Many Murals Around Town!
Bowen is Qld's oldest town & its main crops are tomatoes, followed by capsicums & it's famous mangoes! When Bowen was first settled the farmers planted orange orchards, but in the early years they were wiped out by a cyclone, so as to keep their losses to a minimum, they needed to plant quick growing crops & tomatoes & capsicums were the perfect choice!
The elements set the the scene for Bowen's future!
Tomato Pickers
Bowen was certainly worth the week we spent there, we did plan on a longer stay, but the work front was not happening, even though i had the chance of starting in a nursing home around the corner. The building trade was struggling, the story was the same from builders we spoke too, plenty of work coming up but nothing at the present!! Crop picking was also very slow!
I think i will stuff some!.... Now that sounds good!
In that week, Bowen made news headlines!
Some vengeful idiot, decided to put pesticide in to the watering system of one of the biggest tomato seedling growers in Australia, therefore killing something like about 11 million seedlings! Apparently it is not the first time! The price of tomatoes is set to rise now in the near future, because of the shortage!
All thanks a total wanker!......... Poor Farmers!!
The other news was 5 Asians went for a walk around Coral Bay & 1 went missing the search rescue helicopter hovered around all that arvo & then back up again at first light......We heard on the radio the next day that they had found his body floating in the ocean!
Coral Bay is a picture! So much coral lining the beach, even if it is dead & not that colourful.
To have Great Barrier Reef Coral under foot!........Was very special to us & a sight to beheld!!
Coral Bay is also a nudie beach!..........Now that would be uncomfortable!Now to the famous Mango....... Trees here, i have never seen so many in all my life, they are incredible & already laden with perfect shaped baby mangoes!!!
To me there is no other mango like a
Bowen Mango!
Every Christmas dad would buy me my very own box of Bowen Mangoes as an extra special prezzie!!!
That i will never forget & also the way we peeled them back in the old days, there was none of this cutting in to fancy chunks & staying clean, we just ripped the skin off & got stuck into that unforgettable yummy tasting flesh!.........Wow what a mess!
Time now to say goodbye to Beautiful Bowen & to our new friends Steve & Lyn!
Townsville here we come, let's hope this time we can both pick up some work in unison?......Fingers Crossed!
Shopping in Bowen.......Or should i say lack of it!
Well it's not happening there yet, the shops shut at 12 midday on Saturday & they don't re-open till Monday morning, & the variety is just not up to my westfield standards! That is not a bad thing, it is just not my thing!!
I much preferred Airlee for my shopping day out fix!!
Cheers till next time!