies yesterday's forecast!!

Lazing around in Darwin.

We have really loved Darwin. It is clean and the people are so friendly, whether it be in a shop or cafe, or on a tour, everyone just seems happy and wants to help you. Getting around is so simple, with an excellent, well sign posted road system, and it seems that wherever there is a road, there is a cycleway alongside. We've had the old bikes dusted off and lubricated, and have had a fun time cycling along the paths near our caravan park. 

We have become market junkies! The market scene up here is like nothing we've ever come across. Sure there are lots of craft, clothing, jewellery etc., but it is the food that we can't believe. The choices are incredible, and the prices so cheap, it is hardly worth cooking, when you can eat outdoors under the trees, and watch an amazing sunset. Last night we headed over to Palmerston Market (every Friday from 4.00pm to 9.00pm) and shared a starter of tiny

Amazing Darwin sunset.

vegetable spring rolls, chili beef puffs and chicken satay, then followed it up with a delicious Laksa soup full of fresh vegetables, wonton and seafood. Just delicious, and it set us back $25.00! Saturdays, we start the day at Parap Market, where we purchase our weeks supply of fresh tropical fruit and vegetables, then search out some amazing food for breakfast, like a Roti Wrap, Carolyn's favourite, a kind of bread or pancake full of chicken satay and veggies, all rolled up and ready to go, or what I had today, a Cambodian Pancake full of your choice of meat, lots of veggies and a delicious dipping sauce.  We washed it down with a pineapple, honey and coconut smoothy, made on coconut milk and ice. Sure beats cereal & toast!! I've raved on before about the tropical fruit, but we have eaten so much mango, paw paw, papaya, passion fruit and pineapple, all fresh picked for the markets, that our blood must be turning orange!

Cruise on Corroboree Billabong.

Lotus lilies everywhere.

Last week we had new visitors from home. Nancy & Keith came up for a few days, staying in the same Villa that Jillian had occupied the week before. We had put together an itinerary that would give them a good taste of the Top End. On day 1, we started with a drive tour around Darwin showing them the main sights. That afternoon we had booked a Wetlands Cruise at Corroboree Billabong, about 100kms out along the Arnhem Hwy towards Kakadu. This is an amazing waterway, part of the Mary River system. We had chosen to do a sunset cruise to get

Cruising the Billabong.

the best of the wildlife and hopefully the sunset. Along the

Jabiru surrounded by ducks.

main waterway, we quickly saw quite a lot of bird life, and found a 2.5 metre crocodile sleeping under a tree on the bank. We left the main waterway and headed along a narrow waterway full of Lotus lilies. These huge lily pads and pink flowers are just like a carpet, and seem to cover the entire waterway. So fresh and green and full of life. We started to see larger numbers of birds. White Breasted Sea

A sea of Lotus Lilies.

Eagles, Magpie Geese, Darters and Cormorants, Whistling Ducks and several other varieties of duck, Jabiru, Jacana, the list just went on and on. The Magpie Geese are an interesting species. They play a huge part in the Aboriginal culture up here. They are the only member of the goose family that roosts in a tree, and it is the start of their migration season, so quite large numbers are starting to appear, even in the parks and ponds of Darwin! We even disturbed another crocodile, who didn't like being chased up onto the riverbank by a boat! The sunset was pretty good, but the driver got distracted by his mobile phone and parked us behind a clump of trees while the sunset was doing its best work!! Overall, it was a very nice experience, and so different from the cruise we had done at Yellow Water Billabong in Kakadu. 

Nancy, Keith, Carolyn & John
at Mindil Beach Markets.

From the billabong we headed back towards Darwin for a taste of outback dinner at the Humpty Doo Tavern. The place was jumping, with the Friday night crowd in full party mode. We headed for the bistro, which looked relatively quiet when compared to the eclectic mix of characters in the Public Bar next door! The bistro staff were really friendly, and as I'd made a booking I was somewhat of a celebrity. We got table 1, right next to the bar, but she said we could sit anywhere, and she was right, because there was no one else in the place! I thought the pristine "Reserved" sign on our table, was a nice touch. We started a landslide, as in no time, the place had three tables occupied! The menu looked good. Both the girls had the local garlic prawns, whilst Keith had the Duck Breast with cherry sauce. What is the Outback coming to? Bloody duck with cherry sauce!!! I salvaged the outback's reputation with the mixed grill of buffalo steak, crocodile steak and barramundi, all served with chips and a fried egg. Now that's outback tucker!! Actually all the food was excellent, and we had a really fun night.

