Move over TC Fina, Santa Claus is coming to town
Darwin has bounced back from its strongest cyclone since Tracy with typical Territory spirit, as Christmas events return this weekend.
WHAT’S ON THIS WEEKEND
For every weekend that we get closer to December, it seems that another Christmas event adds itself to the list. So, if you love Christmas, you’re in luck, and if you haven’t done your Christmas shopping yet, keep reading.
It was Black Friday yesterday (just in case you didn’t get a hundred different emails about it), but it continues this weekend in stores at Casuarina, with a big couple of days of retailer offers and pop-up experiences. There are kids’ activities, giveaways and even spend-and-win games.
There’s also another craft market for you to deep dive into this weekend; it’s back to the Territory Netball Stadium we go for the Green Ant Craft Fair.
Shop from more than 150 local makers, for handmade arts and crafts – today and Sunday from 9am – 4pm.
Christmas light lovers rejoice, the new Waterfront Christmas Light trail survived Cyclone Fina.
Tonight is the official opening of the trail, and it also kicks off their program of festive events, which includes four weeks of pop-up performers, Santa appearances, and the Darwin Waterfront Express train. I hear that Santa will be flipping the switch on all the brand new large-scale decorations tonight, that’s if he isn’t catching the last of the stormy waves at Nightcliff.
RESILIENT DARWIN
Way back in September, I started chatting to NTFES about creating a ‘severe weather emergency kit’ video to ensure Territorians, particularly new ones, knew what was in a cyclone kit.
We walked the streets asking people if they knew what to put in one, and surprisingly, many people didn’t. I posted a video about it to We Are Locals on November 10th – not knowing that four days later a tropical low would form off the coast, and eight days later, we’d officially be introduced to Cyclone Fina – the strongest cyclone since Tracy.
Once we knew Fina was incoming, I also shared a post about the Nightcliff resilience tree, hoping it would survive the storm.
When I let our followers know that it didn’t, it was one of the most shared stories I’ve ever posted.
It’s quite funny to know that we all cared that much about a tree - but I think we were so connected to the resilience tree because it reminded us of the Territorian spirit.
I was actually out of the country when Fina hit, and flew back in the day after she’d left – so I wasn’t sure what to expect.
I’d seen the pictures on social media and the crosses to national news, and I was a little worried for my favourite people in my favourite city.
We landed and couldn’t get to our house for fallen trees on the road, so once we’d had a laugh with the taxi driver and got out and walked around, our neighbours both popped their heads over the fence to see how we went.
We shared brooms and shovels and reciprocating saws and tidied up our front yards, and got a few knowing smiles from people walking past who looked like they’d just finished doing the same.
And then, nothing remarkable happened.
Everyone just started driving new routes around the trees that were too big to move, and shared laughs with friends and strangers as they dodged another one on the footpath on the way to get their Monday morning coffee. No heroics. Business as usual.
It made me smile – of course, I should have known that this is how it would play out.
If there’s anything we’re good at, it is having a laugh, getting up, getting our mates up, and getting on with it.
Darwin should be proud of the way they prepared, and the way they handled Cyclone Fina –and thank goodness everyone now knows what’s in an emergency kit.
Originally published as Move over TC Fina, Santa Claus is coming to town
