Finally it was time for Darwin. This was always our half way point destination, with the plan to spend Linda’s 40th birthday up here, as well as visiting Ned and Peta’s new house.
Linda’s brother Andrew and his new girlfriend Niamh would also be joining us. Plus it also aligned with the Darwin Cup, so it promised to be an awesome week!
Wednesday, Aug 2nd – (DAY 118)
Finally we were off to Darwin! We were awoken really early by our loud neighbours at around 7am, so we just decided to get up and have an early brekky.
Then it was time to hit the road. Today’s drive was 3h30m so we decided to split it into two 1h15m drives each. We finally finished our Alexander X book. It was okay but pretty average really, we’re glad to be starting to a new one after the Darwin leg of our trip.
We got into Darwin around 1pm and found they had shoved us up the back in the shit area. Pretty annoying, considering we booked this accommodation 4+ months ago and specifically requested shade.
What we received was absolutely zero shade, a site right near the noisy highway in the dirt and rocks, next door to the permanents that looked pretty westy.
We spoke to the front office lady who was able to move us to a much nicer spot on a smaller block. Luckily we had a smaller caravan! This spot was better, right near the camp kitchen and plenty of shade.
The rest of the afternoon was spent at the park where we tried to escape the heat by having a swim. There was a nice pool right near our caravan and we spent a good couple of hours there.
Adam even made a new friend at the pool, some old dude who could tell a yarn with the best of them. He was stuck chatting for an hour or so.
We then quickly had a shower and made our way to Ned and Peta’s house for a bit of tea. Helen and Peter were also there and we had a great time chatting for hours and catching up. In fact, we didn’t leave until about 11:30pm so it was a good catchup!
It was weird catching up with people again, we hadn’t really spoken to any friends in person since the earlier part of the WA trip in Bunbury area.
Thursday, Aug 3rd – (Day 119)
Linda’s birthday eve! The last day of her 30s. Unfortunately we were woken by a leaf blower and aeroplanes. We’re right next to the airport and these planes are super loud, let me tell you.
We got up early and had some breakfast and then found a spot outside in the shade and caught up on some work.
Next we headed into the Darwin CBD to go for a little look around. We got scooters and scooted around the water foreshore which is a pretty awesome area. There’s even a wave pool that we think we may return to tomorrow.
Unfortunately, half way through Adam’s scooter died so we had to walk the rest of the way in the 36 degree heat. We ended up finding a bridge mall equivalent and got an awesome lunch at a place called Pokelicious.
After that Adam finally found a decent barber and got his wild hair cut off which was well overdue. It turns out the barber was from Sheffield in the UK and his brother in law plays in The Championship for Bradford City. The players name is Tyler Smith, so a player for us to watch out for this season.
We strolled around town a little bit longer, then headed back to a shopping mall about 25 minutes away. Linda got herself a hat for the racing on Monday and for the first time since Denmark, we got a box of raspberry licorice! Long overdue.
Then it was back to the caravan park for another swim and chill out, before heading to the Mindel Beach Sunset Markets, where we caught up with Ned and the gang again.
These markets were fantastic. There were people everywhere and tons of food stalls and festivities going on. We got ourselves some food and went to enjoy an amazing sunset overlooking the ocean.
After that we explored the market for another hour or so and got an ice cream, then called it a night and went back to our park. We had a quick games session with Rach and Varun and then caught up on some work.
Tonight Andrew and his new girlfriend (who we haven’t yet met) are arriving, so it’s going to be a busy few days coming up. Plus Linda’s birthday tomorrow!
Friday, Aug 4th – (Day 120)
It was here, Linnie’s 40th birthday! Today was super hot so we spent the first couple of hours of the morning relaxing by the swimming pool and having a swim.
Then around 11am Andrew and Niamh arrived, who met for the first time. She was super nice and we knew we were going to have a good few days.
After having a chat, we decided to go into town and grab some lunch. We went into the docklands foreshore area that we were scooting around yesterday and found an awesome sports bar called The Precinct Tavern.
We spent a good few hours here having some lunch, beers and playing our boardgames. Turns out Niamh loves boardgames as well and was familiar with a lot of the ones that we play.
After the pub we went for a little walk around the foreshore area and did a little bit of shopping, then went back to the park to get changed for tea. Linnie didn’t know where we were going as it was a birthday surprise.
Birthday tea was at a restaurant called Moorish, which was a tapas style Spanish restaurant and it was absolutely delicious. We shared some tapas between us, while Ned, Peta, Helen and Peter also joined.
Linda also got a surprised with her favourite chocolate mudcake.
After tea we walked around the main strip looking for somewhere to have a quiet drink. We were in the nightclub district and music was blaring everywhere.
Eventually found a nice quiet place where we spent an hour or so, before coming back home around midnight.
