At last, we were getting close to our arrival in Darwin! After having sailed through some fairly rough seas since we left Brisbane a month ago, well, it seemed like a month, it was smooth sailing across the Arafura Sea and on into Darwin. Actually, it has only been a week, oh, and we did make that stop in Cooktown. Not much to see there!
We were scheduled to arrive in Darwin at 1:30pm.
Our morning entertainment was a martini making presentation. Yep, gotta see that!
The lovely Lilia, our favorite bartender, preparing a chocolate martini. Dip the rim in Godiva Chocolate Liqueur then in cocoa. Mix the martini then add Godiva Chocolate to layer… it will sink to the bottom.
Shake the vodka and ice...
An appletini, a margarita, a chocolate martini and, I forgot what the fourth one was. We learned that if the drink is served in a martini glass straight up, it falls in the martini category!
Arriving at the dock in Darwin. Darwin would seen like a MAJOR city after Cooktown. Cooktown reminded us of some of the small South Pacific Islands we visited in 2010.
Our tour buses are patiently waiting for us to disembark. Little did they know there would be at least another 3 hour wait. More on that at the end of this post.
The Captain and the First Officer, yes, a woman, bringing the ship into the dock!
Off the starboard side of the ship, a Sunday afternoon regatta in the bay.
Tours were scheduled to leave as early as 2pm. Finally, around 5:00pm, the local authorities allowed us to disembark and, we were off on a condensed version (2 hours rather than 4 hours) of our tour, we were on a very modern coach! There were "TV's" every 2 rows showing the view out the front of the bus! Thus, everyone got to sit in the coveted front row seats!
Our first stop was for a short walk around some of the oldest buildings in Darwin. I couldn't resist a photo of this unique plant. It kind of looked like a jack-in-the-pulpit crossed with a crinum lily! The colors make it a little hard to see, I didn't check to see if it had a smell.
One of the oldest buildings in Darwin. It was bombed in February 1942 by the Japanese and then again badly damaged by Cyclone Tracey in 1974. it's easy to distinguish the older bricks from the original building from those added during the latest restorations.
The Government House, built in the 1870's is the oldest standing European building in Australia's Northern Territory. It has survived bombing, cyclones, earthquakes, "termite" infestations and rowdy political demonstrations.
A closer look at the shield of Australia in place on the gate.
Following our little historic area tour, it was "back on the bus" time for more driving, this time to the Darwin Botanic Gardens.
Japanese like pond as we head across a bridge out from the parking area to the other parts of the gardens.
Unfortunately, we only had 20 minutes to enjoy the gardens. This path leads down and around to the rainforest area but, we just did not have the time to take the walk.
Looking across an open lawn to a foreboding sky beyond. Fortunately, we didn't get any rain while we were there! The approaching storm did provide some much desired cool air as relief from the 95°F temperatures we were experiencing!
A pretty little oriental type garden. As might be expected, there is a high percentage of Oriental's in Darwin. It is quite a bit closer to Asia than it is to the major cities in Australia (Sydney & Melbourne) and to the country capital in Canberra.
On the bus on the way back to the ship, we pass by a colorful working boat yard.
Sunset across the bay. The colors in the sky made the waters look green.
From the back of the ship, sunset time brings out great clouds for imagining a parade of figures.
One more set. Yes, these do fascinate us!
Originally, we were supposed to leave Darwin around 7:30pm, however, due to an on board tragedy, the Australian Authorities would not let us leave. This morning during a crew drill, one of the members did not show up. They found her in her room dead. She was Jackie Kastranelis from Groveland, Mass, the 24 year-old lead singer for the Jean Ann Ryan singers and dancers currently on board. A beautiful girl with a lovely voice and truly a wonderful heart. We had the opportunity to meet her and other members of the troupe on our 2011 Mediterranean Cruise. On that trip, she was one of our "play mates". Rest in peace Jackie, we will truly miss you.
Because of this, the ship was considered to be a "crime scene" until such time as the authorities could do sufficient investigation to ensure it was not the result of a criminal act.
Regent did a lot of scrambling to try to make up for the tours that were cancelled or compressed today and in the evening, announced that they'd arranged for tours to take place the next morning and, they added that they'd secured 250 tickets to the local Casino theater where the Super Bowl was being screened. That made people happy because there had been a lot of grumbling that the ship wasn't going to carry it.
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