We booked into the Oasis Caravan Park for 2 nights, about 35kms out of Darwin, as there were no real options closer to the city. It was a small, friendly park, and it was fully booked, but they managed to find two sites for us. As we arrived in the afternoon, we didn't venture into the city that day, but stocked up on groceries etc at the local shopping centre.
Next morning we drove into the city, drove to Stokes Hill Wharf, and saw a huge US warship at the harbour with helicopters and aircraft on the deck. It was certainly impressive, and it seems that that the marines were in town - lots of them! They were everywhere, and carried themselves well, were neatly dressed in civvies and very polite.
We had fish and chips at the wharf, then headed into town to check out the visitor centre. We bought tickets on the 'Hop-on-hop-off City Tour Bus'. It cost $30pp, and is a good way to get a feel for the layout of new places, as well as listen to a commentary on the history of the city. We stopped off at the Darwin Museum, which had some excellent exhibits, in particular the Cyclone Tracy and the Ocean Mimic exhibits. And there was a display of paintings by Ben Quilty, who went to Afghanistan for about a month as the official artist to document our soldiers - it was very powerful and moving, well worth seeing.
After finishing the bus tour we went to have a look at the 'wave pool' at the esplanade area, then had a drink at one of the bars overlooking the swimming area, killing time until the Mindil Beach Markets started. We caught up with Carole and John at the markets, wandered around and had some good food, enjoyed the entertainment, and missed - yes, missed, the sunset! We were too busy buying things, and thought we had plenty of time. Ah well, there's always another day.
I was desperate to get my hair done, and Trev had seen an ad at the laundry area at our caravan park, so I called Janis, who lived just 3km from the park, and she squeezed me in. She was lovely, did a great job, and gave me lots of info about Darwin. She recommended that we try Seafood on Cullen Bay, where we could watch the sun set over the sea while dining.
We took her advice and tried it that evening. It was a huge restaurant, with wonderful views, and the food was great, too. Yes, we both overindulged (translate that to 'pigged out') on lovely fresh prawns, spicy mussels and octopus, crab, salt and pepper squid, as well as tender pork with scrumptious crackling, and a variety of other options. And - they had a chocolate fountain! I had a banana covered in chocolate and it was delicious. All of this for only $39.95 per person - what a bargain. And I did get to watch the sun set over the ocean!
Next day we were off to Litchfield National Park to catch up with Carole and John who had left the day before.
Next morning we drove into the city, drove to Stokes Hill Wharf, and saw a huge US warship at the harbour with helicopters and aircraft on the deck. It was certainly impressive, and it seems that that the marines were in town - lots of them! They were everywhere, and carried themselves well, were neatly dressed in civvies and very polite. We had fish and chips at the wharf, then headed into town to check out the visitor centre. We bought tickets on the 'Hop-on-hop-off City Tour Bus'. It cost $30pp, and is a good way to get a feel for the layout of new places, as well as listen to a commentary on the history of the city. We stopped off at the Darwin Museum, which had some excellent exhibits, in particular the Cyclone Tracy and the Ocean Mimic exhibits. And there was a display of paintings by Ben Quilty, who went to Afghanistan for about a month as the official artist to document our soldiers - it was very powerful and moving, well worth seeing.
After finishing the bus tour we went to have a look at the 'wave pool' at the esplanade area, then had a drink at one of the bars overlooking the swimming area, killing time until the Mindil Beach Markets started. We caught up with Carole and John at the markets, wandered around and had some good food, enjoyed the entertainment, and missed - yes, missed, the sunset! We were too busy buying things, and thought we had plenty of time. Ah well, there's always another day.
I was desperate to get my hair done, and Trev had seen an ad at the laundry area at our caravan park, so I called Janis, who lived just 3km from the park, and she squeezed me in. She was lovely, did a great job, and gave me lots of info about Darwin. She recommended that we try Seafood on Cullen Bay, where we could watch the sun set over the sea while dining. 
We took her advice and tried it that evening. It was a huge restaurant, with wonderful views, and the food was great, too. Yes, we both overindulged (translate that to 'pigged out') on lovely fresh prawns, spicy mussels and octopus, crab, salt and pepper squid, as well as tender pork with scrumptious crackling, and a variety of other options. And - they had a chocolate fountain! I had a banana covered in chocolate and it was delicious. All of this for only $39.95 per person - what a bargain. And I did get to watch the sun set over the ocean!Next day we were off to Litchfield National Park to catch up with Carole and John who had left the day before.
1 comment:
Hi sounds like you are having a great time, dont hurry home its freezing and feel like it might snow. Back into it next week might see you all then.
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