Tuesday 21st April - Darwin
This is my last day in Darwin, and it's been beaut staying with Debbie, Greg and their delightful daughter Charlotte. I went to Berrimah to catch up with work colleagues Andy T. and Gino today. They have a well integrated laboratory complex with all disciplines working in the same area. After a cuppa and a gool chinwag, I rode to Lee Point which looks to be the most northerly sealed road on mainland Australia. On this trip I have now taken my bike to the highest, most easterly and most northerly sealed roads on mainland Australia. Shopping in the afternoon for some groceries, and a "Nanna Nap", completed a lazy day. I headed out to tea at the Trailer Sailer Club for tea with Andy and Gino, and watched the sunset across the bay. Tomorrow the adventure continues, as I begin the final phase of the journey and I begin to head south towards home. The mileage (kilometerage?) is building, and I've booked the bike into a dealer at Alice Springs for next Monday for it's 6,000 service. Stay Tuned, but I may not be able to do another update to the Blog unitl I get to Alice Springs.
Monday 20th April - Darwin
It's lovely to be here with Chris, and we spent the day playing tourist around the city of Darwin. I
N the morning we visited the Oil Storage Tunnels, hewn into solid rock under the city during WWII, and designed to hold ships fuel oil in a facility protected against bombing. The tunnels are quite extensive and now house a collection of photographs of Darwin taken during the war. The tunnels were never used to store fuel oil, but for a time after the war were used to store aviation fuel. We left the Oil Storage Tunnels and evnetually found our way to the Museum and Art Gallery where there was an impressive display on Cyclone Tracy which almost wiped Darwin off the map in 1974. I remember Christmas Day 1974 when we woke to hear reports that Darwin had been destroyed. Most sobering was a small darkened room where an audio recording of the cyclone was played at full volume. It would have been a terrifying experience for those who were bunkered down in the most secure places that they could find the ride it out. The display also showed pictures of the destruction and how the building code has changed in response to the destruction of 1974. We had lunch at the Museum Cafe and then went to the 
East Point Military Museum, another must see for anyone visiting Darwin. We watched film of the Japanese bombings during WWII, and wandered through impressive displays of military equipment. A walk to Casuarina Beach and Thai for tea capped off another special day. At 1.30am my alarm went off, and I took Chris to the airport, as her time in Darwin came to an end. I have missed having family to share this adventure with me, and it was sad to see Chris head for home.
This is my last day in Darwin, and it's been beaut staying with Debbie, Greg and their delightful daughter Charlotte. I went to Berrimah to catch up with work colleagues Andy T. and Gino today. They have a well integrated laboratory complex with all disciplines working in the same area. After a cuppa and a gool chinwag, I rode to Lee Point which looks to be the most northerly sealed road on mainland Australia. On this trip I have now taken my bike to the highest, most easterly and most northerly sealed roads on mainland Australia. Shopping in the afternoon for some groceries, and a "Nanna Nap", completed a lazy day. I headed out to tea at the Trailer Sailer Club for tea with Andy and Gino, and watched the sunset across the bay. Tomorrow the adventure continues, as I begin the final phase of the journey and I begin to head south towards home. The mileage (kilometerage?) is building, and I've booked the bike into a dealer at Alice Springs for next Monday for it's 6,000 service. Stay Tuned, but I may not be able to do another update to the Blog unitl I get to Alice Springs.
Monday 20th April - Darwin
It's lovely to be here with Chris, and we spent the day playing tourist around the city of Darwin. I
N the morning we visited the Oil Storage Tunnels, hewn into solid rock under the city during WWII, and designed to hold ships fuel oil in a facility protected against bombing. The tunnels are quite extensive and now house a collection of photographs of Darwin taken during the war. The tunnels were never used to store fuel oil, but for a time after the war were used to store aviation fuel. We left the Oil Storage Tunnels and evnetually found our way to the Museum and Art Gallery where there was an impressive display on Cyclone Tracy which almost wiped Darwin off the map in 1974. I remember Christmas Day 1974 when we woke to hear reports that Darwin had been destroyed. Most sobering was a small darkened room where an audio recording of the cyclone was played at full volume. It would have been a terrifying experience for those who were bunkered down in the most secure places that they could find the ride it out. The display also showed pictures of the destruction and how the building code has changed in response to the destruction of 1974. We had lunch at the Museum Cafe and then went to the 
East Point Military Museum, another must see for anyone visiting Darwin. We watched film of the Japanese bombings during WWII, and wandered through impressive displays of military equipment. A walk to Casuarina Beach and Thai for tea capped off another special day. At 1.30am my alarm went off, and I took Chris to the airport, as her time in Darwin came to an end. I have missed having family to share this adventure with me, and it was sad to see Chris head for home.
Reading these posts is making me homesick for Darwin! Sounds like you've seen the important bits. Very dissapointed in you for not taking bathers to Litchfield. You would have been fine paddling in your undies...I've seen people wearing much less there!!!
ReplyDeleteSee ya real soon! :-)