Darwin

It is evidently the coolest July in Darwin for many years, and we are enjoying the fact that although temps rise to 32 C in the middle of the day, it is pleasant and comfortable the rest of the time and humidity is low. We had heard many complaints about the place, the heat being one, so we are lucky.

Another complaint was that anchored as we are in shallow Fannie Bay, tides can be up to 8 metres, so huge expanses of soft mud are exposed and it is difficult getting the dinghy in. Also wrong, tides are only that big at springs, and we have managed to go in at high or half tides when the hard sand (no mud) is no problem at all.

In fact we are really enjoying being here. Darwin is a small city and we can cycle to the centre easily. Buses are cheap so a trip to the more distant large shopping mall is also easy. Most of the boats have arrived, and it is fun meeting up with old friends and making new ones. 110 boats registered for the rally, but a proportion of those are in the 3 marinas, and the anchoring area is huge anyway. The first time we will see everyone together will be at a BBQ next Saturday. In the meantime we head over to the Darwin Sailing Club where we all have temporary membership and can have a beer on the large outdoor terrace to watch the sun go down. No rain and very little cloud in the sky so sunsets are pretty good.

Darwin was just about destroyed in cyclone Tracy in 1974, only 400 houses remaining undamaged. Consequently it has been rebuilt with more substantial buildings and more thought to planning hence walkways, cycle tracks and pedestrian shopping areas. The Northern Territory has the largest percentage of Aboriginees, and their culture and art is visible everywhere, in museums, craft centres and street art. There are still huge gaps between these communities and the country as a whole. Life expectancy, general health, educational levels, unemployment, alchohol and drug abuse, domestic violence, and crime levels are a worry. So at least it is good that after years of abuse and neglect the Aboriginal culture is being appreciated.

For the last few months we haven’t looked far beyond arrival in Darwin, so now are starting to think about Indonesia and what we will see there. I’m pretty sure we will find the corruption and disorganisation infuriating at times, but are looking forward to seeing somewhere that is new to both of us.