Day 38 Darwin

I wanted to see what was at the Parap Markets so that was our first place of call this morning. There was a wonderful array of fruits and vegetables. The Laksa and Kebabs must have been great because the lines were long. I couldn’t believe the Smoothies etc on offer at one stall but managed to decide on one.

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Another place we visited today was East Point, there seemed to be something special on because there was a military band playing and marching going on. We didn’t want to go and see any displays but Alex did investigate a Naval Defence gun emplacement, that was enormous, and we saw a VTOL plane on display. ( Vertical Take Off and Landing)

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Lake Alexander is part of the Reserve and that was beautiful. I was taking a photo of a bird when there was a loud splash which made me whip around because I thought it was a crocodile! It wasn’t. Somebody had dived in and was swimming leisurely so I presume there are no crocs in the lake. There are good views of the city from East Point and there was an interesting sculpture of Box Jelly Fish.

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We decided that the Botanic Gardens would be a cool place so we went there, dogs are allowed! The first thing we saw after we parked the car was a Community Garden where people pay for a plot. A man was working on his plot and I think appreciated taking a break to talk. He said the first garden bed had taken him only a day to complete, the next about a week because the weather had warmed up. He was working on his third bed and said it was taking forever because of the rocks he kept encountering and the hotter days. The beds were filled with compost he’d bought by the trailer load. Around the edge of his bed he planted HOT Chillis because he said people stole things they could reach and he was giving them a surprise with Carolina Reapers, one of the hottest Chillis you get.

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City buildings all seem nice and bright, even new looking whatever their age.

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Almost anywhere you are in the city you can see a mural.

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I didn’t do very well with wildlife today. The Orange Footed Scrub Fowls like to scratch about in leaf litter also in newly dug garden beds just after seeds have been planted according to the Community Gardener, so they’re difficult to get well lit.

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