Section 3: Kick, Push

Going somewhere new and different is always a bit daunting, especially if it just happens to be nearly 4,000 km's away at the other end of the continent, so it was with a little trepidation that I alighted the taxi in the Darwin suburb of Rapid Creek which I would live in for the next twelve months or so. I knew nothing of Darwin's suburbs despite having been there on holidays in 2008. I knew Cullen Bay, Parap thanks to having a friend living there at the time and whatever suburb Casuarina Square shopping centre was in but that was it. I have to admit that I found the Rapid Creek/Nightcliff (we were right on the border of the two suburbs) area where we lived to be a pretty nice spot. We lived in a quiet little Cull-De-Sac that was less than two minutes walk to the Casuarina beach, Nightcliff foreshore and the Rapid Creek river mouth that had a very nice walking/cycling path that snaked it's way through parkland containing various BBQ areas, rotundas, playgrounds and gym equipment. Also along this route was the Nightcliff swimming pool, a veritable oasis for us in the early days that was seemingly underutilised by the locals (understandable though as everyone has a swimming pool up there, so why bother to pay for a swim at a public pool). Nightcliff pool was perched on a piece of land that looked out across the ocean and was the sort of place where you could just while away the day staring out to sea without much hassle or with a minimum of squealing kids. Further along was the Nightcliff jetty, which is a very popular spot to watch the sunset year round. Sometimes there might be a coffee cart or kebab stand there to try and tempt people into enjoying some sustenance while they watch the sun go down and I'll admit it, the kebab stand did get me a few times. If you were really lucky you may spot a dolphin or dugong while sitting down there watching the world go by (my total: 1 dolphin, 0 dugongs, heaps of fish). It was a nice little spot most of the time.
My exploration of the foreshore happened within my first few days in Darwin. I had been preliminarily getting my bearings in the area via Google Maps and discovered that there was a fish and chip shop in the area. Fantastic, I thought, a fish and chip shop down at the jetty! What a perfect spot! In the first few weeks in Darwin, I had no car (or for that matter, no furniture. For two weeks I made do with an inflatable mattress, a camping chair and bar fridge I brought when I got there and a netbook computer and modem. Also, no curtains in the unit that would become known as the 'crap shack' so my towels became curtains and bed sheets.) But I did have my skateboard. What better on a nice sunny NT afternoon than a skate around the foreshore to the quaint fish and chip shop on the jetty?
So off I set around the foreshore in search of said fish and chip shop. Having reached Nightcliff pool I was a little surprised that there was no shops or commercial establishments at all except for the Beachfront Hotel (more on that place another time) and the adjoining Chinese restaurant. Undeterred I pushed on, sweat dripping from my brow. Actually the sweat was dripping from everywhere and by the time I reached the jetty I was more than ready for a piece of fish and some chips washed down with a refreshing beverage or two. I pulled up at the jetty and scanned my surroundings. Nothing. Strange, I thought, as I consulted trusty old Google maps on my phone. There was supposed to be a place called Aralia street nearby, where the holy grail fish and chip shop was, but i couldn't see it, so once again I set off around the track.
It was probably and hour of fruitless searching before I gave up and decided to head back to the Crap Shack. By this stage I was drenched in sweat and cursing myself for not grabbing a bottle of water from the Beachfront Hotel as I was beyond thirsty from being out in the afternoon sun (despite the ample shade). It was probably another 45 minutes before I reached the Beachfront and was able to purchase a bottle of water. Down it went, all 2 litres, in one hit. Even someone with no medical knowledge like myself knows that's not good and by the time I was back to the Crap Shack I had the headache to end all headaches and was vomiting back up anything I may have eaten in the past week. This went for 2 days and I later found out that I had the classic symptoms of dehydration. Less than a week in Darwin and it had been so far so bad.

SIDE NOTE: Bec and I ended up finding the mythical fish & chip shop one day while driving around the area. Suffice to say, I was disappointed.

TITLE SONG: KICK, PUSH by LUPE FIASCO, from the album FOOD & LIQUOR.