Indonesian Trip

Every two years, St Bede’s College is committed to providing high quality learning opportunities for language students to immerse themselves in language and culture through opting for the Language Study Tour. The tours alternate between Indonesia and Italy. The objective of these tours is to focus on personal development through the study of language and culture, as well as to prepare students to meet challenges by contributing to an evolving and interdependent global community. Language is key to a global mindset.

Tour itineraries are carefully constructed to enable students to experience the culture of the country whilst maximising the use of the language they are studying.

Recently, 15 students and three staff members returned safely from a ten day international study tour in Yogyakarta and Bali. These students gained confidence in themselves through being immersed in an environment filled with language and culture.

Year 10, 11 and 12 students, Jack Pooley, Fintan Glackin Ben Mckenna and Remi Carlon-Garbutt reflect on their experiences:

On 30 March (at 4:30am), we left for Indonesia. Our first destination was Yogyakarta, where we visited the Borobodur Temples and learnt the history regarding the Buddhist religion within Indonesia. We then travelled to the Candirejo Village, a traditional Indonesian village, where we met with the locals and were guided around their quarters, whilst learning about their lifestyle. On the last day in Yogyakarta, we worked in the rice fields, met with orphans at a local orphanage, visited an Indonesian prison and took part in art classes. On the fourth day, we flew from Yogyakarta to Ubud, Bali, where we enjoyed a traditional Balinese cooking class. We cooked with Balinese ingredients and in some cases throughout the session, traditional Balinese cooking methods. The following day we went on a 10km bike ride around the rice fields, where afterwards we browsed Balinese markets. On the 6th day we visited a local school, where we interacted and played basketball with the students, followed by a 4 hour Indonesian skills learning program. On our final day in Bali, we spent the day at the Waterbom Park, where that night we flew back to Melbourne.

My favourite part of the trip was meeting with the students at a local school, in which we shared contact details and still keep in touch, hopefully for years to come.

Many thanks to Ms Dux for organising and planning the Indonesian trip, we learnt more about the Indonesian culture and language whilst overseas. I also wish to thank Mr Mark Jones & Mr Luke Green for their assistance and accompaniment whilst on the trip.

Jack Pooley Year 10 TG26

On 31 March, myself, 15 other senior Indonesian students, Mrs Dux, Mr Green and Mr Jones met at Tullamarine airport at 6 o’clock in the morning. We got a plane from Melbourne to Denpasar and then another from Denpasar to Yogyakarta where we stayed for 3 days. While in Yogyakarta we visited temples, a monkey forest, and an orphanage. Yogyakarta was an eye opener to the more disadvantaged side of Indonesia. After three days in Yogyakarta we got a plane to Denpasar, where we stayed for the remaining seven days of the trip. We stayed at a quiet, traditional hotel in Ubud, amongst the rice fields. The remaining seven days were spent visiting rice fields, bike riding, visiting markets, temples, and paying a trip to a local Indonesian school. On the final day of the trip we went to water bom park. Overall the trip was a fantastic experience that we all not only had lots of fun on, but were able to practice our Bahasa Indonesia and learn about Indonesian culture.

Fintan Galckin Year 10 TG26

On 1 April 2018, 15 St Bede’s students travelled to Indonesia. This trip aimed to help us improve our Indonesian speaking skills and our understanding of the culture of Indonesia. It was interesting to learn about the Indonesian culture and it was enjoyable when speaking Indonesian to the locals. The food was always delicious no matter where we went and the people were always kind and very grateful for what little they had. The two highlights of the trip were the last day, when we travelled to Waterbom Park and went on the water slides and our visit to the local school where we played basketball against some of the students. Overall, everyone had a great time on this trip and it was a great bonding experience for everybody involved, including the teachers.

Ben McKenna TG 35

The trip to Indonesia was enjoyable, with the whole group learning new things about a different culture by partaking in activities that represented the many aspects of Indonesian life in various locations, from traditional villages to westernised major cities. For ten days in Yogyakarta and Bali, we found ourselves ploughing rice fields in remote areas, visiting traditional temples, bargaining at local markets and going down water slides at Waterbom Park, all of which and many more, provided a fun experience that will hopefully be remembered for a long time.

Remi Carlon-Garbutt Year 12 TG35

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