Year 6 Journey to Our Nation’s Capital

Day 1

The bus ride was long, yet the 5.00am darkness was keeping us prepared for a new day full of unknown adventure. For the past weeks, our teachers had talked about how amazing Canberra is, and we found it hard to imagine that a place they were describing could ever exist. Luckily, we didn’t have to wait much longer …

Once we were at Melbourne Airport we were buzzing with excitement and before we knew it, we were on the plane. The plane was ready, and we were strapped in our seats bracing for departure.  ZOOOSH! We think the waiting was longer than the plane ride because in a flash, we had finally landed at Canberra Airport. 

“Ahhh!” Ms Driessen exclaimed as she saw the monkeys at the zoo. There we had it, our very first destination: The National Zoo and Aquarium of Canberra. There were so many amazing animals; some which we had never seen before. “That’s a big fish!” we exclaimed with expression, looking at the giant parrot fish. “It looks tasty, too!” “Awwww,” we cried looking at the simply adorable little otters playing in the water. 

Our next destination was Government House, and it looked incredible. We first started with the tour, in which the Governor’s assistant introduced us to all the luxurious rooms on the bottom floor. She told us how the Governor General’s room is on the second floor and the first floor is where they give schools like us tours around the house. 

By the time we got to Leumeah Lodge, we were exhausted. Making our beds, settling into a cabin and wondering what was for dinner. Minutes passed, and shortly we were introduced to the luxurious buffet of food. Dinner – mmmmm. Our tongues were delighted as we happily feasted on some delicious pasta.

Day 2

The morning sunshine woke us up to a new beautiful, but cold, day in Canberra. The smell of freshly cooked pancakes awaited us in the kitchen, and we gobbled them up greedily. No one was prepared for such a shivery morning.

Once we arrived at the Australian War Memorial, we learnt about Australian's participation in wars and history that has been a staple in the pictures of time. As part of our learning we marvelled at the amazing 3D diorama-type exhibit called the Gallipoli Campaign. We stood awestruck at the abundance of poppies dedicated to the people who died for us in the wars, and in no time, we were on our way to Parliament House.

Parliament was a total highlight, and we think everybody can agree! We gazed upon the pure beauty and architecture of the building from the outside and eventually found ourselves standing inside one of the coolest constructions ever built. After slurping on the delicious frozen yogurt for morning tea, we had a tour through to the education room, where we roleplayed what it is like to be a parliamentarian. Once we had toured most of Parliament House, we were zapped back in time to Old Parliament / The Museum of Australian Democracy where we sat in the actual seats of Old Parliament. 

In the blink of an eye, we were transported to the National Capital Exhibition. With our creative juices flowing, we learnt about the story of Canberra and how it came to be. After, we were told to design our very own national capital, coming up with some very interesting ideas. The day passed, and everyone was beaming with excitement, because now was the moment we were all waiting for … QUESTACON (cue dramatic music.)

We ran up the ramps and ran down again; there were so many interesting rooms in Questacon filled with interactive, fun science-related activities. It was like a maze. The Quake Room was loads of fun! The floor shook beneath us as we screamed our hearts out with joy as the Quake Room simulated a 5.5 earthquake. ZAAPPP! The Tesla Coil of Lightning made us jump.

Exploring the endless possibilities of science and technology, it was soon time to wrap up – but wait, the gift shop! There we were, spending to our heart’s content, and buying cool stuff and browsing for treasures of our own.

We were sound asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow. What a day.

Day 3

“Time to get up,’’ exclaimed the enthusiastic teachers. Everyone was still half asleep by the time we headed down to breakfast. Speaking of which, breakfast was eggs and toast and by the time we finished it, we were on our way to the Deep Space Communication Complex (DSCC). It was a long drive, but it was worth it; we learnt about the wonders of space and how they communicated with spacecrafts using the big satellite dish.

Next, we explored the National Gallery of Australia and stood in awe at the amazing paintings and sculptures crafted by super talented artists. 

Afterwards, we eagerly headed down to the Royal Australian Mint where we toured through the wonders of minting Australian coins. We were also educated on the animals and symbolisation of the imprints on the money and had a blast seeing the coins being created. Then later, we took a drive up to Mt Ainslie where we marvelled at the beautiful view looking out over the heart of Canberra. You could see all the amazing places we had explored in our journey on camp.

Day 4

It was our last day, and we were looking forward to seeing our parents, but before we took off, we had time to squeeze in a couple more adventures.

It started with the Australian Institute of Sport. It was incredibly fun and interesting to discover how to push our limits and reach for our sporting goals. A huge part of the fun was in a special room called Sportex where we tried out different interactive type sports that could increase our fitness or introduce us to the fundamentals of the game. They included skiing simulations, basketball cages and soccer penalty shootouts; we had the best time trying out new sports. We also toured through the building where we were able to see Australian athletes (including Australia’s best gymnast) training right in front of our eyes.

Lastly, we went to the National Museum of Australia. Discovering Australia’s history of artifacts. It was a great experience to add to the list.

Finally, after four amazing days, we hopped on a plane and flew back to Melbourne Airport. We were all so tired from our big journey and we couldn’t wait to see our parents and tell them all about our long trip. What a week!

Going to see Australia's capital was a once in a lifetime experience that we will never forget! We made so many great memories that we will cherish for the rest of our life.

Thanks Oxley and all the staff who helped!

Written by

Henry VS (6D) and Hope L (6B)