Heading East Once More

Woke to a dazzling morning.
Our stay in Broome ended today, found it hard to leave and the two of us even had some discussions about staying on...finding work and seeing how things pan out.
Obviously we did leave but not until we had made our way to Cable Beach for our last walk along the top of the sand dunes.
Had a morning coffee and fruit toast at Zanders overlooking the ocean before calling into the local supermarket to buy fresh fruit and vegetables then followed the road signs to Derby.
Found it unbelievably hot today.  We had to wait until we found a roadhouse to stop for lunch, just so we could have some shade.
It was 33oC in the shade but felt much hotter.
Derby (two hundred and twenty kilometres north east of Broome) appears to be a nondescript little town but surprises you with its history and stunning natural features.
It is the oldest town in the Kimberleys, is famous for its boab trees and massive tides.


Myall's Bore and trough which has been known to cater for up to five hundred head of cattle in its heyday.

Boab Prison Tree - could be 1500 years old, is 14 metres in diameter and has an infamous past.
A site of significance to Indigenous Australians. 

Derby Wharf at sunset, tide's in and can recede extra quick leaving you high and dry - and a target for the local crocodiles!

We enjoyed fish and chips from the wharf restaurant, while watching the spectacular colour show of the setting sun.

Time to Say Goodbye to all this...

BROOME
Morning walks to Cable Beach.
Nightly sunset spectaculars.
Camels walking home at dusk.
Red pindan.
The Indian Ocean the colour of jade.
Cloudless blue skies.
Coconut palms.
Shop windows spewing pearls.
Saltie crocs.
Massive Kimberley tides.
Mangroves.
Hermit crabs.
Pearl luggers.
Push bikes.
Scooters.
Chinatown Taxis.
The Town Bus.
Young and old and everything in between.
'Broome Time'.

Settling In.

Andrew was given the privileged of digging out a pearl while on a tour of a pearling farm, Willie Creek.
(I was allowed to model a $60,000 strand of pearls...no, I wasn't allowed to take it home!)

Nature's sculpture, Cable Beach.

Pearl Lugger at Sunset, Cable Beach

Ships of the Desert at Sunset, Cable Beach.


Do you get the idea that Cable Beach is our most favourite place in Broome?

Expect the Unexpected.

Started the day with muesli breakfast prepared in the communal kitchen at Beaches of Broome.  Topped it with yogurt,washed it down with green tea and finished it off with some rum 'n raisin dark chocolate...Cadbury's of course.
We then visited the Buddha Sanctuary, just a short walk from our accommodation, a tranquil spot that is open to the public and a place where yoga can be freely practised.
The Buddha statue is hand carved from Philippine crystal and stands three and a half metres tall.

Crystal Buddha



Cable Beach - almost high tide.


Couldn't resist a walk to Cable Beach.

The temperature was already climbing and Andrew and I lazed in the shade atop the hill overlooking the beach before dipping our feet into the pristine waters then headed back to our room.
Next we took a drive out to a place called Twelve Mile to do some mango product sampling and to have a light lunch. The Mango Place makes mango wine, port, chutneys and vinegars as well as rosella (the flower that is) products.  The rosella port is especially luscious.
While we were in the area we took a drive to Roebuck Bay.
The corrugated dirt road is an amazing colour of red.  Out here in the Kimberley it is called Pindan.
Roebuck Bay, especially, is saturated with colour. The sky, the Indian Ocean, the sand.
The beach was alive with hermit crabs creeping towards the ocean in the hot afternoon sun.
In Broome, expect the unexpected...as we stood with the dramatic landscape before us, an airliner suddenly appeared on the horizon and swept over the Pindan cliffs, with the jade coloured ocean to the side and came in to land at Broome Airport, which is right in the centre of the town.

As we returned to the car, I could see a tug in the distance, in the town's deepsea port spouting water....expect the unexpected.

Hermit crab tracks in the red sand of Roebuck Bay.


Fish and chips for tea, a drive back into town to watch Bran Nue Dae at the
"World's Oldest Operating Picture Gardens".
Here we were seated under the stars and a new moon in deck chairs plied with cushions and pillows brought from home.
The airline flight path is straight over the top of the outdoor screen, (only one plane flew over thank God), and large birds frequently strayed across the front of the screen.  If you have seen the movie Bran Nue Dae you will know that it's about a family from Broome...if you mountain people ever saw Sirens, you will understand what it's like to watch a movie about a town that you live in (or are visiting)...hilarious!

Broome - Day Three

Streeters Jetty - the original pearlers' jetty.

Micro brewery - yummy food.

Boab Tree outside old Broome Lockup

Sunset Cable Beach.

So much to see and do in Broome.  Here I was thinking that Cable Beach is all that there is to
Broome!
The history is incredible, pearlers, bombers, multiculturalism, the landscape almost indescribable, must be seen to be believed. Bigger than I imagined but not too big. A strong sense of place.

Pictures of Broome - Cable Beach