Thursday 5th June
After another morning spent hanging out and not doing very much, a bunch of guys from the various hostels in Darwin met in the park for a few games of football, organised by the staff from 'The Vic' nightclub. I teamed up with a couple of Dutch guys, an English fellow, and a German and thoroughly enjoyed a few games of five-a-side, even reaching the final of the mini tournament. Unfortunately, we were beaten when it really mattered, and I fell badly on my hand when I went in for a tackle that was a mix between Bobby Moore and Franco Baresi at their best. It was pretty sore but I just got on with it and didn't complain, a stoic hero to the end.
I could barely use my right hand at all when I got changed before going out to a large outdoor market on the edge of town. It was full of food stalls and alternative shops, and reminded me of the Glastonbury Festival without the rain and the mud. There I bumped into Daniele and Thomas, and a couple of the other Easy Rider guys. I had a good thai green curry, and it was a pleasant reminder of the delicious (and cheap) food that I had eaten when I was travelling in SE Asia (it actually made me quite wistful about it, which was a surprising but not a bad emotion to have, surely a good signof how much I had enjoyed it!). We didn't hang about for too long, heading back into the hostel before popping next door to Shenanigans for a few drinks and to say goodbye to another couple of people who were moving onwards the next day.
