Day 153 – 15th June 2018 – Katherine to Darwin

So the day has finally here for us to arrive in Darwin and start the next chapter of this adventure.  We said our goodbyes to our friends James and Joyce and wished them well on their travels, then started the 4 hour drive to Darwin.  We both commented on how strange it was to see traffic lights and traffic after being away from these for so long!  Back to civilisation.  I can stop waving to every car that I pass on the road now, I wonder how long it will take me to break that habbit!  I was fresh airing everyone initially as I wasn’t usually the driver on long trips.  I have come to understand the responsibility of the car wave when passing other vans and boats, serious business this.

We headed straight for the Lee Point Village Resort caravan park.  This is basically the furthest point in Darwin from the city, but it is close to a shopping centre and some good fishing spots and it also offers reasonably priced ensuite sites.  Nothing is too far away in Darwin, the park is about 17km from Darwin City.  There is a shower and toilet in the ensuite and outside there is a laundry trough and space to put a washing machine, but we will just use the communal laundry for now.  We only booked for a week to make sure we were happy with it before settling in.  First impressions were not that great as it seemed run down and the grass dead.  There are also cement slabs for you table and chairs under the awning, but the slab is too big to allow us to put up our annex.  This was something I had my heart set on, especially if we are staying for 6 months! But I am learning over and over again on this trip not to judge too quickly and to stay a while somewhere to give a place time.  So we will wait out the week and see how we feel.

Because we are waiting to see how we feel about it, we aren’t trying to find a solution to put up the annex or unpacking much until we know we are staying put.  Both our cars, van and boat were looking worse for wear after all the red dirt roads so we agreed to take them somewhere the next day and wash everything down.  Another reason not to unpack much.  It was strange pulling up but not really settling in.

We went for a bit of a walk around to check the place out.  The caravan park is located next door to the ‘Club Tropical Resort’.  There are two pools, one at the caravan park and another one at the resort that we can use.  We decided to go for dinner at the Club Tropical Resort and sat outside to eat.  It was a really lovely evening and felt like a real treat after living frugally for so long.  So we have arrived safe and sound and looking forward to our time in Darwin.