Saturday, Aug 5th – (Day 121)
Andrew and Niamh ended up kicking on and didn’t get back until 4am, so we didn’t see them until nearly midday. It gave us a good opportunity to have a rest and a little swim again.
Then we headed into town again to some little farmers market. I say little, but it was a pretty reasonable size actually. Here we got a laksa for lunch which is like a hot soup.
Laksas were really common here in Darwin and we were recommended to have one. Pretty weird to be eating a soup on a 36 degree day, but we were told they cool you down on the inside. That turned out to be rubbish as it made us hot if anything. But damn, it was nice.
After the market we took a 40 minute drive to Berry Springs, which was also recommended. It was like a larger version of the springs we went to in Katherine.
The water was stunning and we spent a good 2 hours or so here. We could have spent longer, but we needed to get back for the movie tonight.
Tonights movie was part of Linda’s birthday week celebrations and this was the one thing she was looking forward to. It was a premiere at the outdoor Deckchair Cinema. The special thing being Sigrid Thornton and the rest of the cast would be in attendance.
We arrived at the cinema shortly after doors opened and were really lucky to get a seat. About half an hour before it started Linda saw Sigrid Thornton and got to meet her and get a photo taken. A dream come true meeting one of her favourite actors ever.
The movie was called Slant. We’d never heard of it, but it was an independent film made on a shoestring budget. We absolutely loved it, it was kind of like a Tarantino film and was a dark comedy / murder mystery type film.
Afterwards they had a Q&A with the cast and then you could go up and meet them and have a chat. We ended up being the last ones to leave and had a good chat with them. Linda also got to have more of a chat to Thornton as well.
Sunday, Aug 6th – (Day 122)
We didn’t get up to much for most of the morning. It gets really hot so there isn’t a lot to do at the park other than go to the pool, or find shade somewhere near the caravan.
Around midday Linda, Andrew and Niamh went shopping, while I went back to the outdoor lagoon in town and caught up with Ned and the gang. We got some Mexican for lunch at a place called Hot Tomale.
Then after that we went back to the Precinct Tavern to watch the footy. Carlton were playing St Kilda. It was a pretty ordinary game, with Carlton coming back from 4 goals down to snatch a win late on and move up to outright 5th on the ladder. Hard to believe given where they were seven rounds ago.
After the footy we went for another little swim, then went to the Mindel Markets again, the same one we went to on Thursday night just gone. We enjoyed another awesome sunset, good food and perfect weather, then headed back to the park around 7:30pm.
It was still pretty early, but we were pretty conked out by now after a full on few days. We decided to get an early night, as tomorrow at the Darwin Cup was sure to be a long day.
Monday, Aug 7th – (Day 123)
Darwin Cup Day! This was a day we’d been looking to for a while and it was finally here.
The morning was spent chilling by the pool having a swim and read. We left for the cup shortly after midday but finding a park proved to be rather difficult. The plan was to park in the middle of the track, but we had to wait 25 minutes for the next race to finish before we could park.
Eventually we got inside the track around 1pm and caught up with the other guys. We were all stood under a little umbrella, which would be a struggle for the rest of the day given the heat. So our mission was to find some chairs.
We found one chair, then relocated under the big tent near the bar. Then 1 chair became 2 chairs, and 2 chairs became 3 chairs… Eventually we ended up with 6 chairs and a table, so we were set for the day.
For lunch we found a baked potato, the same one from the market on Thursday night. Peter had a hot tip for the cup, number 3, so everyone in the group was backing that horse.
We ended up watching the race over in the members area (it was easy to sneak in) but unfortunately number 4 won, with number 3 nowhere to be seen.
After the race Ned and Peta headed home, while Andrew and Niamh stayed for the after party, so we decided to head to Grill’d for tea, then headed back to the caravan to watch the Matilda’s World Cup game.
It was a Round Of 16 match which they beat Denmark 2-0. They’re now into the Quarter Finals on Saturday against either France of Morocco.
Tuesday, Aug 8th – (Day 124)
Today was the last day Andrew and Niamh would be here in Darwin, with their flight scheduled for some time after midnight tonight. We didn’t have any plans so we thought we’d see where the day takes us.
It turns out we all must have been tired because the entire morning was spent at the park. About 3pm we decided to head into town for a look around, this time to Cullen Park which is the ritzy area of Darwin.
We found a little bay area and had a look around, then headed to Lola’s for some beers, a late lunch and some boardgames. Then we went and chilled out near the boardwalk area watching the fish.
By now it was getting late so we went back to the bay area and caught an amazing sunset, then played some more games on the grass. Niamh’s friend was here as well, so we went back to Lola’s for a beer and a chat.
The other two had time to kill, they didn’t need to be at the airport until after 11pm so we went to the foreshore area and went on the Darwin big wheel thing, then explored the area one last time.
We then dropped them at the airport and it was time to say goodbye. An awesome few days and we were super happy they come up to celebrate Linda’s 40th.
