What we do

Last week the husband wive and child went into Darwin City to get a book or something and we ended up just hanging out in the mall for a while. There was some banging going on at the other end of the mall and we looked over to see a very colourful and impressive Lion blessing businesses who had left offerings at their entrances.


Chung Wah Lion Dance

Darwin's Chung Wah society are extremely active and attend a lot of local events. This week they were visiting the shop fronts in the mall. There was lots of drumming and the loud banging of crackers exploding in steel drums made sure every one knew there was something going on. It was quite entertaining watching the young people in the performing this ritual and also watching passers by taking a keen interest in what was going on. Our daughter must have seen this performance several times now and she loves it. The lion is sometimes very confronting and cheeky he come right up to people and demands their attention and possibly an offering. I am not too familiar with the purpose of this ritual but I think it is to bring prosperity and possibly to protect against misfortune. The energy of the performance certainly brings a rush of excitement and is a great way of bringing the crowd together (you tend to want to be in a big group when there's a lion prancing around unrestrained!)

I've been too preoccupied to post much lately but I have to confess that I've dropped back on my bicycle commuting. I've decided that riding from Palmerston at night is not worth the risk. No matter which way I try to do it the dangers are always far too evident. Drink driving in Darwin seems to be a right of passage and I am sure if I use the road at night it would only be a matter of time before I am skittled by an unlicensed driver in a blackout or a boy racer with a brand new Subaru and an attitude who thinks the emergency lane is for passing roadtrains!

After deciding I would ride on the bike path only I have now realized that although the potential to be hit by a car on the road was real the likelihood of encountering wildlife on the bike path is unavoidable! As it is dark my headlamp attracts all kinds of insects (some of them quite large) that smack me in the face and infiltrate my nostrils, mouth and stick me in the eyes. There are a growing number of Cane Toads on the track dead and live which present a sticky problem of their own and there is the real possibility of meeting up with a pack of feral dogs or pigs! When they constructed the extension to McMillans Rd I came across all kinds of roadkill, I'm sure the quolls an bandicoots would have scampered away but I doubt the 12 ft long python I saw one day would have been quick enough to get out of the way and who knows what a crock might make of a small cycle mounted light heading towards it?


Pink bike in the (very tall) Sorghum

So I now only ride to and from Palmerston once a week during the day, So far it has rained most days but it's quite a pleasant ride and I can see most of the obstacles in my way. So that's it really! I still have nothing inspiring to write about but felt I should fill the page and stick on a couple of pix from my commute.


Fungi on Pandanus spiralis