Back in Bris for my birthday.

31.
Its been lovely. A time of walks and wisdom with nephew Will and Mum. A time to recuperate a little from the madness of work. Runs, reading, the ladeez and green tea. I feel refreshed.
After the toxing-up of the Friday night before flying back, I needed rejuvenation. A few of us trundled off to a party in the city – a friend of flatmates'. It was themed Heroes and Villains – I wore a rapier and a bandit’s mask – a la Zorro. Isk drove us, picking up Dave A on the way.
My mission was to get slightly pickled, to allay the pain of the hideously timed flight. Said flight ended up being late by 45 mins so I hung out with Compton at the suitably-stuffed airport, drinking coronas and smoking rollies, as passengers lolled in the walkways.
Slowly perambulating through the arrivals gate, I wondered if I would ever get used to these red-eye flights which the Territory is so fond of....

the lay of the land

Spent a lovely Sunday in the territory gazing at sacred sites and natural wonders – glorious. Drove to Kakadu for the day along the Arnhem Highway – took about 3.5 hrs each way through contrasting terrain – wetlands suddenly turn into bushland suddenly turn into long grass and pandanus trees. Visited a place called Ubirr in Kakadu – a series of beautiful rock formations and a sacred site for aboriginal people. Saw some aboriginal rock art and amazing views – it is a beautiful place. we hung out by a crocodile-infested river, cautiously eating rice paper rolls, and jumping at every rustle heard in the bushes. We watched as some dudes got their car stuck in the river, so people were wading out to help them… surrounded by ACHTUNG signage warning of the many crocs in the river… crazy. We spent a tense twenty kms heading back to Jabiru, as my petrol gauge was flashing madly at me, warning of imminent emptiness, but we made it just in time. As if by some karmic coincidence, we came across some dudes whose car had ran out of petrol while heading home, and so we gave them a lift to the petrol station ten mins away. They were aboriginal, carrying a lone piece of bark on which they had painted a picture, telling us they had the intention of selling it for money for petrol.
We then headed back to hometown of Darwin, and went straight to the magical Mindil beach markets, met some mates and ate Sri Lankan food on the beach. Such an amazing day…