roamingoz: Broome

Our first morning in Broome was special as we rose early to attend the dawn service – Anzac Day. We joined the huge crowds at Bedford Park in the dark, and the children all stayed reasonably quiet, anticipating their first dawn service. After following the story of Keith Homard and the sinking of the HMAS Sydney ll up the coast of Western Australia, the boys had an increased understanding about war, the loss of lives and the meaning of pausing to remember, making the ceremony even more significant. There have been a few historical stories during the trip that have touched Sam’s heart – and bought him close to tears – one of those being Keith Homard and the Sydney, (the other being the stories of inhumanity and injustice towards Aboriginal people during white settlement.) Following the service, we joined with the Brown family for a Gunfire breakfast at the local RSL club. The rest of the day was spent around the pool (and catching up on some lost sleep) as we tried to get used to the sticky humid weather – then a picnic dinner with the Browns again on Cable beach at sundown. Beautiful. (we encouraged the kids to stop playing and join us watching the sun quickly disappear over the water – by giving them jelly’s to eat.)

Feeling a touch tired of putting up our camper, we decided to base ourselves at Broome for 5 nights, and have a bit of a holiday. It’s amazing how quick time passed when you rest. So the remainder of our 3 days in Broome included – attending a local church, learning about the pearling industry, shopping, trekking out to see the dinosaur footprint, the bird observatory, (a follow up on the new interest in bird life, after winning the bird identification book) a mornings drive to Quondong Point and crunchy fish and chips on the beach watching the sunset.