So. We are in the Timor Sea, just west of the Arafura Sea and just south of the Banda Sea. We are in Darwin, the largest city in the state called Northern Territory. It is closer to five other world capitals than it is to its own capital of Sydney. Darwin and the surrounding area is one of the lightning capitals of the world due to its humid tropical conditions. In 2002, a line of thunderstorms produced 5,000 lightning strikes in one light show! Also, Darwin is the beginning point (or terminus) of The Ghan, a luxury train in the Great Southern Railway fleet, through Alice Springs to Adelaide on the southern coast. Ready for the price? In the high season, for four days and three nights, the price ranges from $3,689 to $5,999 per person. The distance is 1,851 miles, so the cost is about $3 per mile. Australian dollars, that is….but still…..
So, we start with a photo of the harbor from the ship and then several photos from around town. Our original plan was to ride a local bus as far as it would go, see a bit of the city and suburbs, and ride back. To our chagrin, the price was more than the little bit of cash we had on hand, and credit cards were not accepted. We hadn’t taken our ATM cards with us, and couldn’t withdraw any more cash, so that idea was kaput. We still found some interesting spots around town. You can see the sign about the first talkie in Darwin in 1933, followed by its accompanying picture. Can you find the several people hiding their faces?
Then we stopped in the local Anglican cathedral, Christ Church Cathedral. We thought it so interesting that Jesus is portrayed with aboriginal features. And the glorious stained glass window? It represents fishing nets and the upsurge of waves during a cyclone, so of course it was constructed of a beautiful array of blue glass. Then, we found a mob of kangaroos, each by a different artist. As usual, we end with the funnest (or funniest) photo of the day. We felt sorry for poor Nemo!
Goodbye, Australia! Goodbye, New Zealand! (It is hard to think of one without the other when we enjoyed them both so much.) We arrived in Sydney on December 13 and, both on land and cruises, have been in and out of the two countries over the past three months. We very much enjoyed the friendly, fabulous people and all of the beautiful sights. We want to return soon and spend even more time in this part of the world.
