Our base for these few days is out at Virginia, at the Oasis Tourist Park. It’s a great little spot with plenty of shade from the palms, which we certainly appreciate in this heat.
We headed into Darwin proper with a bit of a plan, but like most of our plans, it didn’t even survive the first stop. We started out at East Point to get a look at the city from across the water at Dudley Point. The view is fantastic; you can see the Darwin skyline sitting right on the edge of the turquoise sea.
Walking along the edge, the white and orange cliffs drop away to the beach below. The colours of the rock against the blue water are something else.
Just around the corner, we found the Darwin Military Museum. We hadn’t actually intended to go in, but we figured since we were right there, we might as well have a look. I’m glad we did. I’ve spent plenty of time at the museum in Canberra, and while this one is obviously much smaller, it is incredibly well-curated. They’ve done a brilliant job blending the history with multimedia displays. I rarely come away from a museum saying I actually learnt something new, but the way they’ve organised the exhibits really brings the history of the Darwin bombings to life.
Out in the grounds, they have some serious hardware on display, including a massive 9.2-inch naval gun that really shows the scale of the defences they had here.
There’s also an old amphibious vehicle tucked away under the trees, still looking sturdy enough to drive straight back into the waves.
After we’d had our fill of history, we moved on to Casuarina Square. Lisa was on the hunt for a few specific things, but that place is massive—bigger than Carousel and Morley back home. It’s three stories high, and even with a food court on the bottom floor, it felt a bit overwhelming. Lisa couldn't find what she was after, and I had a bit of a saga trying to find new walking shoes. I ended up walking out of one shop because I couldn't get any service, but eventually, I found a pair at an adventure store that’ll do the job.
We spent a good chunk of the afternoon down at Stokes Hill Wharf. I have to say, the developers and the council here have done an excellent job with the waterfront. It’s a beautiful area with plenty of outdoor seating under big umbrellas right on the edge of the water.
Looking at how well this area is used by everyone in the city, I couldn’t help but think that the planners back in Perth could learn a thing or two about how to develop a waterfront properly. It’s a great place to just sit, have a cold drink, and watch the world go by.
As the day started to cool down, we made our way over to the Mindil Beach Sunset Market. Now, I’m not usually one for markets, but this one is top-notch. We spent about three hours wandering around, which is a record for me. The atmosphere is just right, with crowds of people all heading down to the sand as the sun begins to dip.
There are plenty of stalls to poke through and a real buzz in the air as people queue up for food.
The range of food is incredible; you could eat your way around the world just by walking a few metres down the path.
We finished the day the only way you should in Darwin—sitting on the beach and watching the sun sink into the ocean. It was a perfect sunset, a massive orange ball glowing over the water, capping off a very full day.
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