August 4th, Australia Day 164

This day began with a trip to a place known as Maguk (mah-GOOK)/Barramundi (BAH-rah-MOON-dee) Gorge, where there was, you guessed it, another swimming hole. For those who might not know, a barramundi is a type of fish whose meat is supposed to be very tasty. They are plentiful in the NT and are commercially fished; as an aside, you can even try some croc meat or have a kangaroo steak, which I tried in Alice Springs. The water in this swimming hole was surprisingly warm and I took a swim to the nearby falls. Again there were warnings about salties in the area, but they would not be able to clamber over the rocks to reach the pool as we did.

From Maguk/Barramundi Gorge, it was onto Ubirr (OO-beer) Rock a site made famous by the presence of many aborigine stone paintings. There are some which hold special religious significance and they can be quite old (several thousand years) but there are other which just depict daily life and they can be only a few years of age. It is essentially an open air art gallery depicting the history of the area by the people who lived there. Some of them are quite high up and quite intricate. We then climbed a nearby hill and peered out over a magnificent landscape. Below us lay fertile wetlands home to countless numbers of fish, birds and other animals. Behind us lay the rocky land of Arnhem Land, an area of the Top End under the jurisdiction of the original inhabitants. This is the country in which Crocodile Dundee was filmed and it is every bit as spectacular as the movie depicts.

It was back to Darwin from here but not without a few surprises. Along the way, we stopped at a river and saw some salties in the river and 1 lying on a rock with its mouth open. We were told that a croc's brain can overheat and so they do this every so often to cool down. Whenever you see a croc you cannot help but be amazed at the power latent within the reptile. Incidentally, if you ever find yourself in a fight with a croc, try to get it to close its mouth, without part of you in it of course. While a croc's jaws could easily bite through a thick metal pole, the muscles which open the jaws are so weak that you can hold the mouth of a 7 meter croc shut with your bare hands. Also, the cannot move very quickly on land since they cannot support their own weight with their tiny legs.

We arrived in Darwin just before sunset and I was let off at my hostel. I was sorry to see Darryl go because he was both humourous and knowledgeable. He has spent so much time in NT and with local aborigines that he knows most of their ways and respects them. I walked from the center of Darwin to Cullen Bay, a suburb of Darwin with many restaurants. If you've ever been to Key West in Florida, it sort of reminded me of that place. From Cullen Bay, after some time on the breakwater, I walked to the well known Mindil Beach Markets, where goods of all kinds are sold. There, I bought a didjeridu and the next day I sent it to Canada. Didjeridus were originally confined only to the Top End but they have since become a symbol of aborigine culture throughout Australia. If made traditionally, they are constructed out of a branch or trunk of a eucalyptus family tree that has been hollowed out by termites. Then, wax is placed on the end in which you blow and from that, with minimal effort, you create a musical instrument with a distinctive drone. Throughout the market, though, there were performers of all kinds, food vendors and, of course, merchants of everything imaginable. I returned to my hostel looking forward to the next day, which I had managed to schedule as a full day in Darwin.

Photos now available at: http://australiaday164.blogspot.com/