Darwin

There is a lot to like about Darwin, it has a great vibe. Having said that I don't think I would live here by choice. It's young, brash and outwardly self confident but underneath it all it checks itself in the mirror before it goes out and wants to know if it's bum looks big in this. It's the kind of town (not city) that someone young could feel at home in. It would be a nice place to grow up with and I have no doubt that in twenty years time it will be like Perth. Where I'm staying is a case in point, the waterfront redevelopment looks great but it hasn't found it feet yet. There are vacant premises, building works still underway, but nowhere near enough people to support all the restaurants and other businesses already here. 

They are selling it as Darwin's Circular Quay when in fact it's more like Darwin's Darling Harbour. I don't mean that as a criticism but Circular Quay has both the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge along with the stunning Harbour with an attractive foreshore leading out to the Pacific whereas here you have a still quite industrial harbour (off in the distance), no building of any great significance and nearly everything within your immediate field of vision is man made, including a beach and wave lagoon. There is nothing wrong with this development it's just not close to Circular Quay. Mind you if you want to buy an apartment in the new development you will still need in excess of $ 1,000,000.00.

I did a quick wander around the city after I arrived, the bars were going off. There was karaoke, some places had live music but the ones pulling the crowds had DJ's pumping out the latest tunes. The crowds were sweaty, really getting into it and the girls were wearing little more than two band aids and a cork. It made me wish I was 21 again so I could slide seamlessly into the groove. Sadly being an overweight, middle age guy I would have just looked like a dirty old pervert so I had to leave the scene to those whom it truly belonged. 

In that time I also saw some of the important building from Darwin's past and present. This included their Supreme Court and Parliament building, all eerily familiar from news broadcasts about voluntary euthanasia and the Lindy Chamberlain saga. I also saw what was left of the old town hall. It was pretty well annihilated in Cyclone Tracy (Christmas Eve 1974) and what was left of it was stabilised and left as a permanent legacy of that tragic event.

Cyclone Tracy killed 71 people and left 41,000 people out of a population of 47,000 homeless with 70% of Darwin's building destroyed (including 80% of it's housing stock). It's another reason why Darwin looks like such a young city most of it is new having been rebuilt since that tragic day.

The other significant date in Darwin's recent history is 19th February 1942. That was the day World War Two truly came to Australia. The Japanese sent two waves of aircraft (242 in total) to attack Darwin. It was the first and the most destructive of the attacks felt in the Northern Territory. 297 people were confirmed killed including a number of civilians and naval dockyard workers. The fact that we were at war and the militant unions were disrupting the unloading of ships in Darwin Harbour is not in dispute. It can be argued that the destruction of the dangerous cargo carried by the unloaded vessels certainly added to the death and carnage of the day. What cannot be disputed is that many dock workers paid the ultimate price working in the port that day.

The shot up life preserver brought it all home to me when I went to see the Darwin Military Museum. They have an excellent Defence of Darwin multimedia display (the kind of thing I would normally run a mile to avoid). The 13 minute presentation brought tears to my eyes, it was incredibly well done. If any of you have seen the sound and light shows at Australian War Memorial you will have an idea of what I mean. I can say without a doubt however that this is far better. The rest of the Museum is also excellent with everything from personal memorabilia to the usual display of weapons (both light and heavy) along with much of the paraphernalia associated with war. It was nice to see that an objective view of the conflict was given and a genuine attempt has been made to understand both sides of the conflict not just on a strategic level but also on a personal one as well.

The whole history of Darwin and the unique position it holds within Australian military history is one of poor timing, bad luck and bad judgement. Massive 9.2" guns were installed to defend the harbour in 1942. These where essentially irrelevant as war had moved away from naval strength to that of air strength. Navies were now the delivery mechanism to get your aircraft close to their destination. Darwin was ready to defend itself from attack via the sea but in no way was it ready to defend itself from an attack from the air. They built their fuel storage out in the open, an easy target for enemy aircraft. By the time they had an underground facility operational the war was over. The same was done in regards to ammunition storage. Ammo dumps were above ground and the cordite deteriorated due to the tropical weather and they were again easy targets for the enemy. They built underground bomb dumps but these were only operational after the Japanese could no longer strike at Darwin from the air.

The Irrelevant 9.2" Gun

Bomb Dump

Inside the Bomb Dump

Darwin is littered with the accoutrements of war and for the serious military history buff is a destination of immense interest. Local parks still have remnants of original military installations and the museum was started by volunteers collecting the detritus of war that lay scattered around the town. As you come in to Darwin from the south you drive past old WW2 airfields, there are pill boxes still facing north along the harbour. Its hard to forget what a significant role this part of the world played in Australia's war effort. The fact that the authorities kept from the greater Australian public what was really going on in Darwin is testimony to how dire the situation could have become. 

Engine from a Crashed Plane - Hence the Bent Propellers  (he wouldn't get out of the way)

WW2 Harbour Side Pill Box

That's enough about the war for now. Tomorrow I head to Kakadu where I am going to stay in a building shaped like a crocodile. Getting a booking there was harder than it should have been so let's hope it's worth it.