Darwin Australia July 2012

Roy changed jobs earlier this Spring and is now working in Darwin Australia.  In case you don't know, it is at the top of that big island Down Under.  I'll borrow from Wikipedia:
Darwin ( /ˈdɑrwɨn/)^[3] is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,532, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities. It is the smallest and most northerly of the Australian capital cities, and acts as the Top End's regional centre. Darwin has grown from a pioneer outpost and small port into one of Australia's most modern and multicultural cities.
 It was Winter while I was there but the weather was very pleasant ~ 30*C (86*F) every day,which made it wonderful for exploring on my new birthday bike or long walks around town. Roy doesn't have a car but the grocery shops are only two blocks away and we could take a bus to Church if we didn't borrow a work vehicle.   I also zoomed around on Tug our Vespa.  Fun!
 

not your usual scarecrow....

I got there in time to enjoy a fun Saturday at the Royal Darwin Show - equivalent to our State Fairs, or the Ekka in Brisbane.  Since the Northern Territory is so huge, (a state the size of our entire Mid West: Texas to North Dakota, West of the Mississippi to Colorado. no joke), they actually hold it in 3 different towns. Saw some nice quilts; including one all about goats, ate unhealthy fair food, watched the youth livestock parade, and Racing Pigs! What more could you ask for?  Brought back great memories of the California State Fair with our kids :)

Courtesy of Roy's' work we were able to attend an Australian Rules Football game or Footy, as it is affectionately called by the Aussies; the Darwin Thunder were playing a team from the Gold Coast.  (like AAA teams). It is a very paced game with 18 players on each team, no pads, no forward passing and scoring is all kicking the over-sized football through the 4 uprights.  80 minutes of almost constant running. Very fun. Many thanks to our new friend Frank, who happily explained this confusing game to the Americans. 
While we were at the game, we met the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory (like our State Governor), Paul Henderson; nice guy.  Sadly he was voted out of office just before I left at the end of August.  Or I should say, his party lost their majority.  Australian politics is very confusing; at least to me.

Now what would a trip to the Northern Territory be without seeing some saltwater crocodiles up close and personal?  Well, as close as any sane person would want to get anyway.
So we borrowed a car and drove an hour or two South to the Adelaide River to take a river cruise.  Ok, yes, they did bait the crocs with meat.  Saltwater Crocs or "Salties" as the locals call them can be found in almost any river, billabong (swamp), pond, the Darwin Harbor and on the beach.  In short: stay away from any body of water in the Northern Territory. Or be very, very wary.  Yes, the Aussie go fishing and some even swim in rivers and ocean but at least one person is chomped every year in the Territory.  Case in point: a dog got snapped at on the beach while I was there.  Yikes!!!
This was a birthday I won't soon not forget!  

Now a personal note about crocs.   They scare me to death!!  The grizzly bears of Australia.  Unpredictable. Vicious. Huge. Aggressive. Powerful.

Shudder.......








If you know Roy, you know that any trip outside includes some bird watching so on the way home we stopped at the nearby Fogg Dam Conservation Area ( billabong, wetland or swamp).  Yes, that is a croc trap behind Roy.  THEN we noticed the nearby sign..... I was super anxious to get back to the car. Not too smart.  Yes.  Would have very dangerous at dusk or at night. Lesson learned.

Another late afternoon after work, we got complementary tickets to the local racehorse track.  Although we were only able to see the last couple of races,  it was fun.  The Aussies are crazy about gambling in any way, shape or form.

This track is about 5 miles from Roy's apartment

Now just when you might be thinking, "do these people ever stay home"?! We were invited on a Darwin Harbor Evening Cruise.  Now remember, as previously stated, the weather is perfect so lots of activities happen. We hear from the locals that during the summer it is so miserable hot and humid outside, everyone hibernates inside. So of course we went! 

Roy's apartment buidling

close to my 55th birthday