Broome (June 3-4)

We took off from Perth at 7:30am on June 3rd and touched down 3 hours later 2200 kilometers north in Broome.  The minute we stepped off the plane and on to the tarmac, we could tell our days of blue jeans and sweatshirts (or jumpers as they say here) were over.  Cloudless blue skies and lots of sun.  Muy caliente!

We collected our bags and got in line for a taxi.  Once we loaded all 5 of our bags into the back, the driver asked us where were headed.  When we told him the Kimberly Klub he let out a little laugh and said, "Alright, mates!"  Then he drove us the approximate 750 meters to the hostel.  We clearly didn’t do our research on this one.  Five dollars later (Lindsay felt so bad she actually tipped him an extra $2 for his troubles), we got settled and checked into our room.  It wasn’t exactly the Kauai Hilton, but it was functional (a word I find I use a lot with Lindsay on this trip).  Despite not being ecstatic about the coin-operated AC unit, the way too creaky double bed, or the less than immaculate floors that arguably hadn't been mopped in months, Lindsay dealt with it relatively well.  And how much were we paying for this magnificent palace?  $125 per night.   The thing is, Broome happens to be a very expensive town in a very expensive country.  This $125 per night shack was honestly the cheapest double room in town.  We soon found out that prices on everything from food to gas were between 30 and 50 percent higher in Broome, even when comparing to Sydney and Melbourne prices.   Location, location, location.

Once we were settled, we decide to explore the town on foot.  We initially bypassed the main area of town, ending up instead at my new favorite place for a beer in all of Western Australia: Matso’s.  This brewery/bistro is nestled down by the mangrove mudflats at the edge of town, and serves up some of the best beer and “tucker” around.  By this time it was nearly noon and the sun was becoming oppressive, so we took a seat on the large porch that wrapped around the old Queenslander house.  For the next two hours we shared an African chicken salad and a burger, and I sampled the local draughts.  First I tried the Mango Hefeweizen.  Next I sampled a shot glass of the Chili beer (which they made me sample before buying a schooner).  Finally I had the ultimate…the Chango.  Yup, half Chili, half Mango.  I was in heaven.  After lunch we located the main part of town and took in the sites. 

Now for a bit o' history.  Broome was created for one reason and one reason only: to support the local pearl trade.  Sometime in the last 150 years it was discovered that the seas around Broome were filled with oysters bearing pearls.  At first a few Europeans moved in and used Aboriginal slaves to dive for the precious mollusks.  Apparently when too many of them died from the bends, Chinese and Japanese workers were brought in to do the dirty work.  For a while, the money was in pearls.  Later for some reason, it was the mother of pearl that became the focus.  During its hay day of pearl harvesting, Broome served the purpose of all mining/pearling/ranching towns as a place were the workers could buy liquor, women, and supplies.  Sometime after Pearl Harbor, all the Japanese and Chinese workers were interned (we weren’t the only ones) and the industry died during the war.  Since then, the pearling continues, but tourism has become the economic focus of the area.

We walked around the shops (all selling pearls) and returned to our hostel.  Between getting up at 4:30 for our flight, the brutal Broome sun, and lunch at Matso's, we were pooped.  I took a quick swim and then Lindsay and I had a much needed nap.  That evening we took the local bus to the beach area outside of town called Cable Beach.  It apparently got its name from the telegraph cable that was laid there connecting Australia with Java and the rest of the world back in 1889.  We shared a glass of Sauvignon Blanc while watching a beautiful Broome sunset.  Once back at the hostel, we had our cheapest and worst meal in since coming to Australia…minestrone out of the can prepared in the hostel's kitchen.  I hate minestrone.  Please do not make it for me.

The next day was to be a work day for Lindsay so I decided to go for a beach walk to take some pics in the morning.  It was a nice morning, but I ended up getting a little overheated and was forced to get a large mango slush on my way back into town.  At 3pm we caught a bus back to Cable Beach for our evening’s entertainment.  We walked down to the sand were we met Ghan, our camel.  After some introductory camel riding lessons, we hopped up on the beast and along with about 20 other camels, and off we went down the coast for an hour or two.  It was a great time and very relaxing.  We watched the sunset for the last time over the Indian Ocean, and caught the bus back to Matso’s for dinner.  It was another great evening of barramundi, curry, live music and Changos.  And guess what…not a bowl of minestrone in sight.

Here was the next morning’s plan: get up early, take a taxi to the Cheapa Campa rental agency to pick up our 4WD camper, and be on the road out of Broome by 10am.   Here is what happened: we arrived at the rental agency at 8 as planned.  We read the disclaimers, signed the paperwork and I even pulled my credit card out and was ready to pay by 9am.  Right on schedule.  That is when the daughter of one and sister of two accountants took a second look at at our balance.  I have learned to stay out of these things so I sat there patiently while they “sussed it out.”  Not much progress was made after 15 minutes so I left to grab a coffee.  When I returned Lindsay was on the phone to the rental company still looking for confirmation of the balance due.  I was a bit antsy by this point and calmly asked how much was in dispute…$23 dollars.  And just as we had resolved the payment issue, a pleasant looking elderly couple came in to rent their vehicle and we had to wait for them to check in so the salesman could give us all the car demonstration at the same time.  By the time they got checked in and we all went over the details of the car, it was 11am.  After a painful supermarket stop that seemed to take forever and a lunch at Macca's, we finally got out of town at 1pm.  Ah...married life.  (That's us in the back in the photo below).