The Alice is a lot bigger than I'd imagined it to be, but there's still not a lot going on. But I decided to do what the locals do and joined the party which helped fill my days and nights there while I waited for my train.
The Ghan is a train which runs the length of Australia from top to bottom and back again. Short for Afghan, after the camels that once made the journey, it's a bit of legend in Aus, because while it was planned 70 odd years back they only got around to finishing the track between Alice Springs and Darwin a few years ago. (I suspect they got stuck at a party. It's easy done.) I have some romantic notions about old fashioned modes of transport and was looking forward to the journey. It took a full 24 hours to reach Darwin, stopping at The Katherine for a few hours to allow us to take a look about. Taking the train was a wonderful compromise - much faster and easier than the bus, but it allowed me to see more of the country I was moving through than flying.
I arrived in Darwin on Friday night, although I think every night in Darwin is a Friday. It's like Ibiza on steroids. But it was wonderful to be back in tropical temperatures again. It's the beginning of the dry season in The Top End and the weather was perfect. Relentless blue skies and a gentle breeze meant that there was a fair amount of time spent relaxing by the pool during the day.
There's strictly no swimming in the sea, as the waters in and around Darwin are inhabited by something more unpleasant than your average backpacker - salties - salt water crocodiles. You don't want to mess with those fellas. I took a day trip to Litchfield National Park to have a week look at them. They do a number of "Jumping Crocodile Cruises" which aren't very natural, but are a great opportunity to see these monsters out of the water. After feeding some crocs we spent the rest of the day in the park, looking around and swimming in waterfalls. Bliss.
From Darwin I flew to Cairns. I missed this little gen out on my original trip up the east coast, and I had to see what the fuss was about. It has a reputation as a party town, but after Darwin it seemed very sleepy. I had a nice few days looking around and doing a couple of wonderful day trips. One of them was to the Atherton tablelands, which had come highly recommended by many (thanks Kirstin). It was the best tour I've done while in Aus and I'm glad I saved it for last. I met up with Mike and Conor who were in Cairns diving. It was wonderful to see them again. It's only a few weeks since I last saw them, but it seems much longer. It reminded me just how much I miss Hobart.
