Escaping the Wintery weekend

Well what a shock to the system winter was.  Having come home from a warm sunny 3 weeks in Europe to a very cold 7 deg morning 24 hours later we were really feeling the cold Melbourne winter.  The following week continued to be very cold and so the thought of a long weekend in the sun was just wonderful.

Bill was working in Darwin the following week so we thought our long weekend was the perfect opportunity to escape the cold and catch up with our Darwin friends at the same time.  Nolan and Josie invited us to stay with them so all we had to do was board another plane and join them for a warm weekend.  Not that the idea of another few hours in a plane thrilled us but we were happy to do anything to feel some sun again.

Waking up on Saturday morning it was a touch cool but once we had picked up our breakfast at Parap Market and arrived at the park by the Deckchair cinema, the sun was stating to warm things up.  Breakfast was a very tropical treat, Mango pancakes and Watermelon juice, so yummy and very refreshing.  We spent a little while taking in the beautiful Harbour views and being entertained by the Rainbow Bee Eaters that we're flying around.  They are such a colorful bird and very happy around people.

We dragged ourselves away from the park and after a brief stop at the toy shop for a present for Toby we were on our way to Tumbling Waters.  Nolan and Josie had decided to show us some of their favorite places and for us the bonus was we had not been there before.  We spent a couple hours here exploring the unusual rock formations with lovely pools between them.  As it is now the dry season there was not too much water tumbling over the rocks but I can certainly see how it got it's name.  It was a lovely spot to visit and we had coffee here before we moved on to our next stop.  I can't believe we were the only people taking advantage of this beautiful spot.

A few kilometers up the road was Darwin River Dam, another spot we had not been to before.  It is 99.8% full at the moment and is the water supply for Darwin.  Again there was not many people here and we enjoyed a walk across the dam wall watching a couple of Whistling Kites flying around on a lovely day.  

From here we headed back to Darwin and the Holmes Jungle National Park were the boys spent an hour or so with some very active birds and a dripping tap.  We had been into the park before but never to this area and again we were the only people there.  We went home from there for a little rest before we were back in the car to watch the sunset at East Point Reserve. 

Our sunset was very pretty though not spectacular but the one surprise was how cool it was.  It was quite windy at the point and once the sun had gone we really needed sleeves but had not brought them.  I think this is the only time I have felt chilly in Darwin.  Still it was not really cold and we were on our way home before too long.  We stopped on the way home to pick up pizza and a bottle of Black Chook.  Just the right ingredients for a great night with Nolan and Josie.

On Sunday morning we were picked up by a very smartly attired and capped, Captain Miller, and whisked away to The Cool Spot at Fanny Bay for a yummy breakfast.  It had a been a while since we last had dinner together so there was a lot to catch up on and we did this throughout breakfast.  We drove back to his house via the city having a look at the Wharf and some of the new changes in the city.  Darwin is growing but still maintains it's uniqueness.  We inspected the new kitchen and deck and were suitably impressed by both and then Peter drove us back to our next stop at Parap.  It was great to see him again and look forward to next time.

We were at Parap to visit Virginia, Greg and Toby.  The occasion was Toby's 2nd birthday and we had a lovely lunch with them all, Josie, Nolan and Fish, one of their neighbors.  Toby loved his present, a bulldozer, and couldn't wait to get stuck into his birthday cake - a very colorful tug boat that Virginia had made.  It tasted good too.

Another couple of hours at home before we headed off to Mindel Beach for the markets and the sunset.  It was a much warmer evening and we enjoyed some yummy food and wine, great company, another pretty sunset and a wander through this very colorful market.  We left here after dark to head home for an early night as we were getting up at 4.30am the next morning for an adventure at Coroboree Billabong. 

 Can't wait......