2023 Alaska, Asia, Australia, Arabian Peninsula Trip
Day 68/105 - Darwin, Australia
This morning was like half of a sea day as we weren't scheduled into Darwin until around 1:00 p.m. We enjoyed time on the veranda, taking in the sea air and slightly cooler and less humid weather. We approached Darwin right on schedule.
We have been briefed on Australia's biosecurity rules. If you recall the news lately, a man was flying to Australia. On a layover, he got a Subway sandwich. He ate half and put half in his bag to enjoy on the plane. He fell asleep and awoke just before landing. When he went through immigration, he indicated on the form that he wasn't bringing food items into the country. They found the sandwich, which he honestly forgot about since he had planned to eat it on the plane, and was arrested and heavily fined. I get the whole biosecurity thing, but common sense has to come into play and I'm not too sure there is any here. During COVID, neighbors were encouraged to report other neighbors if they were seen outside. Seriously. If you remember early entries on this trip, our ship's hull had to be fully cleaned before we would be allowed into Australian waters. Today, we were required to dip our shoes into a chemical cleanser before we walked down the gangway. Wow.
We are in Darwin, a city located in Australia's Northern territory.
Australia's Northern Territory has about 247,000 residents and 144,000 of them live in Darwin. We weren't expecting much and were surprised to find a relatively metropolitan city.
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| I'm not sure what this float is used for |
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| A couple of friendly-looking tugs were cruising about |
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| After seeing all the huge container ships, how cute is this little one? |
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| They had a candle burning for us when we arrived - yeah, that's what I'm going with |
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| Arlona was watching the sights on our arrival |
As soon as we docked, a flurry of activity started beyond just setting the gangway. Supply trailers arrived and a crane was put in place to load and unload items to and from the ship.
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| I had never seen a semi-trailer with its own built-in crane to move containers |
Our tour today was the included tour, Northern Territory Museum & Art Gallery. Given our initial thought that Darwin wasn't much, we didn't expect much from the museum. We were pleasantly surprised to find a terrific museum. There were very nice displays with local art, and historical depictions including the 1974 cyclone that all but wiped Darwin off the map, outstanding nature displays of the local wildlife, and more. I definitely recommend a visit to anyone that comes to Darwin.
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| Arlona's hand is included for size reference |
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| Nope, nope, nope |
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| This is a termite mound - yikes |
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| Skeletons of a marsupial hippo (left) and huge flightless goose (right) |
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| Sweetheart - a saltwater crocodile that was over sixteen feet long and weighed in at over 1700 lbs |
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| Flowers outside the museum |
The bus driver gave us the option to return to the ship or get dropped off in town. We hopped off in towns and wandered for a bit. We wandered through the mall area - a street closed to traffic with shops on both sides.
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| Christmas decorations were up |
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| A fun display inside a store |
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| Look! |
As we walked around, we heard lots of bird calls all over. We started looking and wow - do they have a lot of cool birds here!
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| Magpie goose |
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| Magpie lark |
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Australian pied imperial pigeon
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| Friarbird |
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| Figbird |
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| Friarbird (I think) |
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| Australian white ibis |
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| Masked lapwing |
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| Swallow |
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Orange-footed scrubfowl
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| Lorikeet |
We decided to make the relatively short walk back to the ship along the waterfront. They were decorated for Christmas as well.
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| Arlona checked out the water at a swimming area |
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| A retention pond near the waterfront was like glass |
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| We arrived back at the port and headed back on the ship |
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| Both The Restaraunt and the World Café featured turkey and fixings to celebrate US Thanksgiving |
After dinner, we walked out back on deck #7. Arlona looked down and spotted this anhinga checking out one of the verandas on deck #3.
Tonight's entertainment was the 2023 movie, Champions starring Woody Harrelson and Kaitlin Olson. Arlona checked the TV and found that it was available to watch in our room too, so that's what we did. Of course, she ran to the Star Theater and grabbed some popcorn so we had the whole experience, just in our room.
We're in port overnight tonight and until about 1:00 p.m. tomorrow. We're planning to go out tomorrow for a walk and see more of the city.
At the port is a little museum that showcases the role of Darwin in WWII and also the Royal Flying Doctor program. One of the coolest programs ever. Darwin was obliterated during the war. Small but engaging museum.
ReplyDeleteStay away from any body of water. The salty’s are everywhere.
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