Broome 14 – 21 September 2006

We leisurely observed Broome and found most of what there was to see and do. Enjoyed the museum a lot but squirmed at the old diving suits that give you claustrophobic feelings - just imagining putting one on, let alone being lowered in to the sea - another case of a hard life for the early settlers from 1880’s. Broome had lots of unpleasant situations and we cringed at the system of black birding of Aboriginals for pearl diving. Heather was upset at seeing a photo of a row of men with large chains linking their necks and ankles that still existed in Broome until the late 1950s.
We enjoyed beautiful swimming at Cable Beach which is surprisingly quite a distance from the town, as it is the image of Broome that everyone sees. It is magnificent to watch the sunset on the ocean. The resorts are all located here, but you are unable to see the water from the resort because of the huge dunes in front.
Relaxed around Broome some more until Heather got ready for her trip back to Sydney for her brother’s wedding and to catch up with family. She is even able to squeeze in a return trip to Melbourne to see Katie and Carl briefly. While she is away, Peter has got himself a job, which Heather thinks is mad!!