Darwin Military Museum.

Next day we kicked off with breakfast at The Duck's Nuts. As usual, it was excellent. The scrambled eggs with fresh crab and pesto was the big winner, but all was good. After brekkie, Keith and I dropped off the girls at Casuarina Shopping Mall, and we headed out to the Darwin Military Museum. Situated out at East Cove, where the original military installation protecting Darwin during WW11 was, the recently upgraded museum was very good. We sat and listened to a recreation of the bombing of Darwin, then wandered among the many interactive audio visual displays, of the time that war first came to Australia's shores. Outside, we walked among the many exhibits built inside the old storage bunkers and gun emplacements. All in all it was well done. We headed back to the mall to save the girls, but it seemed they didn't need saving at all!

Dinner on board the Charles Darwin

That night we were out on the harbour, doing a sunset dinner cruise on board the Charles Darwin. I would have to say it was a bit disappointing. There was no commentary at all, and they announced that the buffet dinner was being served, ten minutes before sunset! The whole thing was very self service, even the sunset. The food was OK, and the staff were OK, but you just got the feeling that they couldn't wait for the tourist season to be over! If we were to ever do it again, we would choose one of the smaller sailing ships. In fact we had, but the Visitor Information lady, bum steered us towards the Charles Darwin. She must know someone there!! Still, as usual we had a good time .

Mindil Beach at Sunset.

Nancy & Keith at
Mindil Beach Markets.

Sunday was a lazy day around the pool. In the afternoon, we all headed down to the Mindil Beach Markets for dinner and sunset. We took table and chairs, beer and wine, and introduced Nancy & Keith to the Darwin market scene. They fitted right in.
We walked among the stall holders, gave the economy a small boost, than settled in for nibblies and drinks, before watching a really good sunset and then  having dinner. We went in all directions on the food front. Nancy & Keith stayed Asian, whilst Carolyn went Lebanese with a good old Yeeros, whilst I went Mexican with one of the best bowls of Nachos I've ever had.

White breasted Sea Eagle.

Monday we headed down to the wonderful Litchfield National Park. We did most of the falls, Tolmer Falls and Florence Falls, and showed them around beautiful Buley Rockhole, before having lunch at the cafe at Wangi Falls, where we also had a swim in the rock pool. It is such a wonderful feeling to fall into the refreshing waters of these waterfall pools, on a hot day. Since visiting with Jillian, Litchfield had had an isolated thunderstorm, and apparently it pelted down. Actually, the night before, at Mindil Beach Markets, I had spoken to Bruno, the guide on the yellow truck when we toured with Jillian, and he described how his tour group got caught up in the big storm and everyone got drenched! The result of the storm was noticeably more water going over the falls at all locations. 

Farewell dinner at Char Restaurant.

Tempura Slipper Lobster.

For our last night we booked a table at Char Restaurant, on the Esplanade in Darwin, looking out over the harbour. We had a delightful table out under the trees. It was one of those special nights of good food, good wine, and excellent company. With a name like Char you are hopeful the restaurant is renowned for its steaks and not the way it is cooked, so Keith & I went for the steaks, but the girls couldn't resist the special, tempura slipper lobster. The looks on their faces when the meals were delivered to the table, were priceless. This was a hands on feast, no cutlery required!

Next day we farewelled Nancy & Keith at the airport, and headed back to the quiet of the caravan park. We are always a little flat when visitors leave. Guess it's a bit of being homesick. I turned on the computer, and found a couple of cheery emails from friends we have met on our journey, and we were quickly cheered up again. We keep ourselves busy, just been doing the lazy things, and a little necessary maintenance, as we plan for our trip down the West Coast.

Breakfast Bruschetta at Ducks Nuts.

Darwin Museum & Art Gallery.

