East Point Beach

We have finally discovered the underlying cause of our petrol issues!  I'll let Philip explain the mechanical details in his own words:
"The cause of the problem was a faulty non-return valve, the function of which is to maintain residual pressure in the fuel line to the engine.  This had been intermittently choking, causing the pump pressure to pop the hose off the end of the pump.  It finally jammed shut completely, enabling the mechanic to diagnose the problem correctly. So about $5 worth of plastic has caused close to $1500 worth of headache!"

This morning we drove to East Point.  Philip visited the World War II Military Museum.  This part of  history holds particular interest for him as his father served in Darwin during the war.  He never spoke much of his experiences here, and Philip had often wondered what he had been through. The area underwent air raids over almost two years, but the heaviest casualties were suffered on the first day of bombing, when the toll was 423 fatalities and almost as many wounded.  There was also information about the work done to seal the Stuart Highway, which up until then had been little more than a dirt road, in order to transport supplies and munitions to Darwin during the war.

The children would have lost interest in the Military Museum quickly so, leaving Philip to spend some time taking in the information by himself, the children and I walked along the beach at low tide.  The tide line was littered with treasures- shells, beautiful coloured stones and pieces of broken coral- while there were many interesting things to discover on the tidal flats- crabs, barnacles, mysterious towers of mud... We also walked among a stand of mangroves, where the children enjoyed the squishy mud between their toes and were fascinated by the way the roots grow upwards, allowing the trees to breathe. 

Arthur collected a tub full of treasures "to give to Mrs Joanidis so she can put them on the nature table at Kinder."

We spent the afternoon at the Water Park again, to the children's joy! It is really an amazing facility to have just a five minute drive from where we're staying and completely free of charge!
Now that we have the car fixed, we will be leaving Darwin on Friday and heading for Kakadu national Park.  Tomorrow we will be getting the caravan packed and ready.  We'll need to re-stock our fridge, too, so a trip to the shopping centre is also part of the plan.  .