Day 52: 2/3 to Darwin or not

 

We are between Cairns and Darwin

The Craft Class has a long line

Dream catcher and already hanging in the room

Morning WWII in the Pacific was on Saipan and how this was called Beginning of the End. The B-29 was the most expensive program during WWII, even more costly than the Manhattan Project. But its new capabilities and ability to fly and bomb higher than the Japanese's planes could fly was a key in turning the tide.

While Rob was sitting in the theater, Toni was competing. A two part event that had "bean toss" to start and then coffee bean pick up (with Chopsticks)

Rob made it to watch Toni's Coffee Bean pickup. She actually challenged Assistant Cruise Director Kimee.  The most any one else did was around 30.

Toni did over 50 and with her 5 bean toss points won the whole event.

And Kimee giving her the prize

The door is ready for St Patrick's Day

Sunday Brunch and Toni had Chocolate Chip Pancakes and Rob had a Western Omelet.

The afternoon WWII in the Pacific talk was on Guadalcanal and how there were many more people behind the scenes supplying, feeding and supporting those on the front line. This included the servicemen and women overseas and everyone back in the United States supporting the efforts of the military.

Senator McCain's grandfather led the land and Sea Air Command from the island of Santo.  Adm. McCain also commissioned Naval Air Station Patuxent River on April 1, 1943 while still in DC.  He then headed to the Pacific (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_S._McCain_Sr.)

The US lost more aircraft during non combat activity than in combat. We were building them fast and training pilots fast. This plane was found on an secluded island that was used for practice bombing. The remains found were repatriated. 

So tomorrow's port is Darwin. This is how Darwin got its name (https://darwintour.com.au/blog/how-darwin-got-its-name/).

How Darwin got its name

European settlers first reached Darwin in 1839, but the city wasn’t always named Darwin.

When European sailors reached Darwin in 1839 aboard the HMS Beagle, captain Lt. John Lort Stokes named the harbour after his previous shipmate; the naturalist, geologist and biologist, Charles Darwin. The story isn’t that simple though!

Charles Darwin

Sixty-nine years after the first European settlement in Australia, Darwin’s harbour was spotted. After reaching land, the captain and his lieutenant named the port ‘Darwin’ after their former shipmate Charles Darwin. The trio had met when Darwin took a five-year voyage around the globe, observing geology around the world.

Naming the land

Thirty years after Port Darwin was first found and named by Europeans, they sent the first settlement of people to live there. The settlement was named Palmerston after the then British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston. The first settlement was small, comprising only 135 people.

Keeping Darwin alive

In the 1870s gold was found 200km south of Darwin and saw an influx of Chinese settlers. They were mostly contracted to work in the goldfields and later worked on building railways through the Territory.

The influx was well-timed, as several devastating shipwrecks saw the population of Darwin drop significantly. At the same time, the pearling industry saw people arriving from Japan, Timor, and the Philippines. The Asian population in Darwin took a sharp downturn after the implementation of the White Australia policy in the 1890s, however, those who stayed played a key role in the commercial development of the city. Today, many prominent families in Darwin are descendants of those who came pearling in the 1800s.

In 1897 a huge cyclone tore through the settlement, destroying everything. It was the worst cyclone to hit the Northern Territory before Cyclone Tracy in 1974. 24 people died in the settlement, and it also killed those working on Darwin Harbour. Only eight buildings survived the cyclone and were used to house the entire population until the settlement could rebuild.

A new name

Originally under the control of the South Australian government, Darwin was handed over to the Commonwealth of Australia in 1911. The handover also saw its name officially change from Palmerston to Darwin.

Just 15 minutes from modern Darwin, you can find Palmerston, a planned satellite city. Darwin and Palmerston are the only recognised cities in the Northern Territory and boast a modest combined population of less than 200,000.

Since its first settlement, Darwin has had a varied history. From devastating cyclones and war bombings to a thriving tourism hub and modern city, Darwin has the historical significance and modern flare to appeal to anyone. The gateway to some of the Northern Territory’s best environments, a visit to Darwin should be on everyone’s bucket list!

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This was going to be a nice relaxing day on land for us. A short cooking/food excursion that a chef would teach us how to fix Barramundi (fish) and then we get to eat it!!  Barramundi is one of the best nutritional fishes. And then we were going to spend the rest of time just walking around the town.

But when the Captain gets on the intercomm, you know something is up.  Well the forecast was for high winds and rough seas in the area tomorrow.  It would be too dangerous to dock. So we would be skipping Darwin and heading to Komodo.

The show was Broadway songs

With no stop at Darwin, we will be at sea until Komodo on Thursday