A perfect morning dawned in Kakadu National Park and we hit the road early to make the most of it.
As this is our last full day of running before Darwin, when many of our team will leave for their respectives homes, Sarankhuu from Mongolia elected to run a 30km stretch ...
... some of the others joined him for his last few kilometres ...
... after which he could relax big-time.
It has been fantastic having Rowan Beggs-French running with us for the last few days ...
... next time we'd like to sign him up to run the whole way around Australia.
We were met by Carlos from Spain who has run 15 marathons ...
... with his wife Pillar and daughters Pillar and Anna.
They were only too happy to cover some distance, holding the Peace Torch.
Although much of the forest is dry, we passed areas which were surprisingly green.
There is an abundance of bird life in the bush, ensuring that on each run we are surrounded by both beautiful sights and sounds ...
For the girls team, who drove ahead to run the final section towards Humpty Doo, it was another hot day out on the road.
We had a few different vistas to run in, going from dry gum trees ...
... to lush wetlands.
We passed some mango tree orchards – sadly for us though, mangoes are not in season until September!
For most of our girls team, today was our last day of running on Peace Run Australia! Anubha, Helena, Emily, Tavishi and Saranyu are all finishing in Darwin and flying back to our various homes around the world. We’ll leave it to Oyungerel to lead the new team members forward next week!
The Mayor of Litchfield, Allan Mckay, came out to meet the boys team ...
... Mayor McKay had previously met with members of our team and held the Peace Torch last month at the National Conference of Local Government in Canberra ...
... today he met with us at the world famous Humpty Doo Hotel. This was the finishing point for our running today, though because it's the weekend tomorrow, we had several meetings in Darwin this afternoon...
... further up ahead, in the satellite town of Palmerston, our girls team had a lovely reception at the Civic Plaza ...
... with Alderman Sue McKinnon ...
... and internal media rep Amanda Ward.
It was great to meet you all – thank you so much for coming out and holding the Peace Torch together.
We next had a free hour, so we found the fantastic free water park in Palmerston that is an initiative of the Northern Territory government. The huge water slide is so much fun. We all went down several times!
Much refreshed after our water park adventures, we headed into the main city of Darwin to the Parliament House to await the other teams ...
After running through the morning, the second boys’ team had already arrived in central Darwin, to the peal of bells, resounding meditatively through the park.
The team was welcomed to Darwin by the Lord Mayor, Katrina Fong Lim.
An Olympic torch-bearer in 2000, she was no stranger to holding blazing relay torches aloft.
The Lord Mayor exemplifies the open-armed cheerfulness of the people of Darwin, who can teach Buddhist monks something about the art of relaxation.
Noivedya Juddery has joined the team in Darwin, having coordinated the Peace Run activities in the Northern Territory. He is excited to be back in Darwin, five years after the Peace Run’s last journey around Australia. Here he briefs the assembled media.
As usual for Darwin at this time of year, the hot Sun was out in force after lunchtime, as we had a brief look around town ...
Happily, the team had concluded its running for the day, and could enjoy a brief respite enjoying the fine coffee of Darwin ...
... and a swim at Mindil Beach.
Next, the whole team congregated in a park at NT Parliament House ...
... to meet the Hon Peter Styles MLA.
Peter is the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Senior Territorians and Young Territorians, among his portfolios (including MLA for Sanderson).
Though it was a Friday, at the end of a long day for him, he was happy to meet us. He chatted with us at some length, and it was clear that he shared the ideals and dreams of the Peace Run.
He presented us with a letter supporting the Peace Run, and accepting his latest role: Northern Territory Patron for Peace Run 2013.
“As the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, I am thrilled to be part of a marvellous celebration of global goodwill such as the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run. I take great pride in being its Northern Territory Patron for 2013.
Our Northern Territory, and especially the capital city of Darwin, is home to a diverse multicultural population. People, living in harmony, bringing their best qualities forward, inspiring others with their dedication and idealism – these are signs of a great, open hearted society. It is a society such as this that exists in Darwin and one that I am honoured to serve.
In this spirit, I congratulate runners and organisers, far and wide, who will participate in this historic relay and I send my best wishes for every success for the event.”
Peter’s wife, Linda Fazldeen, was present – and also enjoyed our reception. She very much appreciated our rendition of the Peace Run song, proving that we have polished our vocals to perfection (or that she’s extremely kind).
We were not the only guests of the NT Parliament this evening. The Gold Coast Titans Rugby League team, in town to play the Penrith Panthers, were arriving for a reception – but they stopped on the way to hold the Peace Torch and have a chat with the runners. David Mead and Mark Ioane held the Torch, flanked by their teammates.
A new Peace Run team? Much as we’d like to take a break, relaxing in the Darwin Sun, we think that these guys will be busy with other things tomorrow night.
