Thursday March 02, 2023
The day was divided into two: the first part of the day we took a tour – “Leisurely Darwin”; and the rest of the day we walked around Darwin again. We were afraid that the tour was going to take us to all the places we had walked to yesterday, but it was a bit different. The 2 coaches for the tour were late, so we were all waiting on the quayside. Eventually they arrived and the two tour guides stood at the door of each taking tickets. One, a light skinned Australian, we had chatted a bit with before getting on and seemed very nice, but that coach soon filled up. The coach we went on was where all the “mobility Impaired” individuals were placed, and we took our seats. The Guide Peter was the worst we have experienced on the trip. He got into the front seat, never looking at us and saying very little. Eventually we got to a place and he said this is the botanical garden and got out of the coach. What we were supposed to do, no-one had an idea. Eventually we all got off the coach and asked what was happening to which he said be back on the coach in 45 minutes. So we got a map and started wandering around the Botanical Gardens.
The gardens were started in this location in June 1886, some 16 yers after the founding of Darwin, and was the third formal attempt to establish such a garden. The objective of the garden for the first 30 years under the direction of Maurice Holts and later his son Nicholas was on “Economic” gardening. What crops were best suited to this tropical climate. It was found that Maize, Rice, Peanuts, Tapioca and Indigo, did very well. Others – Cotton, Jute and Tobacco were moderately successful, while – Coffee, Tea, Cocoa and PawPaw (Papaya) did not do well in this area. During the war years both 1914 as well as WW2, the gardens suffered due to lack of attention and being used as barracks for the forces who used many of the trees as target practice. It was rebuilt after 1946, but again destroyed by Cyclone Tracy in 1974. So most of what can be seen today is since that time and under the curator, George Brown, from 1971-1990 and thus the gardens are named in his honor. He then became Lord Mayor of Darwin and died in 2002. The George Brown Botanical Gardens have various sections such as the “Shade” Garden, the “Rainforest Loop”, which we did and was beautiful, The “Africa-Madagascar” Garden, etc. We were able to see perhaps a quarter of the garden in the allocated 45 minutes. Just as we were leaving a bride showed up in a white stretch limousine as it is a very popular place to be married.
Back on the coach, we were taken to Cullen Bay – where the rich people live – and it was indeed a very attractive area, before going through the center of town stopping at 2 churches to see from the coach. The first one St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral, the guide told us has a hole right the way through as a local farmer insisted on having a view of the sea before he was ok for the structure to be built. He then told us that trees now cover it, so he can’t see the sea anyway. By which point the driver Bill, who realized his incompetence, tried hard to add some information to at least make it interesting and try and cover for the guide. He passed another church and just said – Methodist Church on left, but the driver gave us some interesting information, then near the third church, actually Christ Church Anglican Cathedral, he asked if people wanted to get off in town as he was heading back to the ship. Most did, and I did not see one person give him a tip as he was either ignorant, lazy or inept. He made it back 30 minutes before time having left 30 minutes late!
We got off and made our way to the Chung Wah Society NT Chinese Temple, on 25 Woods Street just off Litchfield Street we had seen it marked on a map (www.chungwahnt.asn.au). It is a smaller version of the one we saw in Saigon, all in red and gold, with an entry to a central area and the main altar with the two side altars on either side. A separate smaller building just had an altar and rows of wooden movable pieces with names on them, which we assumed were deceased members and there for ancestor worship.
We then decided to walk to the other end of town to St. Mary’s Star of the Sea Cathedral to see if we could spot the hole that the guide talked about. We searched but could not find any, but did arrive just in time for Mass, so we stayed for the service.
We then walked back a couple of blocks toward the center of town past the Elementary school linked to St. Mary’s and found the “Methodist Church” actually the “Uniting Church in Australia – Darwin Memorial Uniting Church”. It is located at 78 Smith Street, a Christian denomination with very simple pews, no altar but an area that is set aside by the minister of the service. A very kind parishioner, saw us peering through the locked door and windows and arranged for us to go into the hall and then into the church. The interesting part of this blue metallic roof church was that during the war, it had been the site of the USA Military Headquarters and was bombed by the Japanese. The same company that bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, bombed Darwin on February 19,1942, sinking various ships amongst which was the MV Zealandia. Several years after the war (1958) the site was being transformed into a church that was in memory of those that gave their lives in the war. In 1959 to 1961, the ships in the harbor were being brought up and it was a Japanese company that was charged with the salvage operation. Mr, Ryugo Fujita of the Fujita Salvage Company raised the MV Zealandia and gave funds to the new church for a peace garden and had 77 bronze crosses made from the ship and gave them to the church as a measure of a “peace Offering” for what Japan had done to Darwin. These crosses are now placed around the church and at both ends of each of the pews. Mr. Fujita continued to be a donor and involved with the church until his death in December 2022. His son and grand-daughter have now adopted the mission of peace. One assumes there is a symbolism behind why there are 77 crosses and one can only imagine that that was the number of people killed on the MV Zealandia.
We continued our walk back along Smith Street and found Ruby, a Japanese restaurant where we enjoyed vegetable spring rolls and hot, spicy chicken with cashew nuts which we had difficulty in finishing due to the size, washed down by another good local brew – Great Northern Brewing Co, Super Crisp Low Bitterness Beer. We passed the Larrakia center of justice where 7 cultural protocols are stated – 1) The Larrikia People are the owners of the land and waters of the greater Darwin and rural areas including identified aboriginal living areas; 2) Aboriginal Law requires respect for the cultural authority of the aboriginal owners; 3) We speak for our county and have an obligation along with our neighbors to care for our country; 4) Visitors should respect that we maintain traditional knowledge such as stories about significant sites; 5) All visitors are responsible for their behavior and should respect the guidance of the Larrakia; 6) Learning about country is everyone’s obligation including visitors, residents, NGO’s and Government; and 7) Inappropriate behavior reflects badly on Larrakia people and we do not accept it. An interesting set of protocols to live by.
By this time we were tired after walking 16,118 steps or 10.44 Kilometers, so walked back to the ship. 22 1/2 Kilometers walking over the two days, in Darwin meant we fairly well covered the city!
We rested a bit had a salad in the cafeteria and went to the show – A good Australian singer doing movie and Broadway songs – Karen Beckett. The Captain announced that overnight, last night the winds and storms were severe and that all day a tug boat had to push us towards the quay as the winds kept pushing us out to sea. Furthermore, one of the key communication devices was damaged so before being permitted to sail away, we had to repair or replace the item and would not be leaving for some hours. He hoped to get us underway by midnight but it was likely to be a bit of a “bumpy ride” as we sailed past the rest of Northern Australia. Overnight we moved the clocks forward 1/2 hour thus one full hour since we left Singapore.
Roger & Anne Travels 