We had a very smooth trip here to Darwin with absolutely no problems. It did take us a couple of days to overcome jet lag but we feel now we are living well with the change on the other side of the date line. Our employer has put us up at a resort here in Darwin for about 8 days to help us acclimate before heading out to Tiwi College. It is really nice! What a wonderful blessing this has been and we are very thankful for this extra time here in Darwin.
The first evening here we had dinner with the principle (and his wife) of the college who is our boss. We were so encouraged as we listened to him speak and hear his heart for the Tiwi people and some of his thinking concerning running the school. We knew after that time with them we were in the right place!!! They are a wonderful Australian couple who love the Lord!
The first evening here we had dinner with the principle (and his wife) of the college who is our boss. We were so encouraged as we listened to him speak and hear his heart for the Tiwi people and some of his thinking concerning running the school. We knew after that time with them we were in the right place!!! They are a wonderful Australian couple who love the Lord!
It's been almost 10 years since we have been back here in Darwin and it is so nice to be back. We were here from September 1997-April 1998 for our DTS training before heading to Papua New Guinea. Not much has changed other than a few new buildings. A lot of memories have come back since arriving. This is the wet time of the year so it is exceptionally humid. Most of the rain has been falling after dark with beautiful hot sunny days.
Darwin a quite an interesting place. It is possibly the most laid back city in the world. It is common to see someone in the grocery store doing their shopping bare footed. It's a very slow paced community which we like just fine!!
The social issues of the aboriginal are evident around town. Its common to see them drunk and/or sleeping on sidewalks, fighting, etc... We are thankful for the awesome opportunity we have to start work with the up and coming generation of Tiwi aboriginal youth on Melville Island.
Darwin has had a couple of tragic events where the city was flattened twice last century. In world war II the Japanese bombed Darwin with about 60 bombing raids. On Christmas Eve 1974 Cyclone "Tracy" moved across Darwin with the strongest winds ever reported on Mainland Australia. The devastation was horrific.
Today Darwin of course has been rebuilt and is a very friendly, beautiful city. It's been fun for Linda and I to travel around town via bus and get reacquainted with the area. We have also caught up with some friends here which has been a wonderful time. It's hard to believe 10 years have gone by???
On Friday we had an opportunity to travel to a College named Woolaning Christian College located about two hours outside of Darwin. We had a wonderful time there with the staff as they shared their knowledge of the work to help us prepare for the work we will do at Tiwi College. We will also make a return trip to Woolaning on Monday for a training course before flying out on Tuesday to Tiwi College.
We thank everyone for their prayer. We know as we go over to the island we will face some very difficult challenges. We have heard that it has been at least 20 years since a Tiwi youth has graduated a secondary school and possibly even high school!
We heard we should have Internet on the island in about two weeks so we will make contact asap. Love ...Bill & Linda
Today Darwin of course has been rebuilt and is a very friendly, beautiful city. It's been fun for Linda and I to travel around town via bus and get reacquainted with the area. We have also caught up with some friends here which has been a wonderful time. It's hard to believe 10 years have gone by???
On Friday we had an opportunity to travel to a College named Woolaning Christian College located about two hours outside of Darwin. We had a wonderful time there with the staff as they shared their knowledge of the work to help us prepare for the work we will do at Tiwi College. We will also make a return trip to Woolaning on Monday for a training course before flying out on Tuesday to Tiwi College.
We thank everyone for their prayer. We know as we go over to the island we will face some very difficult challenges. We have heard that it has been at least 20 years since a Tiwi youth has graduated a secondary school and possibly even high school!
We heard we should have Internet on the island in about two weeks so we will make contact asap. Love ...Bill & Linda
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