Darwin

Tuesday, June 7

We arrived to Darwin in the early evening. The temperature change was so dramatic that Carl’s and Karen’s glasses fogged up as we got out of the Uber – so humid!

When I looked for places to stay in Darwin there were only two options for under $100. One was a cabin at a family camping resort and the other was a 4 bed room in a hostel. As I was looking at the options, the camp resort booked up. So Youth Shack Backpackers hostel it was. I was able to reserve 4 beds so we could have the room to ourselves. I’m not sure whether this was the best idea or if we should’ve gambled and let ourselves be separated or have a weirdo solo traveler stay with us. The place was smelly, and the people there were young and weird so I think we made good decisions.

As we stood at the counter to check in one of the staff came in from the pool area and plopped something on the desk. It was a handful of colorful dildos with pool rings around them. He brought his eyes up to meet ours and explained, “it’s for the games later”. When we stared at him blankly he added, “for cock toss”. This made us feel very mature (old) and out of place. But it was in our price range so we laughed and went with the flow.

The hostel offered free curry at 7pm followed by games (e.g., cock toss). We decided to try the curry because it was free food. Of course, poor Karen the vegetarian got the spicy pumpkin curry and she could barely eat it.

So we went next door to Shenanigans Irish pub to get her some more food. It so happens they were about to start trivia night! So we got some beers and some trivia sheets and sat down to play.

Karen and I were debating what our team name should be and Carl was at the bar ordering when a tall, disheveled man named Steve sat at our table, in Carl’s seat. He had a trivia form and looked like he was sincere in playing, so we didn’t tell him to move and just shifted over. As the trivia started we saw him struggling on his own so we offered he could join our team. The first place prize was $150. We told Steve, our token Australian, first place was one free pint and it would be his if he could help us win.

One of the first questions was what is the name of the monkey mascot for the cereal, coco puffs. Our guess was that it was probably coco so I started to write that down. Steve was insistent that the answer was coco puff. We assumed he didn’t hear correctly so we repeated the question. He was adamant, “coco puff! Coco puff!” As he yelled he seemed to have a dazed look. The three of us looked at each other and decided this guy must not be on our level or he had recently suffered a serious head injury.

Then there was a question we really needed an Australian for. They were asking about the 2021 National Rugby champion. Steve looked like he was on another planet. We asked him to name ANY rugby team. “Any team at all,” we said. He said “Darwin”. Knowing nothing about Australian rugby, we knew that wasn’t the answer. We hung our heads in sorrow that our Australian didn’t work, and hoped we could get the next question.

We had long given up on Steve when the announcer asked something like “what is the word that starts with the letter ‘L’ that means a corporation’s responsibility to pay. In between chewfulls of steak Steve mumbled “liability”. The three of us were still trying to understand the question and Steve looked at us and shrugged, “liability?” Which was definitely the answer. So he wasn’t totally brain dead after all!

Steve answered another question about a prime minister after that but, we didn’t win despite his help. We did get fourth, which we thought was pretty good, considering. We noticed that the first place winners were sitting at a table that had a plaque above it with their team name on it so, they’ve been at the game for a while.

Steve told us he worked in refrigerators and that earlier that day he had “a blew-ie”. We discovered that this meant that his clutch blew out. We asked if he was hurt because of this but he didn’t understand the question. So our best guess is he was in some kind of car accident and likely hit his head pretty hard.

We were neither proud or ashamed of our trivia ranking as we walked back, next door, to our hostel and discovered the hostel had trivia planned for the next night. Opportunity for redemption!

Wednesday, June 8

Carl and I booked a tour to Litchfield National Park for $160 per person. We had also wanted to go to Kakadu National Park but those tours were $250 per person so we had to cut that idea. If we had more time we might’ve rented a car or a camper van, but with the three of us and only there for three days, day tours were our best option.

We met the tour van outside our hostel at about 815am. When we got in the van was already full of elderly Australians. It was like our wine tour in Margaret River, and we loved it. Elderly Australians shower us with attention (so many questions about what it’s like growing up in US) but they are also well traveled, open minded people so they have plenty of similar stories themselves.

Our first stop was Berry Springs, a thermal pond area. The water wasn’t hot, but it was warmer than river water. And there were no crocs! We swam around and upstream to waterfalls before getting out to enjoy some coffee and biscuits brought by the guide, Abby.

On our way to the next site our guide pulled over on a roadside turnout. As we got out of the van we saw, looming above us, a giant termite mound that was about 13 feet tall. Abby explained that termites build mounds to protect the queen and to have a place to mate and store the young. For most mounds that we see only 1/3 of it is above the surface, with another 2/3 below the ground.

