Not a croc about crocs

Today I felt as though all my paranoia over being taken by Crocodylus porosus (salt-water crocodile) was vindicated. A woman was on the radio this morning saying she had spotted a crocodile off Nightcliff Beach, a beach in the northern suburbs. She said her 2 dogs were out in the water having a paddle when the salty made a b-line for them. Luckily they swam back into the shore when she called them.

This afternoon Surf Life Saving NT issued a warning not to go swimming and had sent volunteers down to the coastline to warn people that a croc could be waiting to take them off shore. Its such a pity that man eaters and lethal jellyfish lurk in the inviting turquoise tropical waters. I suppose you can't have everything.

Every week a short one

I still can't believe that it's almost mid winter and I'm still wearing shorts. They are better than jeans because I don't get as hot on my walk to work in the mornings.

This morning I got out of bed just before 6:30 and went for a jog. Sure the weather is a lot cooler in the mornings than what it was when I first arrived, but as I started my morning shuffle I realised it's still very steamy. Boy I love the winter weather up here.

Latley I've been thinking about the time I've spent here so far. Not only have I spent a lot of days wearing shorts (which is strange because back in Newcastle I usually wear jeans, even in the summer), but the weeks have flown by. I realised yesterday I now only have 1 month and 1 day left at work up here. I wounder what's in store for my final Top End month?

No doubt, more days of wearing shorts.

This dosn't make me a bogan...Right?

Ever since my trip to Jumping Crocodile country I've had a strange compulsion to buy a crocodile tooth to wear around my neck. I must confess I have no idea where this urge comes from.

On Saturday I finally gave into my desire. I found myself in a tacky souvenir shop handing over my hard earned for an overpriced piece of enamel that was riped from the jaw of some unfortunate farmed reptile.

I know the whole concept is barbaric. I promised myself I wouldn't sink this low the moment I saw the kangaroo testicle key rings, mummified crocodile foot back scratches and the dead kangaroo paws with the middle finger rudely extended for all time. But that was four weeks ago.

I have been dreaming a bit about crocodiles and I haven't submerged myself in an open body of water since I've been here. I don't intend to.

In explaining to myself my ghoulish jewelry I have found comfort in the namesake of this city's theory of natural selection. But if I'm truthful to myself that argument holds little water. I keep thinking of a crocodile wearing my foot around it's neck. It scares me.

What scares me more is that I may be displaying bogan tendencies.

Not Just A Hole

This is not just a hole. Of course I wouldn't have known this if I had walked past it on a weekday. If it were a workday I probably have jogged past it anyway.

The first time I went by this ditch I didn't even notice it. I was on my way to the museum and art gallery of the Northern Territory. I woke up on Saturday morning and knew that was the one thing I wanted to do with my day. Or at least the other thing than jogging 9km without stopping (which I did!).










On my way back to my flat I was in a plaque reading mood (I still had my museum eyes in). In
fact I saw the sign first. It said 'If I lie in this ditch you can get a very good view of the harbour' which was unusual I thought. I continued reading. It turns out this pretty normal looking hole was dug as a trench to defend the city during the World War II.









Not satisfied with this explanation I got down on my knees and had a look at the view myself (photo above). At that point I felt a real connection to Darwin's past, something I could only imagine as I walked around the museum jut a half hour earlier.

Great to Tree Here

I thought I was impressed by the ruins of the Palmerston Town Hall, which was all but destroyed by Cyclone Tracy, but I'm more taken by this amazing tree's will to survive. It's called Galamarrma or the Tree of knowledge and you find it just outside the Darwin City Council Chambers (which are just across the road from where I'm working). In fact they had to build the chambers around the tree because it's so significant.



The sign near the Banyan tree says its been there since about 1898, which means it's survived three major cyclones and the bombing of Darwin. Over this time it's been an important meeting place to number of generations of Darwinians.


But it isn't the only amazing tree in the city. I've noticed several while I've been jogging and I plan to go back and take some photos of them.




As I stand in front of these trees I think of the comfort they give me. Not just from the shade they throw where I can escape the hot tropical sun, but through the things they remind me of. Stability, flexibility and life.

The Sun Also Sets

My favourite Ryan Adams song is called the The Sun Also Sets, but it isn't the sunrise that captures your attention here. The sun takes it's sweet time to rise in the Top End. It comes up a little after 7am, but it takes a long and spectacular time in the evening to vanish below the watery Northern horizon.

The event starts just a bit after 5:30pm when the orange orb starts to dip towards the water. On the weekends many tourists stand on the beaches ,cameras at the ready to capture the beautiful end of the tropical day. For the past two days I've found my self among the holiday-makers witnessing the days close, although I only brought my camera along today.

This evening when I got to the beach at Cullen Bay (about 15 minutes walk from my flat) I was too late to the see the sun be devoured by the ocean, but the twilight was amazing. The navy blue of the water meeting the dark purple of the sky in a fuzzy peach light. It's such a romantic sight I started to really miss my partner, but there's only five more weeks till he'll be here. Now I've thought about that time line I'm going to make sure I see as many of the sunsets as I can. You really do feel like you're on the top of Australia when you see the sun fall over its edge.

Getting used to the sunshine

Darwin is beginning to feel like home. I've been having some pretty good days. The sun being so bright as I walk to work in the morning makes the walk energising. The only thing is that you don't feel like sitting inside a sub Arctic air conditioned office when the weather is perfect. I've been making sure I pop out at lunch for at least 20 minutes to thaw out and soak in some of the day.

(photo above: Another glorious Darwin dry season day over the ruins of Palmerston Town Hall which was a casualty of Cyclone Tracy)

I had running club after work today, if my dodgy calculations are right I think I ran 3km in 11 minutes. I'm really enjoying how much I'm getting into running here although sometimes the temperature is a bit hot for it, but that's not enough to complain about.

I saw the signs

I started the day with a jog. At 6:45am it was nice and cool and the humidity was low, but my head was still a little sleepy. As my mind started to awaken I noticed some unusual signs. The first one l had seen before, but never really thought about it. It has a picture of a runner and bicycle with a speed of 20km/h under it. As I shuffled I wondered what the sign was trying to tell me. Was it telling me to speed up to 20km/h or was it telling me not to exceed that speed?

The question didn't whirl around my head for too long as I was distracted by a truck that had a logo on it that said Dicks Pumping Service at this point I decided to put my head down and just run.