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Today was another busy day filled with lots of sightseeing. First thing we packed up as we had to leave the racecourse where we were staying due to a function on the premises over the weekend. Instead, the kind campground manager allowed us to park our caravan close to their house and stay there at no charge.
We headed into town first to see if the synagogue was open, which unfortunately it wasn't and then checked out the War Memorial in front of the historic Courthouse. Then we parked in town and I enjoyed a coffee and something to eat, while Gadi and Cadbury went for a walk and came back with some little teddies from the opp shop - new babies for Cadbury, one of which he promptly tried to bury behind the chalk board menu sign on the footpath outside the cafe.
Next on the agenda was a visit to Jack Absolom's gallery (another of the 'brushmen of the bush') and we bought a couple of small prints of his outback paintings.
Then it was time to drive all of 26km to the nearby historic town of Silverton, stopping a little way past town at the Mundi Mundi lookout to gaze over the surrounding plains from the highest vantage point in the area and walk a little through the grassland to inspect some lovely wildflowers. This lookout was used for both the opening and the closing scene of Mad Max 2, which I would discover later that day. Then we went to the Umberberka Reservoir, now empty, but once supplying water to the surrounding districts. We ate a picnic lunch there before heading into Silverton. We spent quite a while at the Old Silverton Gaol, which houses a remarkable collection of memorabilia, not only of the Gaol, but of the history of the entire town. The volunteer on duty gave me a quondong (small wild native peach) to try - this is the signature fruit of the region and quondong pie is common in the local bakeries. The fruit tasted a bit sour, perhaps it wasn't quite ripe.
Next we visited the colourful gallery of John Dynon, enjoying the quirky artwork outside his gallery as well as his paintings inside. The artist himself, famous for his beguiling cartoon-like paintings of emus, was inside working.
After some art and culture it was time to mix things up and visit the Mad Max museum, a tribute to the 1981 movie Mad Max 2, which was filmed in this town and has been collected and assembled as a labour of love by the owners, who themselves are mad movie buffs and in particular, mad Mad Max 2 movie buffs. In fact, the couple moved from England to Australia, eventually settling in Silverton, collecting memorabilia from the movie and setting up the museum in 2006. It houses everything from the movie that is available, including original film scripts, roll calls, photos, props, original film footage, costumes and of course many of the original cars, buggies, truck and even the bus that featured in the movie. Many of these, of course, due to the stunts, are burnt to just a shell. We discovered that Mad Max 2 fans across the world (the movie has cult status) come to Silverton in outback NSW just to see this museum.
After this visit Gadi visited a couple more galleries and I sat in the car feeling a bit overwhelmed from all we had seen (yesterday as well as today - sometimes sightseeing is hard work!). Next we headed to the Silverton Hotel, which also contains some historic memorabilia and information, and it was a good chance to chill at the bar with an ice cold cider.
As it was now late afternoon we headed back to Broken Hill, first having a look at the local caravan park, and I dropped Gadi and Cadbury off and went to fill fuel and do a supermarket shop.
Easy dinner tonight of BBQ chicken and time to chill, completely worn out from our lovely day of sightseeing.
Tomorrow we will move on from Broken Hill and although we have only been here a short time, I know that we have seen much of what this outback town has to offer.
Broken Hill is a town, similar to many others in outback Australia, that exists due to its rich mines in the surrounding hills. Its history is marred by the deaths of more than 800 workers who lost their lives working here and this shadow hangs over the town, evidenced by the massive cemetery and the monument built in the miners memory. For us the town has been completely overwhelming, with its mix of history, industry, tourism, art and culture. Creativity is certainly not limited to city dwellers. Perhaps the harsher the conditions and where there are no other distractions, people turn to inner talents and allow these to shine through.
This really is a country built on the back of our outback towns.
On that note, night night, sweet dreams xx
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