ON ISLAND TIME
FAR FROM MAINLAND COMMERCIALISATION, THE TIWI ISLANDS OFFER A RICH CULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Australia is surrounded by water scattered with some of the most spectacular offshore islands. These include the Tiwi Islands, each with a different story. Situated 80km north of Darwin where the Arafura Sea joins the Timor Sea, you’ll find Bathurst Island. We board SeaCat’s passenger ferry Arafuru Pearl at Cullen Bay, set for the Bathurst Island community of Nguiu.
The Tiwi Islands are just a two-hour sail by boat, so if you are in or around Darwin you must allow at least two days in your itinerary to visit. It will give you the best insight into the indigenous way of life.
Arriving at the port of Nguiu we are pleasantly welcomed by locals fishing the waters either side of the boat ramp. It’s here that our adventure begins.
One thing you need to remember at all times is that you are a guest on these islands and you need to show locals the respect they deserve. Ask before you enter any buildings or landmarks and you will not only have the time of your life, you will learn some of the most fascinating things.
There are day tours available, even overnight stays, yet if you are like me part of the fun is exploring it yourself.
Leaving the boat ramp on a short stroll takes you to some of the local art centres.
The three art centres are committed to the development and promotion of both traditional and contemporary art and craft in the form of painting, pottery, carving, weaving, etchings, linocuts, lithographs, jewellery and screen-printed textiles. They spend hours and hours finetuning some of the most beautiful artwork you will ever see. Of course, it’s all for sale and the money raised goes straight back into the community. Everything is very reasonably priced.
Make sure you find out the story behind each piece — some stories are more than 7000 years old and passed down from generation to generation.
Continuing our stroll, we stumble on the stunning Catholic church. It has pride of place on the local primary school grounds. Enter anytime — if it is locked, the school office will have the key.
The timber church was built back in the 1930s. The interior walls are decorated with crosshatched designs and paintings of stingrays, crocodiles, turtles and pelicans. Built from cypress pine, it has withstood numerous cyclones.
The land on both islands is heavily forested, predominately with eucalyptus, stringy bark ironwood, woolly butt and paperbark. Tall cabbage palms, pandanus, wild plum, bush apple and yams provide a rich but seasonal source of food.
The bush is a habitat for many different animals, including wallabies, possums, bandicoots, snakes, lizards and numerous bird species.
Beaches on the islands vary with clay cliffs, rocky outcrops and expanses of white sand. The sands provide a haven for sea turtles to lay their eggs, the rocks provide a habitat for oysters to grow in abundance and the cliffs provide the varieties of ochre used by the Tiwi for painting.
Crocodiles, stingrays, dugong, turtle, sharks, manta rays and many varieties of fish can be found in the waters surrounding the islands.
Lunch is available from the local supermarket, on the same road as the primary school.
It’s a hangout for hundreds of locals, usually playing some very unique card games.
Simply sitting and watching the kids play sport — they are all so good at it — is another way to pass the time. Their talent shows why the indigenous presence is so strong in all our major sporting codes and only getting stronger.
AFL is the major sport, with all kids vying for a spot in the team. We spent nearly two hours kicking the ball. I must admit, a few of those youngsters nearly showed me up.
It is awesome to see how people live far from the commercialisation of our mainland. It’s like a breath of fresh air. The best part is, this magnificent community is willing to open their picturesque haven to you all.
“AFL IS THE MAJOR SPORT, WITH ALL KIDS VYING FOR A SPOT IN THE TEAM.”