Donna’s booked in for an oil change today, we’re more than 10,000km into the trip and she deserves a little treat. Extremely slow taxis give me time to call Mal at work and catch up on things (mostly not work related!).
A lazy lunch at home, then Cable Beach sunset is fast upon us.
It’s low tide and we walk along the fine wet sand that stretches far away to the waves.
Time for a small change of scene. We’ve been camping for a long time, and we’re ready for a real bed (and a real kitchen!). So we’ve left the camp ground, and said goodbye to our neighbours (he happens to be the older brother of a guy from work).
Now we’re checked into an Airbnb: air conditioning and reading time!
In the spirit of leaning into Broome-time we take a long time to start the day, mostly taken up with a long slow morning pool-side at the caravan park. There’s a couple doing yoga together and a man doing push-ups. We just find a deck chair and quietly read in the cool morning air. Then we begin to cycle between swimming and drying…very hard work this!
There’s a fancy restaurant just down the road where we head for lunch, the Sydney Cove Oyster Bar. I’m confused about why it seems busy, when people start saying, “Father’s Day!” as they sit down at tables around us. Oh right, I guess I should call dad!
It’s great being on the coast, the fresh ocean air feels like home. And eating this seafood reinforces that feeling more than ever.
Controversially we head to a coastal bar instead of the SLSC for sunset today. The different view and a cocktail are good, but it kind of reinforces the surf club’s supremacy. A sunset over water and palm trees is pretty spectacular though!
Matso’s ginger beer has been a staple of bottle shops and pubs for a while now, but I haven’t had any yet. The brewery is in town and we go for lunch and a lazy beer tasting afternoon. Broome has really been the transition to ‘holiday mode’ that we’ve been needing. We’ve had such an amazing trip already, it’s just been very constant, here I’m starting to relax and enjoy some empty-mind time!
Then in the late afternoon, as usual, we’re back to Cable Beach for sunset. Today there are long streaking clouds overhead and we walk along the beach as they stretch out above us. We sit and watch as the clouds bask in the last light.
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Spent the morning at Gantheaume point. Last night while we watched the sunset at Cable beach, the water was just a medium to reflect the sun. But now in the daylight the water is completely transformed. It is the main attraction. Vivid intense blue meets the iron-red rocks, sometimes crashing into each other, or from some angles they merge and align in patterns.
We explore along the coast, ducking in and out of rocky formations, or up over the water in places. The further we walk the more we leave the sounds of other tourists behind.
After a swim at the caravan park we head back to cable beach lifesaving club for beers and another sunset.
After sunset we go to see a movie at the ancient cinema: Sun Pictures.
Star light shines on us in the open air theatre and the sound of aeroplanes or a neighbour on the phone punctuate the film. In some contexts that could be distracting, but our whole trip has been filled with connection to people, it’s impossible to shy away from them in campgrounds, or on walking trails, or now in an open cinema. The story telling and camaraderie with strangers throughout our trip has been part of the fabric of it. So the interruptions are familiar and fun.
[Click on a photo to open a full-screen slide show]
