DARWIN, AUSTRALIA – FEBRUARY 27TH

Remembering Darwin the last time around in 2016, I realized a couple of days before that we would be entering one of the circles of Hell.  I remember it being so oppressive from the humidity, I could hardly walk.  A day or two before our arrival, I happened to walk across the deck to “feel” the weather as we approached Darwin and stopped to talk with one of the new spa gals, Cindy, who came from Australia who was doing some sort of promotion with the gym instructor, Nicola.  I couldn’t believe they were out there under the hot sun and I asked how they’re able to stand there for hours in their black uniforms.  Nicola, who comes from Serbia, was having a hard time because he’s used to cooler climates.  I lamented over the fact that we were heading to Darwin, the hottest place on Earth.  Cindy said the first thing I have to do is stop talking about the weather.  Talking about it doesn’t make it cooler.  She suggested that I wear a natural fiber flowing shirt and wide legged pants and that they would be cooler than t-shirts and shorts.  She also explained to me that housing in Australia is very different than housing in America.  American houses are built for heat; Australian houses are built for the cool.  I guess that’s why the passengers we met the other day at Target in Cairns looked at us like we were nuts when Michael said we’ve got our A/C down to “coolest” while the wife of the couple said she had her heating on in the room.   Cindy also said if people thought about how hot and humid it is outside, they’d never live their lives.   On Wednesday, the 27^th, we got up early (at least for us), showered, dressed in my widest legged pants, put on the thinnest, loosest blouse and headed out.  Believe it or not, changing my attitude made a world of difference.  It may have actually been less hot and humid than in 2016, but a whole lot of people complained all evening about how hot it was inside and outside the ship!  Perhaps Cindy has it all figured out.  

The Aboriginal people of the Larrakia language group inhabited Darwin region well before the European settlement in 1869 and traditional language, culture and people still remain here today. It is situated on the Timor Sea in the Northern Territory.  It is only 2,082 miles from Singapore and its population is approximately 146,400.  The climate is tropical; the dry months are from May to September and the wet season is from December to March.  I’m not sure who writes the port guides we receive, but this is what they recommend as “proper attire”: “During the spring, summer, and fall, dressing in layers is the key to being comfortable.  A light shirt, short or long sleeved, makes an excellent first layer.  Over that, a sweatshirt, sweater or fleece pullover will provide warmth.  The ideal outer layer is a light waterproof jacket.  Layers should be easy to remove depending on weather changes and your activity.” 

Not wanting to put Cindy’s advice to the ultimate test about the heat and humidity, we didn’t schedule any excursions but enjoyed our souvenir shopping in 2016 so much that we headed back to the Smith Street Mall via shuttle from the ship.  It’s an open-air mall that is partially covered and we enjoyed going in and out of shops, helping the economy along the way.  Purchasing what I needed/wanted, we took the shuttle back, not too terribly uncomfortable and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon on the ship.  

We definitely are not people who need to participate in every excursion at every port to have a great time.  For us, we love being on the ship which, in our minds, is the destination.  Yes, we are going to places we’d never been before and we do have several excursions planned over the next months which you may find more interesting than my shopping, but we enjoy just being here. 

Prior to arriving in Darwin, we were advised that the Australian authorities would be available in the terminal to reimburse some of the general sales tax “GST” we paid during our shopping in Australia.  The requirement was that the purchases had to total 300 AUD from a single business.   As I loved shopping in Cairns, I actually spent that amount in two different stores.  I took my “receipts” to the authorities only to find out that I didn’t have the actual “tax invoice” for the goods.  I had “tax invoices” for every other purchase (each under 300 AUD) – only the two stores in which I spent over 300 AUD did NOT give me the “tax invoices” but only the credit card receipt with my signature.  Without the “tax invoice,” I could not receive the 10% GST refund.  This, to me, was intentional and not a mistake.  Unfortunately, I collected the receipts for my credit card but didn’t realize there were two separate receipts which, in all the other stores, were stapled together.  I had forgotten about this quirky system.  But I am happy with my purchases.

While in the terminal, torrential rains began and it was necessary for us to wait some time before heading back to the ship.  Although it was a covered walkway, water had already accumulated on the ground and we were lucky to be wearing our Croc sandals that easily dried when we returned to our cabin.  Wed hadn’t seen rain like this in a very, very long time.  I recall very well that in 2016, we didn’t have one day of rain during the entire world cruise. 

We are now headed towards Komodo Island in Indonesia.  We do have an excursion there to see the Komodo Dragons.  The instructions for passengers are very stringent and women who are on their menstrual cycle (I can’t imagine any passenger still in this phase of life), should advise the guide immediately so as to walk very closely to the guide.  Komodo Dragons have an incredible sense of smell.  I’ve already told Michael that he is not to wander away from the group and guide to take photos because I don’t want to come back to the ship on Saturday a widow.

MICHAEL’S OBSERVATIONS:   First of all, Leona wouldn’t be a widow for long.  However, I have promised her that I wouldn’t wander and wouldn’t attempt to pet the Komodo Dragons. 

This time around, our visit to Darwin was much nicer than 2016.  I told Leona that we would take the paid shuttle to Smith Street Mall because I remember vividly, last time, we decided to walk there and, although we could easily walk the mile and a half, Darwin’s heat and humidity make the task very difficult.  We arrived at the Smith Street Mall, refreshed and ready to shop til we dropped.  My job is to critique Leona’s choices in clothing and look for the “husband chair” in every shop.  We had a great time helping Leona with her purchases and spending some time looking at opal jewelry.  As noted before, I’m a notorious window shopper but did purchase an Aboriginal-designed water bottle holder for myself. 

LEONA’s ADDITIONAL COMMENT:  Yes, I always take Michael with me when I shop for clothing because he is brutally honest and will tell me when something is unflattering or makes me look “pregnant.”