Post-Thesis Holiday, Part 2: Darwin

Darwin is small but mighty. The CBD, which comprises a couple of parks, government buildings, and a network of shops and cafes catering primarily to tourists, is easily explored in a day. If your feet are sore by the end, it’s because you didn’t spend enough time sitting on a park bench and admiring the view.

I drove in from Kakadu in the morning, arriving just before lunch, and I started my explorations in Bicentennial Park. Your progress from one end of the park to the other is marked by a series of war memorials. There is also a secret beach which looks a bit murky until you notice that it’s covered in brightly-coloured rocks.

 

 

After lunch in the park, I had a panic about how I was going to get to the Ghan railway station the next morning and went off in search of the bus terminal. When that was sorted (there's a shuttle that runs directly from Darwin CBD), I went to check out the wharf area. There you find ‘Survivors’ Lookout’, a gazebo with signs detailing the story of the WWII attacks. I learned that the first place hit was the post office, and that they had just gotten the last pool of evacuees off the day before. 

A lift takes you down to the water level, where you can swim in the wave pool.

 

Or you can eat ice cream by the beach, which is what I elected to do because it was on my list, and what can I say; what's on the list must get done. 

 

My feet were aching by the end of the day. Clearly I didn’t spend enough time admiring the view. This I made up for the next day, however…