Jan 27 2008
Broome
These are the risks of the pearling
These are the ways of Japan
Plenty more Japanee diver
Plenty more little brown man
Banjo Patterson
Luminous and lovely, the beautiful pearl is the “Queen of Gems”. Once the pearl luggers worked their dangerous way in the waters off Broome and pearls helped create the distinctive multicultural charm of the town. For we love pearls, we have adorned ourselves with these lucent orbs since our earliest ancestors first prised open an oyster to find one.
In India it is said that Krishna found the first pearl, Chinese Emperors prized them, the Greeks loved their unrivaled beauty, and the Egyptians were buried with them. In Rome, General Vitellus financed an entire military campaign by selling one of his mother’s pearl earrings. Cleopatra reportedly dissolved a single pearl in a glass of vinegar and drank it, simply to win a wager that she could eat the wealth of an entire nation in one meal. Pearls were rare then, and only the very rich could afford them.
In the 1870s, Europeans noticed the large Pinctada maxima oyster off the east coast of Australia. Soon the Aboriginal women who dived for shellfish in these waters were outumbered by the Sri Lankan divers intent on harvesting the oysters. The Mother of Pearl shell was used across the world to make buttons, and more and more shell was needed.
In the beginning, the oysters were so plentiful they could be picked up at low tide while walking along the sand. Of course they were soon depleted and more sophisticated diving methods had to be used. By the 1930s, motorised pearl luggers with mechanical air pumps were everywhere to be seen.
The work was hard, and fraught with dangers. In the Japanese section of the cemetry are the graves of almost one thousand divers. Enter Kokichi Mikimoto, and the cultured pearl industry. In less than 50 years, the Queen of Gems, once the exclusive possession of royalty, became available to almost everybody. The days of diving beneath the waters for pearls has gone but the memory remains in luggers still plying the pearl routes, this time with tourists.
Broome, located at the southernmost tip of the Kimberley region in the far north of Western Australia, was a thriving pearl town in the old days. It’s blessed with a superb climate for most of the year. During the dry winter from April to November, Broome enjoys warm, sunny days about 28C (82F) with cool nights. There are two distinct seasons, the ‘wet’ season’ and the ‘dry’. The wet officially commences in October but doesn’t reach Broome before late December.
Broome is the starting point for 4WD travel into the Kimberleys, but the town itself is these days a haven for travellers. Broome offers the pristine Cable Beach, dinosaur footprints at Gantheaume Point, a Crocodile Park, camel rides, birdwatching and excellent fishing in the local tropical waters. A popular attraction is the Pearl Luggers of Broome
How to get there Broome has an international airport, There are flights from all major cities,you can travel by road from the east or west in 4WD, or take a coach from darwin or Perth. From April to October, you can travel by sea from Darwin.
Call up Broome Australia into google earth, and tell me if that’s not a piece of paradise.
Like to shout me a cold beer?
