Driving around the wharf area yesterday I had spotted the information
for various cruises - a few that would have cost a little too much for our
budget, but a few that didn’t. So we
checked it out online and decided on a harbour cruise tour that might offer a
few photo opportunities from a different perspective. After some thought I wasn’t really up for
going on my own so Shane went for the lunch time cruise.
Some things are difficult or impossible with the dogs and we accept
that because we certainly wouldn’t want to leave them at home when we go away,
or leave them in the van unattended for any length of time, so they go where we
go, if they can’t go neither do we - and that’s fine. But I want to make the most of our trip and
it’s important to me that the photographer of the family gets the opportunity
to take photos. The holiday for me means
something different than for Shane. At
work I’m doing something for everyone every day and so the opportunity to down
tools and switch off and even to sometimes do absolutely nothing but relax is a
wonderful thing. For Shane, however, the
opportunity to get out and do things every day is a welcome change from his usual
day of being at home. It’s something we
are mindful of and we both try to remember that a compromise of our time
spent is important in our every day
lives.
The funny thing about being on holidays is that some things follow you
wherever you go – you still have to eat, so there are dishes to wash – you
still wear clothes, so there is washing to do – and given there are 12 feet
walking in and out of the annexe and van every single day bringing dust, leaves
and dirt with them, there is always cleaning to do. Most of the day was filled with washing,
cleaning and organising, but I must say even in a “house” this small, I love to
have things clean, tidy and organised.
There was also a bit of time to sit and relax as well!
On Shane’s return, it was apparent that I hadn’t missed much on the
tour but it was a nice change of pace and a few photos to make it worthwhile. Not long after he returned that magical music
once again could be heard and so we had to purchase an ice-cream or two. Miss Kitty is very quickly learning that “Greensleeves”
= Ice-Creams!
Shane had earlier in the week booked me in to go to the Mindil Market
on the bus provided by the caravan park.
So at 5.30 I joined the crowd of 70 odd people who had also signed up to
go. The market itself is absolutely
huge including a massive collection of food stalls of almost everything
you could imagine to buy. The crowd was
also massive and in the humid conditions of the night the crowded pathways
between the inner stalls were difficult to navigate and some stalls were just too hot to spend any time in.
I had hoped to pick up a few more souvenirs here but there was nothing
that really said “My friend went to Darwin/NT and bought me this”. There
were a lot of clothing and jewellery stores and one particular store selling
metal fish that I just loved!
I think this one was my favourite!
If you
want to see the large version of this photo – click here so you can see all the
amazing fish they made.
They also made amazing little magnets and if you click here you can
view a big photo of them to see the detail.
Just so clever!
In the middle of our shopping time the sun started to descend and it
seemed like a hole appeared in the bucket wall of the market as the crowd
poured out onto the beach to watch the sunset.
I didn’t wait around for the after sunset lightshow as we’ll be heading
to the waterfront over the next few nights to take some sunset photos, but, granted, the sunset is impressive.
As there is no surf to speak of that we have seen around the Darwin
coastline, the reflection on the water is very pretty and with those
fires still burning the sun definitely had a very warm glow.
I was amazed though to spot a drone flying
over the beach, not just filming the sunset, but the crowd watching it.
As the sun set, a group of boats sailed past the beach providing a few
more photo opportunities.
Back to the market, I was done looking through the shops by 7.30pm and
then had a one hour wait until the bus returned. “People watching” has always been a favourite
of mine and there were plenty of people to watch. I had not been keen to stand out on the road
by myself waiting for the bus, but had recognised four people sitting at a
table nearby as being from our camp, and so waited for them to make their move
so I could join them. I need not have been
concerned as there was a large mass of people waiting for tour buses when we
finally arrived at the meeting point some 15 minutes before the bus was due to
arrive.
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