Thoughts, Rants and Subliminal Suggestions

Happy 16th Month Anniversary to Eric and I!!

Well, the title is kind of self-explanatory but I realized the 7th of June was our 16th month anniversary. This is officially now my longest relationship I've been in. Yay!!

We are in Broome and it is pretty cool! We drove up from Exmouth and stopped in Port Hedland before continuing on to Broome the next day. The drive from Exmouth to Port Hedland was pretty unexciting until one of the tires blew on the luggage trailer in my van. Matt, luckily, is a pretty skillfull guy and changed the tire while several of us attempted to use the bushes on the side of the road as a bathroom in the rain. That was an experience, kind of amusing too. The drive from Port Hedland to Broome was just about as exciting as the previous day only this time we weren't sure if we'd have enough gas to get between service stations since they were pretty spaced out. But, we all made it safe and sound. Our first night in Broome we went to our hotel and settled in and bought groceries for the week. I love hotels in Australia. They all have either community kitchens or kitchenettes in the rooms. It makes eating wonderfully cheap since you can cook for yourself and avoid eating at restaurants all the time. I love it! They even have stoves *cough* Columbia Village *cough* so you can bake. Our first full day (yesterday) we started by going to Gantheaume Point where there are these beautiful rock formations that go right to the water so you can climb all over the cliffs. Then we went to an Aquaculture center where they grow topsnails and barramundi. Barramundi are the Australian Snook, which is the fish that I study in the states. They look a lot alike. The barramundi start off life as males and as they age and grow bigger they change into females. On our guided tour we got to watch the guide feed the HUGE! female barramundi. There was even a cute puffer fish in the tank too! I've been on so many tours here in Australia I think it might be funny to give a campus tour with an Australian accent. "And raght over heah folks we have a wihld squirrel of FIT....." Don't get scared Steve :-) I'm just pullin your leg. No worries!
After the aquaculture place I went to Chinatown where all of the shops in Broome are. I followed Sandy Shenker around as she spent lots of money on very beautiful cultured saltwater Broom pearls. Broome was founded because they were the port for the pearl luggers to come in and unload their catch. There is even a cemetary devoted to the japanese pearlers who died on the job. It's kind of sad.
After Chinatown I headed back to Gantheaume Point to watch the sunset and snatch a couple pictures of the dinosaur tracks that are only visible at low low tide. I did get to see them! This place has 30 foot tides that come in and out. That's a 30 foot vertical change. It's pretty spectacular. The dino prints were really cool and sunset was beautiful. The colors are just absolutely amazing and set with the rock, the ocean and the sunset it was awesome. I hope my pictures come out well.
Today was a day off and Brenda and I took off on the public bus system. yay for $9 unlimited all day bus pass. We first went to Cable Beach to hopefully book a camel ride but unfortunately the sunset rides were filled for all of the camel operators. Then we went to Chinatown and went pearl shopping. Mom, are you sitting down? A lovely pearl necklace caught my eye (freshwater pearls mind you, a bit cheaper) and I took Sandy's advice. If it catches your eye, buy it. Let's just say that it will look stunning with my black dress and I really fell in love with it. After Chinatown we caught the bus and headed to the crocodile farm. It amused Brenda and I to no end to see American alligators on display there. The saltwater crocs are huge!!!! And we'll be travelling and camping through saltwater croc territory starting sunday! Actually, we'll be with both fresh and saltwater crocs. Both are found in the rivers in the Kimberley. It's okay to swim with freshies, they're fairly docile but the salties are the ones to watch out for. I got to pet a baby salty!! It was SOOOOO soft. And it made cute noises like the baby alligator that Matt caught back in Florida an eon ago. Don't tell Florida Fish and Wildlife. Shhhhhh. It's a secret. There were several wonderful wallets made from alligator skin that I wanted to get for Eric as a birthday present but they were more expensive than my pearl necklace....... This croc farm actually breeds crocodiles for their skin and meat. Apparently they're good eating and their leather is really soft and nice. The farm also takes the problem crocs so they aren't killed and keeps them safe and breeds them. Each big croc has a girlfriend and our tour guide was not as brave and daring as Steve Irwin but he was kind of cute. (Eric, ignore that, Brenda and I admired only) These big guys move fast!! The guide fed them chickens! Anyway, time for dinner and working on homework, yes, you heard me, homework. I have a project to make that's due tomorrow after we visit the pearl farm. G'Day!

posted by Amy M @ 5:25 AM