June 27, 2021
Day 138: Rest day
This morning we were picked up from our hotel at 7:30am.
We were with the Northern Territory Indigenous Day Tours visiting Litchfield.
It was a small tour with only 9 people.
I had a pleasant swim.
All of the termite mounds I've seen to date have been the Cathedral type.
| Heart | 7 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Tess Atie is a local aboriginal woman who grew up in Litchfield National Park before it was proclaimed.
These mounds are wide and narrow. The narrow ends align with north and south. The wide ends align with east and west.
The queen termite can live to 100 and the whole hive will die when she does.
The termites prefer a humid and stable environment. I put one hand on the sunny side of the mound which was warm and the other hand on the shady side which was cool. Maybe in the middle the temperature would be just right, like Goldilocks.
We walked through the grassed woodland and Tess showed us how to make string from the fan palm.
We all made some string by taking an emerging palm frond and peeling both sides of the frond away to reveal some long fibres. We then rubbed these fibres along our forearms which intertwined them to make a strong string.
Traditionally this string would be used to make dilly bags.
Normally one could swim here but not presently. They had fenced off the access and put many crocodile warning signs up.
| Heart | 6 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Hibiscus Petherickii was named after Tess's grandfather, Ray Petherick. He was a great man who helped many clans with their native title rights.
Tess pointed to a small nest made of leaves in a tree's lower branch.
| Heart | 6 | Comment | 0 | Link |
She showed us how to pick up the ants, holding the head in our fingertips so it couldn't bite us, while leaving the green abdomen exposed.
I held the abdomen to my tongue and it tasted of a very intense lemon acid flavour.
I then let the ant go. This process didn't hurt the ant.
We then had lunch of barbecued crocodile, kangaroo and barramundi. The crocodile tasted like chicken. The kangaroo like very lean beef steak. The barra like freshly caught wild saltwater barra. Excellent.
Very different from my usual bike trip lunch.
Tess gave us young leaves from two different melaleucas. She scrunched them up and they had lovely floral aromas.
She then pulled a bunch of leaves from a grass that smelt just like lemongrass.
Sorry for not taking photos of these. She did these things quickly as we were walking along a path. She was very knowledgeable.
Tess took us to another swimming hole where I washed off the day's heat.
Tess was the perfect guide. Showing us lots of plants used for bush tucker and other things.
She also explained some of her concerns with her culture becoming extinct because of the difficulties in passing on the knowledge to future generations. And the struggle to find other indigenous people willing to become part of her business.
Some of her family were living in Darwin and not spending enough time on country. This was causing them significant hardships with some of them ending up in jail or hospital.
She was giving and honest when she spoke of these things. It was a privilege to experience the day with her and I have a better understanding of her culture.
In the afternoon we found out that Darwin would be in COVID-19 'lockdown' by the time we return.
We got back to town at 5:30pm to find the streets mostly empty of traffic and people were wearing masks.
We are still allowed out to exercise and buy food. Cafes and restaurants are only permitted to sell takeaway.
The current forecast is for this situation to remain in place for 48 hours.
At this time we believe it would not have an impact on Serena flying home nor me continuing my bike ride. Fingers crossed.
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 8 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 4 |
It looks as if you might have a well earned albeit a longer rest than you expected, in Darwin.
3 years ago
At this time I plan to leave Darwin tomorrow.
Cheers
Vince
3 years ago
Meanwhile - if you get the chance, watch ABC iView. Look for the show called "Moving to the Country" episode 4 Top End / NT. I just watched it and it featured a friend of yours. It was a pleasure to watch the show but to honest, you covered it just as well in your blog!
Dave and Nancy (leavewithoutpay.com)
3 years ago
Thank you for your kind comments. I was excited to see Tess on the TV show. Thank you.
Cheers
Vince
3 years ago