August 11th-24th, 2011-Oasis Caravan Park-Darwin

Thursday August 11th saw us say goodbye to Dundee Beach and travel back to the Stuart Highway and North to the Oasis Caravan Park near Palmerston. We checked in late in the morning for two weeks. The park is lovely and clean. The sites are quite small and crowded but the owners, Gary and Rose are very helpful getting you set up and there is quite a bit of shade. From what we have heard it is one of the best in Darwin and much more reasonable than most as well. We set up during the early afternoon before travelling into Darwin to pick up a few basic groceries and a quick drive around the Darwin Harbour area. We then went to the Mindil Beach Markets again so Di and Terry could experience them. We got there much earlier than the previous time but it was still quite busy. Mainly food places and we did enjoy another nice Chinese meal. We got to view the sunset this time which was nice but no comparison to the Dundee Beach sunsets we enjoyed.

Friday saw Stephen and I busy cleaning our respective caravans for the girls arrival back in Darwin. I gave the other ladies in the park a good laugh when I washed out our blanket in Di's washing bucket. I may have exceeded the recommended dosage for laundry soap and had bubbles everywhere. I have told Sandra the next time she needs to wash to just add water and it should start bubbling up on its own. Stephen and I picked up the girls at 1:40 AM and returned to the park for a sleep.

Saturday we had a bit of a sleep in from the late night picking up the girls at the airport. We then went into Palmerston and stocked up on groceries. Spent the afternoon doing laundry and resting up.

Sunday morning we went into Darwin and found the Rapid Creek Market. This was very different from  Mindil Beach  as was almost entirely fresh produce. It would appear to be in a predominately Asian area and the selection of food was incredible. There were a number of fruit and vegetables that I hadn't seen before. We tried a few new things and enjoyed them. We then travelled into Darwin with our first stop at Fisherman's Wharf. We got a few pictures before loading back in the car in driving to Stoke's Wharf. We had lunch on the wharf and explored before travelling on around the harbour. The Captain Cook Endeavour replica was on show but we didn't pay to tour the inside. We explored on foot from the Bicentennial Park, to Government House, the Deckchair Cinema, and the Waterfront Precinct. Darwin appears to be a very well laid out and clean city. The gardens at Government House were beautiful and the Waterfront Precinct is a wonderful park area for swimming etc. The wave pool is also there. We enjoyed an ice cream at the water's edge before climbing about 300 steps back to Bicentennial Park and the cars.

 Monday morning saw Sandra and I off to Casurina Mall which is the main shopping centre in Darwin. Sandra needed to make an eye appointment as she has been having trouble reading. We were able to make one for Tuesday. We did a bit of shopping before driving to Darwin Harbour. We had to do some illegal turns to get out of the shopping centre without wiping our roof pod out on the covered parking. We enjoyed a quiet lunch by ourselves at Shenanigan's Pub. Had a walk down to the Waterfront Precinct where we toured the Underground Oil Storage Tunnels. Built during the Second World War at a cost of 1.1 Million pounds but never used. What a waste. One of the tunnels would have held 38,000 million litres of Oil. There was actually more information about the war than the tunnels themselves. It was amazing to find out that there was several times more bombs dropped on Darwin during the initial surprise air raids than Pearl Harbour.

Tuesday morning we picked up Di and Terry at Tyrepower where they were having their Patrol's tyres replaced. We then met Carol and Stephen at the Darwin Museum and Art Gallery. It is a beautiful exhibit and amazingly free of charge. We really enjoyed the Cyclone Tracy display. There was a good selection of art as well, mostly Aboriginal. I am not a huge fan of Aboriginal art but there was some very nice work on display. We drove from there back to Casurina for Sandra's eye appointment. Did some more shopping before taking Di & Terry to pickup their car before returning to campground.

Wednesday morning the six of us drove down to Cullen Bay where we took the Ferry to Mandurah. It is about a 20 minute boat trip. We enjoyed a nice swim and a beautiful lunch at the Mandurah Pub. The meals were nice and good value considering their location. The view from the Pub is amazing as you have water views for about 270 degrees. We lazed by the pool for a couple of hours before taking the 3pm ferry back to Darwin. I managed to get myself hugged by a very drunk aboriginal man while waiting for the return ferry. Sandra almost died and wiped me all over with wet baby wipes before I got on the Ferry. I still smelled when we got back to the caravan park so jumped straight into the swimming pool. Some times I wish I wasn't so damn lovable!

Thursday we had a lazy day around the caravan park. We gave the caravan a wash which was long overdue. I drove Stephen back and forth to Palmerston as they were having their car serviced. Unfortunately, their car was run into while at the service shop. Not too much damage but still estimated about $2000 and a big pain in the ass to try and get fixed. Still waiting to see how or when it will be repaired at the Smash Repair. I think they will try a prebook it to be repaired a one of our future stops.

