TRAVELING THE WORLD 365 days/year. You can visit us on Instagram at whereintheworldaremikeandjan. Do not hit “Reply” to message us – Use Contact Tab, above.
Broome, Australia, was named after an early governor, but we like its native name, Rubibi….way more fun to say! Broome is a tourist town in an area of Australia’s northwestern coast that is lightly sprinkled with port cities. It is in the Indian Ocean and less than 1,000 miles south of Indonesia.
Broome is known primarily for its history of pearling, and we found that we could buy a string of pearls for “just” $10,000 to $20,000, if we so desired (we did not). The largest homes were all built with pearling money. There are also places here where you can walk in the footprints of dinosaurs, although it was so hot that we didn’t walk that far. We did end up taking a hour-long trolley ride with narration of the town’s history, which lasted 40 minutes. They saved 20 minutes of fuel, we guess! Another local tourist activity is riding camels on the beach – $40 for 30 minutes or $71 for an hour. The sunset ride is particularly iconic.
We found the city to be very clean and pristine, nicely landscaped, with the Chinatown historical area beautifully preserved. As you will see below, there is a lot of pride in Sun Pictures, a movie theater operating since 1916. Incredibly, it still shows contemporary films seven nights per week. When we were there, the night’s offering was “Wakanda Forever.” Most impressive, though, are the giant, fluffy clouds, the red color of the soil, and the blue water with different shades of blue. An Australian passenger told us a great story. His daughter asked him why his white tennis shoes were red. He looked at her as if she were crazy, and said, “Well, a year ago I went for a walk in Broome!”
Early in the morning, we saw this speedboat making a “swoop” just off the port side of the ship.The cloud formations are as big an actor in this part of world as the beautiful ocean colors…not to mention Broome’s iron-rich red soil.Our tree! We took more photos of this tree than any other, anywhere. When we saw it from down the street, we honestly didn’t know why we could see lights in the daytime! When we drew closer, we realized the “lights” were Christmas balls. Since the sun was very bright, and there was a pretty enthusiastic wind, the balls were swaying, and the light hit them at different places such that they looked like they were twinkling. An aboriginal monument smack in the middle of the town’s traffic circle!What a great idea! This is in the Roebuck Bay Lookout in Broome. The first photo is of the lookout’s ceiling, with a pattern cut into it to allow the sun to enter. The result is the pretty effect on the floor (on the right), which almost looks like carpeting on the cement. Very clever.Our Lady Queen of Peace Cathedral. Its bells are named Faith, Hope, and Charity!Poinciana trees are everywhere in Australia – the bright orange blossoms are unmistakable.This is a luxury “mansion” from the 1920s, built on money from pearling.Women of Pearling Monument. The most sought-after women were pregnant aboriginal women. For some reason, they could hold their breaths longer than any others when diving for pearls.This monument is titled “9 Zeros – 9 Stories.” It commemorates the March 3, 1942 Air Raid by the Japanese in their zero planes. Each figure has a biography engraved on it to show the diversity of lives lost.A pretty view from the trolley!Again – those clouds! That rich red soil! The many colors of blue in the ocean! This is the trolley we rode. We had that back car entirely to ourselves – it was heaven.“More mates wanted” – a funny way to say “Help Wanted.” We went in for coffee and looked to join their Wi-Fi network, but there was no “McDonald’s.” As you can see on the bottom of the sign, their Wi-Fi is named Macca!We loved seeing an old-fashioned barber shop pole again. And of course, we delighted in “Flat Tops” and “Cut Throat Shaves.”As it is in the Guinness Book of Records and a Heritage site, this is the most talked-about building in Broome! It still operates daily. See the next photo for more information.Quite interesting, dating to 1916! Movies had barely started gaining in popularity.It is hard to believe they operate seven nights a week, as the population here is only 14,000.A fun historical memory.More memories.The old buildings of Chinatown still standing were all mostly built in this style.Broome is the only place in the world we have visited that did NOT give pedestrians the right of way. As we waited to cross streets, nobody stopped for us as a courtesy – every car just sped past us.We just like the word Rubbish, likely because the US more commonly uses Trash.This was strange. The port provided free shuttles from the port to downtown, as it was a distance of six miles. We returned from town and had to sit here on the side of the road for a full 15 minutes – when the ship was right there – because the driver needed an “escort” who could flash her badge to security. The escort didn’t check us out, nor did anyone check her badge. We just sat and sat, she jumped on, and we drove across the jetty. Puzzling.The clouds! It is all picture-perfect here.Late afternoon sun over the jetty and port.
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