Cold down south
I wrapped up my time in Darwin yesterday with a day trip to Litchfield National Park. Generally speaking most people use Darwin as a base for its reasonably handy National Parks, of which Kakadu is the most well known. However I had neither the time, money or indeed the inclination to trudge for several days in temperatures hitting mid to upper 30s. I have no desire to test my suitability for the French Foreign Legion in the summer heat of Australia's 'Red Centre' so if I do fancy taking in the likes of Alice Springs or Uluru (Ayres Rock) then I'll jolly well come back in the middle of winter and see it at a time when it might actually offer some enjoyment rather than being a sweltering drudgery.
A few hours were passed in a most worthwhile fashion indulging in the deadly sins of internet and culinary delights, than it was off to Darwin Airport to my remarkably cheap 'Virgin Blue' flight to Melbourne, costing some 60 quid for the 4 hour flight. Not to be sniffed at. Problem is, when you go for the cheapest flight available, and most other flight options are priced at getting on for 3 times what I paid, you end up on a flight full of the type of people who can't afford a flight at a more civilised hour. The gate comprised a mottley selection of Chinese with more gaps in their mouths than they had teeth, those who looked they should be begging on the street rather than flying anywhere, Buddhist monks with a fan club of women praying at their feet in a Waynes World-esque "we're not worthy!" manner, people with a fine selection of limb injuries, infants who shouldn't have to endure an overnight flight, families with bizarre luggage, the needlessly sunburnt and the needlessly overweight, to reel off but a few. They were all there, humanity in its infinitely unattractive variety. It didn't bode well I thought, but the seating allocation worked as much in my favour as I could have hoped with pretty normal people beside me and only one occasionally tempremental baby a row or two behind. The flight failed to provide a sound night's sleep as flights so often do, however I grabbed a good couple of hours I reckon and am trying to struggle through the day now without succumbing to the fatigue and collapsing in some ill-chosen spot in the cityscape.
Melbourne is looking good from a preliminary inspection. Not having been subject to the cyclone issues of Darwin it boasts a good number of historic buildings and in part is even by the sea. I'm typing this from St Kilda which is essentially the seaside suburb of the city and it still bears some of the signs of being a resort in the past with a fine Winter Gardens style theatre and an early 20th century fun fair with a renovated and very rickety looking rollercoaster dating from the same era. Even if it had been open I suspect my travel insurance wouldn't have covered me in the event of any mishap. Melbourne seems to be primarily known as the cultural capital of Australia which isn't a side of the city I've had time to explore just yet but the Sunday markets I've wandered past are a healthy sign that there's creativity aplenty in this place. I can't say any of it was worth buying, but then creativity and marketability seldom go easily together. The nightlife appears to be something to be noted too, given that on the way into the city centre on the airport shuttle bus the streets were full with young hip things pouring out of night clubs with that unmistakable "just been drinking and dancing for 8 hours solid" appearance, blinking wearily as they emerged into the brightening world around them.
I can't go any further without giving some mention to the weather here. On arrival at 5.30am this morning the temperature was announced as being some 13 degrees, the lowest I've encountered in quite some time. Needless to say before departing the unneccesarily well air-conditioned airport terminal building I had to retrieve my long forgotten fleece from the darkened recesses of my rucksack. The last time the trusty top layer saw the light of day was at over 6000 m while freezing my arse off trying to take photos of Mount Everest. Here in Melbourne it feels like an entirely different season to that in Darwin. I suspect moving from a tropical to a more temperature climate plays a big part too. It's a welcome relief though; to be able to walk around, explore the sights and wear out some shoe leather without sweating like a pig in a sauna.
A few hours were passed in a most worthwhile fashion indulging in the deadly sins of internet and culinary delights, than it was off to Darwin Airport to my remarkably cheap 'Virgin Blue' flight to Melbourne, costing some 60 quid for the 4 hour flight. Not to be sniffed at. Problem is, when you go for the cheapest flight available, and most other flight options are priced at getting on for 3 times what I paid, you end up on a flight full of the type of people who can't afford a flight at a more civilised hour. The gate comprised a mottley selection of Chinese with more gaps in their mouths than they had teeth, those who looked they should be begging on the street rather than flying anywhere, Buddhist monks with a fan club of women praying at their feet in a Waynes World-esque "we're not worthy!" manner, people with a fine selection of limb injuries, infants who shouldn't have to endure an overnight flight, families with bizarre luggage, the needlessly sunburnt and the needlessly overweight, to reel off but a few. They were all there, humanity in its infinitely unattractive variety. It didn't bode well I thought, but the seating allocation worked as much in my favour as I could have hoped with pretty normal people beside me and only one occasionally tempremental baby a row or two behind. The flight failed to provide a sound night's sleep as flights so often do, however I grabbed a good couple of hours I reckon and am trying to struggle through the day now without succumbing to the fatigue and collapsing in some ill-chosen spot in the cityscape.
Melbourne is looking good from a preliminary inspection. Not having been subject to the cyclone issues of Darwin it boasts a good number of historic buildings and in part is even by the sea. I'm typing this from St Kilda which is essentially the seaside suburb of the city and it still bears some of the signs of being a resort in the past with a fine Winter Gardens style theatre and an early 20th century fun fair with a renovated and very rickety looking rollercoaster dating from the same era. Even if it had been open I suspect my travel insurance wouldn't have covered me in the event of any mishap. Melbourne seems to be primarily known as the cultural capital of Australia which isn't a side of the city I've had time to explore just yet but the Sunday markets I've wandered past are a healthy sign that there's creativity aplenty in this place. I can't say any of it was worth buying, but then creativity and marketability seldom go easily together. The nightlife appears to be something to be noted too, given that on the way into the city centre on the airport shuttle bus the streets were full with young hip things pouring out of night clubs with that unmistakable "just been drinking and dancing for 8 hours solid" appearance, blinking wearily as they emerged into the brightening world around them.
I can't go any further without giving some mention to the weather here. On arrival at 5.30am this morning the temperature was announced as being some 13 degrees, the lowest I've encountered in quite some time. Needless to say before departing the unneccesarily well air-conditioned airport terminal building I had to retrieve my long forgotten fleece from the darkened recesses of my rucksack. The last time the trusty top layer saw the light of day was at over 6000 m while freezing my arse off trying to take photos of Mount Everest. Here in Melbourne it feels like an entirely different season to that in Darwin. I suspect moving from a tropical to a more temperature climate plays a big part too. It's a welcome relief though; to be able to walk around, explore the sights and wear out some shoe leather without sweating like a pig in a sauna.
posted by Daniel at 8:57 pm
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