Friday we all went into Darwin again to Crocosaurus Cove. Got to see and hold a number of reptiles in the morning before watching the Barramundi Feed. We then saw some large Crocodiles being fed. Pretty tame stuff as they have been in captivity for a while. They have an attraction called the Cage of Death where you go inside a glass enclosure which is then lowered into the crocodile enclosures. What a rip off as it costs about $100 each and the Crocs don't even bother opening their eyes let alone swim near you. Don't waste your money! Apparently when the Crocs were new it was quite good as they were more aggressive. We enjoyed the reptile display and the fish feeding. The crocs are interesting as well as you can see them from above and below water level. They are amazing how they seem to move effortlessly and can stay under water for hours. Don't ever think you are safe in the water if they are around!

We then went back to the Waterfront Precinct for a picnic lunch. It is a beautiful location and we loved it there. We were planning a swim but were all lazy and just enjoyed a nice shady spot with a beautiful sea breeze. The weather in Darwin has been wonderful. Every day is about 31-32 degrees dropping down to 17-18 degrees overnight. Every day is the same, sunny and beautiful. Luckily we have a nice swimming pool at the caravan park. I jump in several times a day just to cool off. We spent a couple of relaxed hours at the Waterfront Precinct before going back to Government House.

We had seen earlier in the week that they were having an open house from 3pm which we attended. Had a wonderful tour of the gardens and residence. There was a horticulturist on site to answer any questions about the gardens. Well she definitely got more then she bargained for with our girls as they had lots of questions. We got lots of lovely photos of the garden.

Saturday we planned an easy day with just a short trip to Woolies planned. Di and Terry asked if we would like to stop at Fannie Bay on our way. We agreed and off we set. Well on the way we passed a very conjested area which we discovered was the Parap Markets. We stopped and ended up spending a few hours there. Very, very good markets. Lots of fresh produce like Rapid Creek but also lots of nice clothing stalls etc, better than Mindil. We had a ball and ended up having lunch there. We eventually made it to Fannie Bay which is beautiful. The water is such a lovely colour. There was actually about 4-5 different colours of blue/green with the tide partly out. We had a short walk before continuing on to East Point Reserve. It is a wonderul park with a large man made saltwater lake called Lake Alexander. We eventually made it to Woolies before arriving home late afternoon. So much for our easy day but it was a lot of fun.

 Sunday we returned to Lake Alexander for a relaxing picnic. We arrived in mid morning and lazed around to mid afternoon. We had a nice walk around the lake and waded in the warm waters. Had a lovely shaded location with a cool breeze. Beautiful Prawn and Mango salad for lunch. The mangos are beautiful here and cheap. We got a box of 19 the other day for $15. We returned home and enjoyed a beautiful baked dinner on the Barbeque. Life is really, really hard!

Monday morning saw Sandra and I up early to travel back to Berry Springs to tour the Territory Wildlife Park. We got there when the gates opened at 8:30 and were the first ones there. We caught the train to the Billibong and watched the Pelican feeding with one other couple. It was a beautiful peaceful morning with the water like glass on the Billibong. I got a couple of lovely reflection photos. The Pelican weren't that cooperative with the feeding as they have been over feeding them lately because they are raising babies.

From there we walked to the aquarium building. Lots of colorful fish life, turtles, and some huge Barramundi. The aquariums are nicely laid out with natural settings. We then walked the short distance to Oolloo Sandbar. Here we got to see the Barramundi, Archer fish, and Whiprays be fed. Sandra had the Archer fish spit grubs out of her hand and I got into the water and fed the whiprays. Beautiful creatures.

We then got back on the train to go the the Bird of Prey show. Very interesting again as they had a number of Raptors on display. The Osprey was interesting as it dove in the water at a high speed to retrieve it's fish. The Brown buzzard which looks similar to a Wedgetail was very clever as it used a rock to break an egg shell to get at its food.

We then walked back around to the Aviaries and the Wetland Walk before finishing up at the Nocturnal display where they gave a talk on a flying fox. The displays were all well laid out, walks were good, and all the staff were very friendly and informative. Definately recommended for a visit when in the Darwin area. Allow a full day as we got there at 8:30 and never left till 2:30.

 Tuesday morning saw us enjoy a big breakfast/brunch. Bacon, eggs, hash browns, toast, grilled tomato etc. We had most of the caravan park walking by and trying to invite themselves for breakfast.
We then went back to Casurina Square to pickup Sandra's new glasses. She can read again. I will need to be careful what I write about her now. We did quite a bit of shopping getting ready for the next leg of our journey.

Wednesday was a rest day for the Bewells. That is if you can call laundry, cleaning caravan inside and out, washing car, doing Blog etc restful and relaxing. We are ready for our move tomorrow. We have really enjoyed Darwin and I could see myself spending more time here. However, we need to keep moving so we can be farther south in Western Australia when the wet season begins. We have seen so much already but I still get overwhelmed sometimes when I look at the map and see what we still have left to see. Tomorrow we begin our next adventure in Kakadu. We are planning about 8 days at this point. We are all looking forward to it and the wonderful sites we are about to see. Talk to you again soon.