For our last Sunday in Darwin, we took ourselves off to our favourite spot, The Ducks Nuts, for brunch. This place would hold its own in any city. The coffee is excellent and the food is really good. Add to this, efficient friendly staff, and it is a very good package, and always full. We both had the breakfast bruschetta, which was delightful, and such a change from the standard breakfast fare served up in most places. After a lingering breakfast we took ourselves off to the Darwin Museum and Art Gallery. We had put off going here, but are so glad we didn't miss out. Entry is free, and it is an excellent balance of local Darwin, and Aboriginal culture and history. The exhibits are first class, and the Cyclone Tracey exhibit was eye opening, right down to the audio room where you could listen to an actual recording of the storm, made during that horrible night. It was a dark room and the noise was deafening. It must have been so frightening in real life, with 200mph winds hurling millions of sheets of corrugated iron around. The building is situated right on the beach, and as you walk around you find large picture windows, looking out across the turquoise waters of the harbour. It was a really nice Museum. The cafe must be pretty good as well, because it was packed!

A round of golf at Darwin Golf Club.

With just a few days to go we decided to have a game of golf at the Darwin Golf Club. So we were up early to beat the heat and headed out to the course. It is a well established and well laid out course, and in pretty good condition. Unfortunately, they were doing a lot of renovation work on the back nine, so we played the front nine twice, rather than keep dodging the workers. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and both played better than expected, not having played for some months! I have to confess though, we were glad to see the 19th Hole, as the heat had really kicked in.

A day fishing safari.

The other thing I had promised myself was to go fishing and catch a barramundi. Unfortunately, not being the world's best fisherman, I didn't realise there was a season, that runs from October till around May. Fishing is huge in the Top End. They must own more boats per head of population than anywhere else in Australia. When not fishing the rivers and billabongs for barra, they head out to sea for sport fish. Again, the sea was not yet warm enough, so reports were mixed. Anyway I bit the bullet and headed out for a one day safari. With 3 other guys, and our guide Peter, we headed out to Leader Creek, about one hour away, to pick up the boat, a locally built 6.5 metre tinny, powered by a 225 HP Outboard. We trolled along Leader Creek unsuccessfully looking for barra, then headed out to the Vernon Islands, which are between the mainland and Melville Island. I was surprised at all the coral reefs. It was really lovely. We caught a lot of fish, but sadly if we'd kept them they'd have gone in a tin with a key on the lid!! We seemed to be catching either littlies or non keeping species. Yes Fred, I was leading the small rock cod count!  Our guide Peter just never stopped trying to find a spot where they were biting. Alas it just didn't happen, so four anglers returned to base with just one Coral Trout to keep!

Sunset Drinks at the Yacht Club.

Storm lashes the Yacht Club.

Mexican Dinner at Prickles.

For our last night in Darwin, we decided to do Mindil Beach Markets, but the storm clouds were ominous, and we changed our minds and decided on Sunset Drinks at the Yacht Club, followed by dinner at a local Mexican Restaurant that was getting good reports, called Prickles. The Yacht Club was lovely. It is all open air and right on the beach, so we found a nice table and sat and instead of watching the sunset, watched the storm clouds roll in. It wasn't long and the heavens opened. There was a real buzz around the club as people ran for cover. It was the first storm of the season, and the first time we'd seen rain since July! It lasted for more than an hour, but eased off enough for us to get to the car and head for Prickles in the trendy suburb of Parap. The place was packed, and we had to wait for a table, but soon settled into a table where we ordered Frijoles to start, followed by Fajitas to share. It was all really good in a fun atmosphere.

The War Cemetery at Adelaide River.

The War Cemetery at Adelaide River.

So next morning we hitched up after 5 lovely weeks in Darwin. We had done most of the packing and cleaning up the day before, so it didn't take long before we were back on the Stuart Hwy heading south towards Katherine, before turning west towards Kununurra and the long journey

The War Cemetery at Adelaide River.

down the west coast to Perth. Not far south is one last important stop to make, at Adelaide River township. It is here that the largest War Cemetery in Australia is located. Laying at rest, are not only the remains of those lost in the bombing of Darwin, and the subsequent air raids all over the Top End, but also hundreds of brave airmen, who lost there lives defending the north from the Japanese. It is an oasis, beautifully maintained, and lush and green. It is quite moving, walking among the headstones and monuments, reading the dedications of so many brave young men and women.who lost their lives defending Australia's shore. We had a look around the small visitor centre, and then it was back into the car and on the road for our overnight destination of Pine Creek, an old gold mining centre, and in fact is still a gold mining centre, home to the aptly named Crocodile Gold Mine.