Chinatown
The Chinese Excursion was amazing! It started with a pretty boring bus ride however when we arrived we got to have some of our snack before we went into the Chinese museum in Chinatown. When we were asked to go inside by the museum staff, we quickly packed up and went inside. Walking inside, we were greeted with amazing masks, rings and other souvenirs, the guide then met us and moved us down to the basement where she asked us questions about the gold rush and then told us about the history of the Chinese in Australia. We then moved onto the Chinese dragon which was ninety-two metres in length and covered in 6160 scales all handcrafted! We then moved onto engineering and then wood works before getting ready to go to lunch.
We then moved on to a Chinese restaurant, where we ate dim sims, spring rolls, pork and noodles. We ate for about an hour, then went to go for a walk around Chinatown. We all then divided into groups and were allowed to walk around Chinatown having a look. We went pass so many cafes, bakery’s and lots of restaurants. Eventually we all went back to the museum to get back on the bus to finish the excursion. It was a lot of fun.
by Ben Apsey, Year 8
French Excursion
As soon as we arrived at school on Wednesday the 11th of May, 44 Year 8 French students made their way by foot to Ringwood East Station. We waited for the train and excitedly boarded it. On the train the journey to Flinders street station felt as if it took no time. When we disembarked the train, it was a 100 metre walk to ACMI (Australian Centre for the Moving Image) studios which is based in Federation Square. We had a guide to show us some quick videos and talk us through the involvement of the French in the revolution of the moving image. We learnt many interesting facts, such as the Lumière brothers who were two French boys that invented the technology to make projecting film onto a large screen possible. After this we looked through the ACMI movie display section were they showed us many camera tricks used to create movies and even video games. When we had finished with ACMI we set off to the Melbourne City Library, this is where teamed up with a partner for a ‘Hidden French Laneways Tour’. During the walk, we discovered all Melbourne’s secret French connections. On our walk we also stopped at a crêperie that made some of the most delicious crêpes anyone had ever had! Everyone had a great time on the French excursion and it is definitely a great experience for all.
by James Reid, Year 8
German Excursion
On Tuesday the 10th of May the Year 8 German class were invited into the city to experience our German heritage. We arrived by train at Flinders Street Station and began our journey to the information booth at Sandridge Bridge where we were provided information about international people migrating to Australia, what different languages are spoken and how many people have migrated to Australia. The German students analysed and studied the information and wrote down the information in a German booklet that we were provided at the start. We then made our way to the restaurant, Hofbräuhaus. On our way there we walked around the city looking at some brands and buildings that were made by people of German, Austrian and Swiss descent. Some of the places we looked at was Lindt and Nescafé. As our booking approached we started to get closer to Hofbräuhaus we kept pointing out German brands and then we are finally arrived at Hofbräuhaus. We went in, sat down and our food came out pretty much instantly (we ordered before we got there). There was a schnitzel, a mixed sausage and a pasta. Easily the crowd favourite was the schnitzel but I had a bit of every meal and surprisingly every single one was great, the meals all had different tastes to it. Then there was dessert, most people didn’t think it could get any better than main but it was amazing I had apple crumble and the other choice was berry with ice cream. In the end all the German students loved the German excursion and everyone felt like they got a little taste of what it’s like in Germany.
by Alexander Jenkin, Year 8
