We made it to the Top End, or rather, Darwin. Darwin, named after the famed naturalist Charles Darwin (who never actually visited, by the way), was originally named Palmerston. Actually, if we talk about ‘original’ names, we should probably go with the name the indigenous people used. Namely, the Larrakia people (which means “Saltwater People”) call it Garramilla, which means “White Stone.”

Anyway, Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory (which makes up one sixth of the Australian continent). With an estimated population of 147,255 as of 2019, the city contains the majority of the residents of the sparsely-populated Northern Territory. A super-remote area, Darwin is the traditional jumping off point for people planning to explore the famed Outback.

A crazy fact about Darwin is that it has been almost entirely rebuilt four times, following devastation caused by an 1897 cyclone, a 1937 cyclone, Japanese air raids during World War II, and Cyclone Tracy in Christmas Eve of 1974. Despite all the destruction and adversity, the city just keeps going!

We had two days in Darwin. Originally, we were supposed to only have one day, but then Thursday Island had to be cancelled (weather wouldn’t allow us in) so they got here a little early so we could have two days on land. With the ‘extra’ day, John and I decided to do something atypical for us on these trips – golf. We found a municipal 9-hole course in the center of town. We were covered in sweat by the time we got to the course, so we almost decided to walk the course, but opted for a cart because it was Monday and there was a $10 cart deal on Mondays. And boy, are we glad we did! It was just so unbelievably hot and humid I can’t imagine how drenched we would have been had we walked. Plus, the sun would’ve destroyed us. Fun fact on this topic: unlike the rest of the country that experiences four distinct seasons, Darwin has only two: the wet and the dry. The wet season, which runs from November to April, brings hot, humid weather and torrential rain, while the dry season, from May to October, is cooler and more comfortable. Of course, that means we had the wet season – and yes, it is HOT and HUMID, hence the ridiculous amount that we were sweating.

Anyway, we golfed the nine holes and had a wonderful time doing so. We played Bingo, Bango, Bongo (a game we usually play rather than ‘normal’ golf) – and I won. 😊

After golf, we stopped for a pint at a local brew pub that… can you believe it… was out of all of their own beers! That’s like KFC running out of their own chicken and only being able to sell Popeye’s chicken. Either way, it was wet and cold and refreshing, so all fine in the end.

Day 2 in Darwin was a family day with an awesome excursion to see jumping crocodiles. Yep, jumping crocodiles. We took a shuttle for about an hour to a board a smaller boat to cruise along the crocodile-infested water. The crew would dangle meat over the edge, luring crocodiles to the ship and getting them to leap out of the water to grab the food. It was an incredible sight to see.

There were several different crocodiles that we saw jump. One was named Stumpy, so-named because he only had one leg remaining, after losing the others over the course of his life. The guide said he likely lost at least one of his limbs to another crocodile – Cassanova. These were the two biggest crocs in the water. He said they each had their own territories and girlfriends, and although Cassanova was bigger, Stumpy was willing to battle him for more mates. He said Stumpy was like Hugh Heffner – old, beat up, with a few girlfriends. There were also some female crocs, much smaller and therefore a little more able to leap even higher out of the water. Quite impressive for sure.

After seeing several menacing crocs prowl and hunt and jump for about an hour, we headed back. On the way, one of the guides tossed bits of food in the air for birds to catch in flight.

The day was definitely a success. Ryan liked it so much he got a stuffed crocodile and two magnets (one of which he gave to me as a gift… aww). The crocodile is named Wokeye – after one of the crocodiles we saw leap out of the water.