Darwin

I hit Darwin the same day as a tropical monsoon did ... so my impressions are likely coloured by that. Well, now I know what a monsoon is like -- it is wet and it is warm. Kind of like being liked with a particularly drippy tongue. Actually, the hardest rain fell early in the morning and my noon it was just intermittent .. and by evening the rain had stopped and the evenings were just very humid. The town itself is a bit of a modern marvel in that it is so new. It was destroyed by Cyclone Tracey in 1974 - over 90 per cent of the homes were destroyed - so most buildings have been constructed in the last 35 years or so. The Darwin Art Gallery and Museum (above) has a really interesting exhibit of the events of Christmas Eve 1974 when their town blew down.

Doesn't seem to be a city with my kind of weather - my give this one a pass when looking for future residences.

Second day in Darwin I took a tour out to Licthfield National Park. Although some sites were closed due to flooding, it really is a gorgeus spot. Incredible waterfalls, so peaceful.