Tracking into Darwin

Days 42 to 46

Tuesday 22^nd May to Saturday 26 May.

Darwin! I have totally fallen in love with this city! The city centre reminds me of a mini Hongkong or Singapore and yet the true nature of this city represents the real Australian laid back, “she’ll be right mate” attitude. 

This bird is a reminder of home. They are scavengers and they ar SO UGLY!!  but we have them on our billabong. They are the scavengers of the caravan park

The climate is warm, balmy and welcoming and the people even more so! You can wear thongs at the yacht club for dinner and be received warmly everywhere. No Judgment or expectations.

Howard Springs we are camped near this beautiful natural springs.

We have happily played tourist for the last five days, but in doing so, we have discovered a different Darwin.

One of my favourite subjects in Primary School was Social Studies. I enjoyed the many lessons where the history of Australia was laid out in depth. We learnt dates and drew maps and copied timelines which represented all the major developments and incidents which formed the Australia as we know it today.

Not once do I remember the date, February the 19^th 1942 being cited as a date which was of historical note and played a significant role in Australia’s development.

It has been a real eye opener this visit to Darwin. We have been here long enough to visit the Museum, the War Museum and a structure which runs under modern day Darwin. The six Oil Tunnels! We have visited these massive constructions which were built after the fact!

There are six of these tunnels and they are designed to hold oil so that the city of Darwin's fuel supply is not compromised. We learnt after visiting these that they were never used. Built after the fact!

 We have visited massive gun emplacements which were built after the date. That date was February 19^th 1942 when the Japanese bombed Darwin and 100’s of Australians lost their lives. This was not a one off date, this occurred over the next year and included the bombing of Japanese submarines in the harbor as well as the destruction of wharves and significant structures in Darwin.

Gun Emplacements built after the bombing of Darwin!!

This trip has been a continuous list of firsts and our visit to Darwin has continued to add to this.

It’s amazing that this city has not only survived everything that World War II could throw at it but also survived Cyclone Tracey and has continued to thrive and grow.