Broome Day THREE

Broome Day 3

This place is beautiful even from the Google map photos!

These frangipani trees are everywhere. Some people consider them a weed because they grow and propagate very easily. 

We went to town beach to see the playground. Allen and I were really interested in the memorial about the attack at Broome by the Japanese in 1942. People were trying to evacuate by “flying boats” from Java and had come to Broome to refuel and move on the Perth. They were already somewhat traumatized, thought they had found safety, and then the Japanese attacked. The planes they flew were called "Zeros." 

They said,

"PACK YOUR THINGS UP

YOU'RE GOING."

That was it...

1942 saw a dramatic movement of people into and out of Broome.

A Japanese attack on Java was anticipated and a vast aerial shuttle service was undertaken between Java and Broome. The town was overflowing with military personnel and Dutch refugees."

Broome was heavily populated by Japanese pearl divers. The downtown area was called "Jap Town." But when they were all put in prison, they changed the name to Chinatown. 

This is such a touching story from a tour guide who took Theo out to see the wreckage site at low tide 77 years later:

"Theo was just a small boy, when the Zeros came.

Thrown from the cockpit window by his mother, in a desperate bid to save him from the gunfire, he clung to the wing, until he was shot in the leg and swept out into Roebuck Bay...

We set out for the wreck sites in the still November dark. Theo, his wife and his daughter. We aimed to reach his plane, Catalina 1-67 as dawn broke...

Fortunate, humble, grateful. 

There are no words to adequately describe the feeling of bearing witness to this deeply personal reunion.

As the sky turned pink, we watched in silence, as the old man stood alone on the wing of the plane he had clung to for his life, 77 years before"

Wil Thomas - Historical Tour Guide

I really loved the wisdom of this:

We then went to Cable Beach to swim. We had to be sure to be between the lifeguard flags because we are in different waters here with shark, crocodile, and jellyfish. Henry really liked the water. It was warm. There was a sign that said it was 27 degrees. 

Allen and I combed the beach for shells. There were areas with huge piles. As the waves pull back it makes a sound like a windchime as they all clink together. I left my pile on the towel to go look for more. The couple behind us couldn’t believe how beautiful they were and that we had found them ourselves. Allen encouraged them to just walk up the beach and have a look. The tide was just receding, making it easy to see what had washed in. And here the difference from high and low tide is about 8 meters. Within minutes it changes noticeably. 

I saw loads of tiny hermit crabs from the freshly retreating water as I walked further north among the huge rocks. They hide if they sense you present, so you have to be still for a few seconds and then they start moving again. 

We came back to the hotel and Henry had a great time at the pool. A friendly older gentleman came to chat. He is a semi-retired farmer from Victoria just north of Warnambool. He said his children are not interested in farming so they are having to deal with what will happen to the farm that has been in the family since 1877. I am tempted to sign up. We had a nice chat about sustainable farming practices. If I move to Australia I want to live in Perth, but beggars can't be choosers. 

After seeing the Staircase to the Moon again, we got ready for our last day in Broome.