The Top End

We flew from Alice Springs, which was very hot, dry and dusty, to Darwin in the north of the Northern Territory, which was very hot, dry and humid.



We had allowed a week in Darwin so we could visit the national parks, however I knew I would scream if I had to trek in 39 degrees of high humidity to another awesome waterfall, and we felt a change of plan might be necessary.



Mindful of our children's inheritance, we had booked into the youth hostel at Darwin, but after two nights in our big austere room there, with a fun-size airconditioning unit that couldn't keep us cool, we checked out and moved into modest but comfortable apartment (sorry kids) with a pool.

Both the Rough Guide and Bill Bryson are on record as suggesting that the residents of Darwin need to go to Charm School, so we were pleasantly surprised to meet the friendliest most laid back inhabitants of Australia. There was nothing we didn't like about Darwin, a city of 200,000 people and 65,000 crocodiles, 211 of which have been removed from public beaches so far this year.

We were impressed by the stylish modern museum which houses samples of all God's scary antipodean creatures, and has a fascinating memoir of the 1974 cyclone which devastated the city in Australia's worst-ever natural disaster. The museum and its smart cafe just happens to be located next to an achingly beautiful beach. Splendid.

Once again we sampled the delights of open air movies, this time in a clearing by the beach at the Deckchair Cinema, where fireflies danced and bats swooped in front of the screen.

I've said a lot in previous posts about the gorgeous beaches fraught with peril, and now I'm going to tell you why Darwin is such a brilliant place and deserves to be voted the best resort in Australia. Someone had the bright idea of clearing some swampy croc-infested land near the harbour and building a massive open air swimming pool with a wave machine. The waves in this pool have rip-tides which crash on to an artificial beach, and if you fall off your boogie board or inflatable ring (all provided free) the worst that can happen is a grazed knee on the simulated non-slip sand. For three dollars each we had the best fun since our seaplane adventure; it was the business!

Just one thing; no-one has told Australian men of a certain age that Speedos and pony-tails are over.