Road back to Darwin

As we were heading back to Darwin, we passed thru Litchfield National Park, Leaniung Tree Lagoon reserve and Mary River National Park. The drive was a pleasing to the eyes as we were treated to a visual feast of lovely plants and large termite nests.

There was a sense of satisfaction as we were greeted by urban structures as we entered the suburbs of Darwin

I had picked Novotel Atrium Darwin as our hotel for its superb location and wonderful views of the Darwin Harbour.

We were checked into a beautiful two bedroom suite which had a large hall. Although the hotel have limited recreational facilities, its wonderful in-room ammenities made up for it.

Nourlangie Rocks

The Nourlangie rocks are charming boulders carved by erosion over the years. The intricate Aboroginal painting pleases all visitors. Visitors could see pictorial description of animals which were painted by the natives thousands of years ago.

Katherine

After our brief visit to Pine Creek, we made our way to Katherine which boasts of its beautiful gorges.

Katherine is just like any small American town that it self contained, it provides essential services like petrol kisoks, retail outlets and basic medical facilities.

Day 3

We woke up at 5.15am that morning. I was reluctant to step out the comfortable bed. We set off at 5.45am in a pitch black condition. We had reached Mary River Service station by 8.30am. The service station was old and dilapilated, it made us abort our plans of having breakfast there. We continued our 100km journey to Pine Creek with an empty stomache. The sighting of a country style cafe in Pine Creek lifted our spirits.

Pine Creek is a quaint town sitting South of Darwin. It is famed for its rich history as a former mining town and rail route centre. From the old Chinese Mines, visitors can have a picturesque view of Pine Creek and surronding lowlands.

Darwin Continued...

Later that day we made our way to the supermarket at Jabiru and the price was rather steep.

The night ended with an Australian dinner at our resort. I had grilled Kangaroo as my main item.(Attached is the picture)

Day 2
The following morning we went for a walk at Mamukala wetlands. The wetlands was a bird heaven as it provided birds with water which was essential for survival.

We to the Yellow Waters Area later that morning and we joined a Yellow waters cruise. The cruise widened my experiences as I had a glimpse at large sea egales living close to tiny kingfishers and enanbled me to understand the biodiversity of an eco system.

Lunch at Gajudu Corcodile resort was enjoyable as we had a taste of grilled Baramundi, a local river fish unique to the Northern Territory, Australia. After our delicious lunch, we moved on to the Warradjan Aboriginal Centre which showcased local aboroginal traditions and believes.

I had the Mirrai lookout walk with my brother. It was a rewarding climb as we had a lovely view of the surronding lowlands from the top of the hill. The only obstacle was the large number of flies that bombarded us from all around.

We hit the dirt track to Sandy Billabong after our speedy descent. The ride was extremely bumpy and I almost fell of my seat!!!

The day ended with dinner at Holiday Inn Jaibiru.

Darwin trip

My trip to Darwin was long and taxing.

On the first day, I had to endure a dull 4.5 hours within the cramped confines of a economy class seat. The journey had really worn me out, it seems longer than my recent flight to Zurich .I had probably suffered from 'cattle class' syndrome.

Damn..We had to drive in the morning right after our arrival at Darwin in order to reach Kakadu National Park on time. The drive to Kakadu was filled with many little surprises which included the sighting of large termite nests and many wallabies. At around 10am we had reached Bowali Visitor Centre in Jabiru , the first stop of the day. The friendly rangers at the Centre provided us with alot of useful information and valuable suggestions.

We were made our way to Ubirr, a renowned Aboroginal art site to have a look at the beautiful rock paintings by the artistic natives. In order for us to view the painting we had to walk for 1 hour under the sorching sun at temperatures of 40 degrees centigrade.

On the drive back we stopped at an ERA mine for some photos. It was my first time seeing an uranium mine.