As she spoke she identified the old and new parts of the mound. Older parts have hardened whereas the newer parts are like crumbly dirt. While trying to get a photo, one of the women on the tour accidentally shoved her thumb through a fresh part. A hundred termites came pouring out and surrounding the hole, trying to quickly repair it. We were able to peek inside and see the honeycomb shaped interior structure.

The next stop was Wangi Falls. The falls were beautiful and made even prettier by the fact that there was no one swimming in the pond in the foreground. Every year following the end of the wet season the park rangers will check for crocs in the waters. They hadn’t finished checking, so the pool was closed until further notice. We hiked to the right up a trail and some stairs for a bit but there were no views of the falls.

Then it was on to Buley Rockhole. Unlike the name suggests, this area was not one hole but instead a series of swimming holes fed by a trickling creek. We started on the lower side and found some nice swimming holes and then slowly worked our way upstream in search of the perfect spot. The place was surprisingly busy and filled with every generation. It was good wholesome fun. Afterward we walked up the trail to find our guide and the rest of our tour group eating lunch at a picnic table. The tour included a pretty good chicken wrap and some candies that we all shared.

Then we went to Florence Falls. A giant metal staircase takes you down to the base of the falls where the ponds were full of people swimming. We then took a meandering trail back up the hill to the car park. The trail went through the dry, grassland type of bush that is all around Darwin but interspersed were pockets of monsoon forest, or tropical forest.

We were able to stop again on the way home to see more termite mounds. Abby pulled over to an area that had the magnetic termite mounds. These mounds are built along the earth’s magnetic fields with the thinner edges facing north and south.

These termites use a slightly darker dirt and build the mounds to about 3 feet high. The result is that a field full of these magnetic termite mounds looks just like a natural graveyard filled with dark and spooky tombstones. Scientists think the termites build mounds along magnetic lines in order to keep cool. I think it’s because they have a flair for the macabre.

It was at this stop that Abby had us try green ants. She had been talking about them all day and then she found one for us to sample. She came over to us holding a squirming ant with a bright green butt in each hand. She said to bite the butt off and chew. It was like a very sour green apple candy. It was so sour it stung my tongue.

When we got back to the hostel we prepared for the hostel’s trivia night. As we ordered drinks and sat down we felt like the parental chaperones to a high school dance. Some young girls next to us (later found out they were 18) asked if we were staying at the hostel. When we said yes they looked surprised and said they hadn’t seen us around. Not every day you get to play drinking games with your elders, I guess.

The first round was recent news stories. Many were European or Australian stories and we didn’t stand a chance. Then there was a picture round and a music round. The picture round was outlines of different countries and we crushed it. We did pretty well on the music round too considering the speaker was broken and we could barely hear. One of the last rounds was a challenge to make one person a mummy with toilet paper. I thought we did well, but we were too thorough on the top and ran out of time. All in all we came in fifth place. After the results were called we left to get some kebabs down the street.

Thursday, June 9

We met our tour bus down the street in front of an address where all the tour vans seemed to meet. There were about 10 people all shifting their feet, most of them were waiting to go to Kakadu for the day (and we were mildly jealous).

The van showed up and we all piled in. The driver had a microphone and she explained some things as she drove. Much of what she said we had already heard from Abby the day before.

We were driving for about an hour until we pulled off down a road that seemed to be someone’s farm. We came to a two story structure that had a cafe and gift shop on top and a huge fake croc statue below. We took photos and milled around while we waited to join the boat for the jumping croc tour.

As we boarded the boat we saw a juvenile croc on the mud, just hanging out. As soon as we pushed out there was a big croc following us, waiting for play and snack time. The guide told us we had to push away from the dock before he was allowed to feed any crocs. The first croc was named Wonk Eye on behalf of his wonky eye that was probably chewed on by another croc.

Wonk Eye put on a good show for us – jumping up with a little wiggle – each time he went for the meat hanging off the end of the stick. The guide drove the boat so that both sides could have a chance seeing him in front, without having to stand up and lean over. We were told where the life jackets were but warned that if we fell in, drowning would be the least of our problems.

As we scooted down river we saw another lady croc, but she wasn’t too interested in playing with us. Further down still we found mama croc and several of her little baby crocs. The babies were as small as lizards! They were so cute!

The guide said that less than one percent of crocodile eggs actually become mature crocs. Many of the eggs never develop and even if they do, the young ones are picked off by all sorts of predators, including other crocs.

On the boat ride back to the dock the croc feeder fed some meat to the birds. Some massive hawks followed the boat and then came swooping down to pluck the meat out of his hands.

