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Annual eventsIf you happen to be in Darwin at the right time then you can catch some of their many annual events and festivals; Arafura Games - Sports people from the Asia/Pacific region battle it out every two years in May but the 2003 games were cancelled to keep the SARS epidemic out of Australia. Barefoot mudcrab tying competitions - held every year, contestants have to tie up as many mudcrabs as possible in a certain time, and the fact that they are barefoot makes it all the more exciting!
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Smoke-in - Held annually since 2002 in Darwin's
Raintree Park but at varying times so for this year's date check
the website of the Network
Against Prohibition (NAPNT) who organizes this annual event
to protest against the Labor government's drug-house laws and
as an expression of human |
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More than forty years ago someone started feeding fish at Doctor's Gully in Darwin city centre. It has grown into an institution where an amazing number of huge milkfish, mullet, batfish and catfish come for a feed at high tide here. This used to be a free activity until a politician bought it in the 1980s and now there is a $5.50 (child $3.50) charge, opening times depend on the tides.
Darwin has an impressive botanical gardens which appears to have recovered well from the devastation of cyclone Tracy, there's even a Daintree-like section of rainforest where they keep the sprinklers going all the time.
On the Adelaide River near Darwin you can see crocodiles jumping high showing off their attack skills. This is not a circus trick they have been taught, they naturally do this to catch low flying birds.
A wildlife park that is mainly centred around crocodiles but also has many other animals. You can see some really big salties here, handle a baby crocodile, and see feeding and croc jumping shows.
A lot of Australia is not very bike friendly but Darwin has an excellent network of bicycle tracks. If you're from overseas be aware that Australia is the only country in the world where it is illegal to ride a bicycle without a helmet!
A short drive from the city centre in the suburb of Fannie Bay is East Point, a nature reserve where you will find a war museum and some gun turrets left over from World War Two. Darwin actually was actually the only place in Australia to get seriously bombed, in february 1942 a Pearl Harbour style attack on Darwin by 188 Japanese planes killed 243 people and sunk numerous ships. They came back another 57 times over the next two years doing more damage. During the war many allied forces were based in the Top End but to be safe from Jap attacks they were spread out along the Stuart Highway where you can still see the old air strips going hundreds of kilometres inland.
Near the other museum this ex-jail has been in use from 1883 till 1979 and numerous people have been hanged here.
From the marina in Cullen Bay, an easy walk from Darwin city centre, you can catch the boat out to the harbour and across to Mandorah, the other side of the harbour, where the Mandorah Hotel will have a cold beer waiting for you.
Kakadu
National Park is one of the main natural wonders
of Australia. Located 150km from Darwin, it is a huge national
park, measuring 200km by 100km. Its landscape varies from dry
scrub and rock with Aboriginal rock art to majestic waterfalls
and wetlands with thousands of birds. Quite a variety of tours
operate from Darwin to take you out there and show you this amazing
place.
- Two days/one night is about the minimum to take in all the highlights
but if your time is limited then this is a good option. More
info....
- Three days/two nights allows you more time to take it all in
and experience this awesome place. More
info....
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Katherine Gorge, or Nitmiluk, is located about 300km. south of Darwin. The Katherine River cuts through the dry outback country and over the years it has carved a deep gorge. You can see this magnificent gorge on a daytour from Darwin that also includes a stop at the beautiful Edith Falls. More info...
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Located on Stokes Hill Wharf, this is a good aquarium where you can even see the deadly box jellyfish from a safe distance.
Litchfield Park is closer to Darwin than Kakadu and also smaller so you can do it in a day trip, another advantage is the fact that it has great refreshing waterfalls where you can swim. National Park rangers maintain crocodile traps to keep the waters safe for you. Besides great waterfalls you'll also see the amazing magnetic termite mounds here. More info....
You can also go on a tour that will take you around all the Top End's highlights, Kakadu, Litchfield and Katherine Gorge, in three days/two nights. More info...
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One of the most famous things to do in Darwin is Mindil
Beach where during the dry season there is a market every Thursday (and
on a smaller scale Sunday) night. The markets have been a Darwin tradition
for 18 years now and it is hard to believe now the organizer actually
had a really hard time getting permission from the council to run this
market! Thousands of people converge on this beach where they cruise
the stalls full of craftwork, more than 200 craft and general ware stalls
stock jewellery, art, adornments, trinkets, souvenirs, ceramics, clothes,
music, didgeridoos, coffees and much more. But the most popular is the
foodstalls where you will find food from just about every country you
can think of, while the sun sets over the sea not far from Darwin's
city centre, market-goers can tuck into spicy Asian dishes, traditional
Greek, Italian, English or South American food, crocodile, buffalo and
barramundi. Add to this Thai, Japanese, Mexican, Turkish, Indian, Swiss,
Chinese and, of course, Aussie dishes and you won't go hungry.
When you have made your choice head down the beach with your food and
esky full of cold beer and settle down to enjoy one of the magic sunsets
that this place is famous for. And to top it off, buskers, tarot readers,
masseurs/masseuses and a variety of local and travelling musicians provide
the entertainment. The markets are within walking distance of the city
centre so are easy to reach. A scaled-down version of the Thursday night
markets is held on Sunday from 4pm to 9pm.
If these markets are on your agenda consider staying at Cullen Bay Serviced Apartments , only a short stroll away from the markets, or Skycity which is right on Mindil Beach.
Only about four km. from the city centre is
the Museum and Artgallery of the Northern Territory in Fannie
Bay. Here you can see a wide variety of things;
- the preserved body of Sweetheart, the legendary 5metre,
780kg. crocodile that used to bite outboard motors and overturn
fishing boats. When he was caught in 1979 he became so tangled
in the ropes that he drowned.
- Aboriginal art from the nearby Tiwi isalnds and Arnhem Land.
- A maritime display of several interesting boats
- A display on cyclone Tracy
with photos, eyewitness accounts and a soundroom where you
can get a feel of what it would have been like to go through
this disaster.
This $117 million building houses both the library
and the Territory Government and is open to the public from
Monday to Saturday.
As the Northern Territory is not a state it has so far only
been granted limited self government by Canberra. Basically
this means they can do what they want in Darwin but if Canberra
doesn't like it they can reverse their decisions. This happened
a few years ago when the Northern Territory became the first
place in Australia to legalize euthanasia. Several terminally
ill people managed to end their suffering but Canberra moved
swiftly and put an end to this.
For books and book exchange go to Rapid Creek Business Village, 48 Trower Rd, in Millner where Alan Marshall has around 15 thousand books to choose from. Phone 08 8985 6466 , EFTPOS is available. Contact him via email or visit his website .
Cullen Bay Charters can take you out to ship wrecks in Darwin harbour.
On Berrimah Road you can see the remains of a Toyota 4WD that was bombed in an airforce blunder in 2000. More info...
Though Darwin is surrounded by beautiful beaches it unfortunately has the infamous box jellyfish from October till May. Mindil beach is an easy walk from the city centre, if you go out a bit further there are several more beaches along Nightcliff and after that there is 7 km. long Casuarina beach, a part of this is an official nude beach as well. For safe swimming in stinger season head to Lake Alexander at East Point in Fannie Bay or if you've got a car head down the road to Berry Springs, this gets busy on weekends with locals but on weekdays it is a great place for a swim.
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