Day 42-44 Broome

Our original itinerary had us in Broome a few days ago. My week long diversion has thrown a spanner in that plan so we decide to save a day by driving from the Bungles to Broome in one day. It was a long haul of over 800km but we arrive in Broome just after 5 and are happy to be here. Broome started in the late 1800s as a pearling town. It has been through some rough times but reinvented itself as a tourist stop and a popular wintering spot for the grey nomads. Cable Beach, so named for an underwater cable from Singapore that connected to Australia here, is home to Australia’s largest nude beach, camel rides and possibly the most beautiful sunsets on the planet. Tourism is the largest money earner but there is no doubt that the heart of the town remains the pearling industry. We take a tour of one of the main pearl areas to educate ourselves about the mysterious industry. The tour is informative but it is clear that the main aim is to sell pearls. Australia exports more than $200M worth of pearls annually and most of that comes from the Kimberly. The tour is interesting and someone has a birthday coming up so, we shall see...... Luck is with us with our visit coinciding with the ‘Stairway to the Moon’, a regular event when the rising of the full moon occurs at low tide and the reflection gives the illusion of a staircase. The local markets are on and it is Sarah’s birthday. The entertainment that night is a traveling street performer who juggles, balances, twirls fire, tells jokes, a little bit of everything. The kids are particularly entertained with the show. Imagine their delight when he requests a ‘helper’ and learns of a birthday girl in the crowd. Now, imagine Handbrake’s delight as she is pulled in front of a hundred or so people to participate in the show! A perfect day is brought to a perfect end. Tomorrow we travel about 200km north of Broome to experience the delights of Cape Leveque.