Trip to Tiwi

Another map may be useful. The Tiwi Islands comprise Melville Island and Bathurst Island, and nine smaller uninhabited islands. They're about 80 km north of the mainland, and are part of the Northern Territory.

Here's a map from the local museum.

The ferry leaves from Cullen Bay and arrives in Wurrumiyanga, Bathurst Island, about two and a half hours later. The traditional elders perform a welcome to country, which includes an invitation to join in the smoking ceremony. The smoke has cleansing properties ands wards off bad spirits (and bitey insects, I always hope.) Permission to take photos given, btw.

A French mission in the early 1900s established Catholicism on the islands, but it cohabits very happily with the indigenous Tiwi culture. If you saw the movie Top End Wedding, you'll recognise the church built around 1920. In the cemetery, Christian crosses are intermingled with indigenous burial poles called pukumani erected at the grave. When the pole falls over, the family knows that the person's spirit has been released. Only then can their possessions be distributed or sold. (Apparently a pole can take anything from one to ten years to fall over, so it could be a long wait if the pole is solidly planted.)

The other religion is footy (AFL). The islands have eight footy clubs plus the Tiwi Bombers team that plays in the AFL NT league. These are major island events; Ken noted that the most modern infrastructure that we saw was the footy stadium. The local museum has an entire room devoted to Tiwi footy. Here's Ben, our guide, absorbed in some replay. (One of the rooms in the museum is devoted to mission history. I couldn't resist this lovely display of how the nuns' clothing has changed over the last century-plus. That's what tropical heat does to French Catholic styles!)

In a much earlier post,* I told you about the capture of the first POW on Australian soil in WW2 — which happened to be on Melville Island. Ben, our guide, is the grandson of the Tiwi islander, Matthias Ullungura, who captured the downed Japanese pilot. Matthias has a statue erected in his honour on Bathurst. The propellor of the downed Zero is there right behind the statue! He is also honoured in the museum, which has an interesting war collection.

Tourism is an important income-earner for the Tiwis. Tourists come to the Tiwis to fish, hunt (feral water buffalo on Melville), watch footy and explore the art enterprises — textile craft, painting, carving, screenprinting. There is some forestry, but no major industries or mines, so most locals depend on Centrelink payments. There's a very laid back atmosphere, with groups of people sitting under the trees and playing cards. Apparently card games (and betting) are a local passion, introduced by the Dutch when they traded with the Tiwis back in the day. The British also tried to settle Melville Island in the 1800s but as our guide gleefully told us, they weren't 'Territory tough', so they retreated to the gentler climes of Botany Bay.

The highlight for me was a visit to Ngarawanajirri ('to help one another' in Tiwi), also called the Keeping Place, an art gallery and workshop for people with disability. It has a beautiful curved ceiling that has been painted in situ by artists in their own styles. The close parallel lines in artwork are distinctive to Tiwi art. The Keeping Place is like a tropical Sistine Chapel — I loved this place, its art and its intent.

Tiwi Design is the other art gallery on the island, with friendly dogs, but my vote and my heart goes to the Keeping Place.

We're now seasoned ferry-travellers; we find the trip very relaxing. I couldn't resist snapping these gorgeous island children who were on the lookout for land. Note the footy shirt ...