DAY 236: Day 7 off in Darwin

16th June 2008
22 km @ 14.0 km/hr
Sunny, 31 deg C
Elevation of destination 37 m
Distance to date 14251 km (8907 miles)
After another extended breakfast I washed my sleeping bag in the machine (long overdue!), then went to upload to the blog and do some e-mailing, before going into town for lunch. The parcel hadn’t arrived yet so I’ll have to spend yet another night in Darwin and try again tomorrow.
I lazed about in a shady spot in the Esplanade gardens reading for most of the afternoon and moved over to Mindil Beach around 5 for more of the same and to watch a glorious sunset over the sea. It’s the colour of the sky after the sun has gone down that is so beautiful - the orange and pink slowly spreads wider and wider for about an hour, beofre slowly dimming into darkness.
I chatted with my tent neighbour, Chris, for a while on my return - he is working just up the road and is staying here whilst trying to buy a house - and he has done a lot of bicycle touring around Australia, including Cape York and the Gibb River Road. I was interested to hear some of his observations about off-road riding, which in comparison I don’t have that much experience of.