Living in Darwin N.T.
DARWIN
Darwin is the Capital City of the Northern Territory with a population of approximately 115,000 people. It is the most northerly Capital City, is situated on the Timor Sea and is the largest city, by far of any in the N.T. There is a highway which commences in Darwin and travels due south for approximately 4,800 klms (3,000 mls), passing through Alice Springs and ending in Port Augusta in South Australia.
Temperatures in Darwin vary between 30-35 degrees throughout the year and it has a wet season (November-March) and a dry season (April-October). During the wet season, Darwin is extremely humid and is famous for its lighting storms and cyclones. The most famous was Cyclone Tracy on Christmas day 1974 devastated Darwin with 71 lives lost.
Darwin has an old established part of the city and a new satellite city called Palmerston, 20 klms south, which is one of the fastest growing areas in Australia.
The major emigrant population is English, Irish, Scottish, Chinese, Greek and Italian.
Tourism and Mining are the largest industries driving the economy in not only Darwin, but the Northern Territory. During the wet season, tourism is quiet due to the humidity and the rain, but for the remainder of the year, tourism is the dominant industry from within Australia as well as from overseas. The Military presence in Darwin is a significant employer also.
The Education system has Public (Government run) and Private (Fees paid by parents) schools. There are Child Care facilities (0-5yrs), Pre-school (4-5yrs), some Pre-Prep (4-5yrs) and then years 1-12. This has just been re-structured to Primary, Middle & Secondary. The Charles Darwin University caters as both a University and a TAFE College, covering Vocational and Academic Courses. For some, the option of boarding school is available in any of the major Capital Cities or some Regional cities such as Toowoomba or the Gold Coast.
Housing varies from 1 bedroom flats in central Darwin $100,000 to 3 or 4 bedroom houses from $400,000 to $600,000 and larger homes from $800,000.
Sports are too numerous to mention, but include Cricket, Soccer, Rugby (both codes), AFL (similar to Gallic football), Swimming, Fishing, Sailing, Tennis, Horse Racing, Hockey, Basketball and Netball.
