It’s been interesting returning to a real city after spending so long in very remote parts of Australia. We’ve come from places where we went days without seeing another person, where we could describe every vehicle passed during the day (made all the easier because there were less than 5). We’ve also gone for days where the sound of a jet overhead would grab our attention because it was the only man made sound heard all day.
Some of the things we have had to reacquaint ourselves with include:
- multi-lane roads and indicating to change lanes
- multi-storey car parks where the kayak on the roof of the Prado matters
- traffic lights
- parking meters and restricted parking times
- locking the car when we leave it parked overnight
- not acknowledging every vehicle we pass and chatting / listening to them on the UHF radio.
We also have:
- a choice of full sized (and well stocked) supermarkets to shop at
- access to ATMs
- fuel at reasonable prices
- the ability to buy take-away alcohol
- restaurants
- hairdressers (for a long overdue haircut)
- a diverse ethnic mix of people in town
- at least one car wash
- a day spa (where Wendy could get a manicure and pedicure)
- reliable mobile phone coverage and internet access.
Darwin is very interesting in a number of ways. Being closer to Asia than any other major city in Australia is evident by the mix of people in town – a blend of Caucasians, indigenous Australians, Indonesian, Islanders, Malays, Chinese, Sri Lankan, Indian, Vietnamese, Sudanese, people from the Middle East, etc. Feels like an old trading port on the spice route.