The guides told us many croc facts and jokes as well as a few near-death stories. Back on dry land we got back into the van for a one hour drive back to the city. We went next door to Shenanigans for lunch. I got a Cesar salad that was fine and Carl got bangers and mash, the lunch special. His ended up being barley cooked hot dogs on top of plain mashed potatoes with some peas. It was not good, and still expensive.

Carl went to take a nap while Karen and I had a wander. We went to a pedestrian street and looked at some of the old lady clothing stores and book shops. We met back up with Carl and we all went over to the museum.

The museum was, surprisingly, free. And worth it. The main reason I wanted to go was to see the Sweetheart Crocodile, a monstrously big croc that was accidentally killed when humans tried to move him from a fishing creek to a croc farm. We paid our respects to the taxidermied croc.

The museum also had many natural history sections and some aboriginal art. There was a whole section about Cyclone Tracy which hit Darwin on Christmas Day in 1974, destroyed the town, and killed 71 people. The before and after satellite photos were incredible. There was also a room you could go into to hear a recording that was taken during the storm. The room was totally dark and the sounds of the storm sounded similar to a freight train running over us. It was spooky.

After the museum we walked over to the Darwin Ski Club to get some drinks and look out over the water. When the lady at the museum suggested that we go to the club I asked “water ski?” (clarifying that it wasn’t a snow ski club as the name ski club implied) and she didn’t bat an eye as she said “of course”.

At the ski club the view was nice and the tunes were classic. Carl and I ordered ciders as a nice alternative to overpriced light beer. Once we finished our drinks we walked down the hill to the Mindil Market. The market happens every Thursday and Sunday night from 4-9pm. There were a ton of different food stalls and lots of artsy things for sale.

Carl and I got a croc burger to share. We had learned on the tour that crocodiles were overpopulating the Darwin area as humans killed off the predators that usually eat their eggs. Locals were killing crocs that posed a threat to fisherman, but not doing anything with their bodies. At least by eating their meat we were actually doing something with the crocs, and saving eating meat from other, non-sustainable sources.

We were told that everyone goes to the beach at sunset and claps when the sun drops below the horizon. Well, we timed getting our food perfectly but as we sat down on the sand we noticed there were big thick clouds right over the horizon. As the predicted time for the sunset came and went we wondered whether anyone was ever going to clap. I started clapping to see if everyone needed inspiration but even Carl and Karen just stared at me.

After the un-celebrated sundown we walked back to the market and got some tropical flavored ice cream before calling it a night.

Friday, June 10

We slept in a little and then Karen and I walked down the street to a nail salon. Despite having made appointments it took them a long time to seat us and do our nails. They were surprisingly busy for a Friday morning.

As we walked into the shop we heard a familiar episode of Friends playing. We looked all over for the tv but couldn’t find it. Then we realized it was right above us and that everyone getting their nails done had just sat silently, watching us look around for Chandler Bing like a dog looks for a treat. We then watched about 7 episodes of Friends while getting our nails done.

Afterward we rejoined with Carl and walked over to the wave pool. For $8 we were given admission to one of the coolest places in Darwin. They had plastic lounge chairs arranged under huge beach umbrellas, as if we were at the beach, and some grassy areas for suckers like us who didn’t get there early enough.

We waded into the pool and discovered that the waves come on every 15 minutes or so and last for about as long. We were trying to figure out which kid we could rob a pool ring from when an alarm went off – time for waves!! We each grabbed a boogie board and went for it. The waves were powerful and they knocked us over more often than we could catch one. It was so fun!

At the next interval we found some pool rings. The inner circle was a bit too small for my bum so I either had to sit atop or squish in like a cork. I chose cork and just bounced along atop the waves, taking videos of Karen and Carl with Karen’s Go Pro.

On the next pause we managed to snag some beach chairs under an umbrella and we sat there, enjoying the breeze, as if we were on the real beach. Of course, the real beach in Darwin is croc city with a sprinkle of deathly jellies.

Later that day we went to the Deckchair Cinema. During the dry season, Darwin’s Deckchair Cinema shows new art films outside and most of the seating is deck chairs. We got their early so we could save seats and grab some food truck food before the movie started.

As we waited for the movie we watched the sun set and spotted an orange footed scrub fowl hanging out on the lawn. The previews came on and we could spot so many teeny tiny geckos on the screen. Then the flying predators came out. I couldn’t focus on the first 20 minutes of the movie because I was trying to see whether the big flying creature was a hawk or a megabat. And then the stars came out and it was magical. The movie itself – Night of the Kings – was good, but the showstopper was the theater itself.

We walked back to the hostel and packed our bags again. At 2:30am we got an Uber to the airport. As we waited outside we saw the Darwin city nightlife: all the drunk humans. Each group expressed sympathy that we were catching a flight instead of drinking with them. But, then we were off to Singapore! Bye (for now), Australia.