Darwin Time!!!

Well if ever I was unsure about crossing the halfway threshold, Darwin had to tick the box. After some 13,200km's on the bike it was once again time to stop, relax and perhaps see what Darwin nightlife had to offer.

Having been on the bike by myself for a reasonable stretch of time has taught me that my own company is not so bad after all. I generally win any arguments with myself, I'm always right and obviously ruggedly handsome. Basic criteria for good company. But in saying this, I was very happy and even a little relieved to be spending the next week with friends. A very good friend of mine - Dave - was flying over from Melbourne to spend some time with me and check out a city he had never visited before, as Dave is from Ireland. Dave and I had attended high-school together but became good friends in the following years. Since then Dave caught the travelling bug and disappeared to work in Europe and travel the seven seas. It had therefore been quite a while since we had caught up for a beer - and beers were indeed in order!

In addition to this, I had also been wildly lucky to be invited to come and stay with my friends Leigh and Steph (from Kalbarri and Kununarra), where they were living - at the indoor rock-climbing center right in the city! The location was superb and the company was better. An unplanned advantage of this was that the floor of the center was foam (soft for falling bodies!), which made an ideal mattress for Dave to sleep on after a long night in the town. I pitched my tent outside where the tropical trees grew tall, the bird life was abundant and the hustle and bustle of a busy city was blocked out completely. A little slice of paradise. It was fantastic to be staying with Steph and Leigh who were such positive, active people. 

And so the week flew by... but we didn't seem to see very much of Darwin. I had a rough itinerary set out in my head, which flew out of the window. Dave had a rough itinerary in his head, which flew out of the window. The main problem was that on the very first night out we discovered an Irish pub called Shenanigans. Every time we ventured out to explore other parts of the town we could hear Shenanigans calling our names and a powerful wind would whirl us back to our favorite seats. It was fate. So we learned to stop fighting it and just enjoyed ourselves. 

We did manage to cook some delicious meals for the four of us, and a pesky french backpacker managed to slither his way into a few of our feasts - Hadrian. 

Dave insisted I try adding styling wax to tame the wild beard growing on my face but alas, it still looked terrible, and ended up frazzled by the end of the night anyhow. Not a great look for the ladies. The lack of an accompanying moustache was an unsavoury look to behold. Dave was a hit with the ladies as usual. 

Dave and I paid our dues in accommodation by spending some time most days helping out in 'The Rock' as best we could. Ranging from assembling climbing structures to washing the dishes, we did what we could. We also took the opportunity to test our skills on the climbing walls when we had the strength and health to do so. Leigh had set up a "hundred holds challenge" which we could compete in quite unsuccessfully. We had a great time trying. 

But of course the stories from Darwin must stay in Darwin, and all too soon it was time to say goodbye to my friends and push on solo once more. My waters were topped up and I felt revived and refreshed. Testing challenges now lay ahead.

I would like to take the opportunity here to thank Leigh and Steph for their amazing generosity and great friendship in Darwin. We had many fantastic nights out and I had the time of my life.
My highest appreciation also goes to Dave, who missed a week of university to sit in a pub and forget his engineering formulas. Dave has since taken on the role as my 'technical support man', or, 'Tech support-McCourt'. His thorough knowledge of computers helped him fix my computer in many ways, and he has since helped me out on many occasions. You're a legend Dave. Thank you. 

                                                                              Steph and Dave about to climb

                                                                             Safely working

                                                                                         Oh dear!

                                                                                Chilly flakes?

                        This poor girl was a 'pedi-cab' driver, a taxi service from a bicycle (I              nearly attended a job interview but decided it was a silly idea). Dave was trying to race her on foot. We ended up good friends with 'Maria' from Argentina.

                                Dave's Irish breakfast, and what a feast! From Leigh and Steph's mobile kitchen.

                                          

                                                                          Goodbye drinks