Well, folks, things are going swimmingly in NT. Read on to find out just how swimmingly.
PART 1 (Kakadu National Park and surrounds, 3 days)
Flight 62 to Darwin is delayed by 30 minutes, but will still be able to make the tour when it lands at 4.30am. Good to have buffer time after all. The plane is only half full, so got the entire row of 3 seats to myself. Still couldn't get any sleep despite the good fortune.
Upon arrival, I get stopped at customs and questioned like a criminal for trying to bring in a packet of washing powder they think could be drugs. This, after I had to discard my packet of pea chips for fear of being held up at customs. The last time I was passing through Australian customs, it wasn't pleasant either. I now officially hate Australian customs.
I decided to jump into a cab as I was worried I would be late for the tour. Turns out I wasted the money - ended up waiting for the tour to show up for something like an hour.
Realised my mistake of taking this tour at the height of summer, and evidently monsoon season (no one told me that!). The state is apparently swarming with flies, some of which have painful stings. Camping with those, coupled with the swarms of mosquitoes? I don't recommend it. For one, it's kind of hard to get any sleep in a stuffy tent in a sleeping bag.
We are travelling in a 4WD type vehicle. It's like a lorry for transporting people. I got a seat up front, on top of the burning engine and right beside the driver/tour leader. She seems to be worried cause I am not socialising. Sigh.
My camera decides to conk off after lunch. Every picture turns out over exposed. Sorry folks, no pictures unless I manage to get the damned thing fixed somewhere along the way.
Didn't manage to get into Litchfield National Park on the last day because the roads are flooded and impassable. Common occurance, apparently, during monsoon season.
PART 2 (Darwin to Alice Springs, 3 days)
We depart Darwin in a mini tour bus lugging a trailer. I got a single seat towards the back of the bus, but then a group of Americans/Australians on a company outing grab the adjacent seats. Decide to get the seat in the front again as the group seem to talk rather a lot. So I end up sitting next to the tour leader again, this time a skinny bearded chap. He informs his passengers about the various places like he's reciting from memory. Also makes passengers play ice-breaking games. You know I was rolling my eyes, right? The guy also seems intent on making me chat with him while he drives.
I'm still not able to get any sleep in those dreaded 2-man tents, despite my best efforts. I just lie there in a pool of sweat from 9pm and check the clock after a long while, hoping it's time to get up, but it's only 1am.
Into the second day, the tour leader suggests I should go to dinner with him when we get to Alice. I am non-commital. Later, he asks the kind of question I thought shouldn't be within the boundaries of Q&A for people who just met. I get offended the second time he asks and ignore him the rest of the way to camp. That seemed to put him in a bad mood, and he loses his cool with the group later when they talk when he recites a story about the place. The A/A company group have started threatening to throw me into the pool if I persist in not swimming.
We spend the night at the Juno Horse Farm. It actually has horses. It also is swarming with flying ants. Orangy ones. But the night sky is clear and blanketed in stars, so this time I get to star gaze in bed instead of just stew in perspiration. The sky actually takes on a surreal jelly-like quality when looked through the window mesh, it almost wobbles.
On the third day, it seems the tour leader has assumed I will go to dinner with him and starts to ask me what I would like to eat. He also says I should meet him at 4pm on Saturday and we'll go do something before dinner. He also seems to have realised his mistake and keeps his lewd questioning in check.
PART 3 (Alice Springs, 2 days)
There is nothing (much) to do in Alice. It is pretty small and this weekend, it seems the #1 past-time for the locals is watching the Todd River flow. Apparently, this river only flows during the monsoon and this is the first time it is flowing this year, so it's somewhat of a big deal.
Found a camera shop and asked to get my camera fixed, but was refused. This camera is more than 3 years old and apparently not worth fixing, according to camera shop uncle. I wonder if he was hoping I'd buy a new camera at his shop if he tells me that. Sorry mate, I don't have any money to spend on new gadgets.
After walking around town about 3 times, I still can't find any of the bloody op shops I'd found listed on the internet. But I did find a second-hand bookstore where I purchase a second-hand book for A$14 (was hoping it'd be something more like A$5) and then at lunch, spilled tea down my white top and returned to the hostel to change and wash it. After that, I am bored and decide to make the 4pm meeting. I guess I have time to find out what he expects out of it before dinner actually happens.
We end up going bowling. I'm still terrible at it after 2 games. That took up an hour of our time, and we go to Anzac Hill next. Unfortunately, he refers repeatedly to going back to his place and getting "hot and sweaty". I make it clear it's not going to happen. He accuses me of using him to while away my time and I admit it. We're both pissed off at this point, so I decided to make my exit.
When I get to the bottom of the hill, he comes driving up alongside but I ignore him. He zooms off in a huff, like in a movie. Good grief.
Now I feel nauseous. And kind of embarrassed.
