Year 9

Camp Reflections

Reflection – Angus McInnes

Last week, the Yr 9 students were presented with the eye-opening opportunity to travel up to Arnhem Land, in the Northern territory. Located near the small town of Nhulunbuy, the Culture College Campus is in one of the most remote parts of Australia, only accessible via a 675km long dirt road from Darwin or a flight into the Gove/Nhulunbuy. 

For Group B, our adventure began at 5:30 am on Sunday morning and after a short drive to the Sydney Domestic Airport and a relatively fast trip through check-in and security, we boarded the plane. Three hours later, we landed in Cairns and met up with Group A, who had travelled to Cairns via a short layover in Brisbane. After around an hour to purchase lunch in Cairns Airport, we boarded the Air North Embraer E170 and E190 jets, and departed the 110-minute flight. Following a bumpy landing we collected our baggage and hopped into buses for the 30-minute drive to the campus. 

After being placed into our groups, we jumped straight into our cultural immersion, beginning with a welcome to country and traditional Yolngu Smoking Ceremony. We then settled into camp, met the people we would be spending our week with and had afternoon tea alongside a game of AFL with the Yolngu kids. At dinner, we sat with our groups and were given the first of our five delicious meals and then returned to camp to sit around the campfire and reflect on our long day. 

The following morning, after a night of what many would describe as disturbed sleep, a result of both jet lag and overwhelming heat, we were given between 5 and 7 to watch the incredible sunrise, shower and greet our friends. For my group, Maranydjalk, which means stingray, we spent the morning sitting in the forum, an open-air room, learning some basics of the language spoken by the Yolngu people. We learnt how to reply to and answer questions such as ‘what is your name?’, ‘how are you?’ and ‘see you later’. Following lunch, we were taught by Yolngu elders how to create traditional Indigenous paintings and spent much of the afternoon slowly making our own. We then got a bus out to East Woody beach, where we walked to a rocky outcrop and watched the sunset. One of the most incredible parts of the excursion was looking out into the Arafura Sea, as the setting sun illuminated the sky orange, and seeing a turtle come up for a breath and swim around the surface for around 30 seconds. The night ended with dinner and circle time around the fire, discussing the experiences of the day and how we were feeling following our first full day in Arnhem land. 

The next morning began in the same way, and after breakfast and a quick circle time to discuss everyone’s thoughts and the day ahead, we moved into the knowledge centre, a large air-conned facility looking out over East Arnhem land. Here, we learnt about ROM, which is what we would view as lore. We learnt about the consequences of disobeying rules, rapirri, which is effectively respect, the knowledge structure of each clan including who gets to know what, alongside lots more information about the structure of this culture, and how it differs from ours. Following lunch, we split into groups to conduct the sacred men and women’s business. Boys spent the next two hours learning how to throw spears and make spear throwers, while girls were taught how to weave. Following afternoon tea, we learnt about kinship, and the extremely complex family trees involving skin names to maintain a perfect bloodline. The night ended with a fire yarn, where a large group of people sit around a fire and share skills and stories (a yarn is like a conversation or talk). 

The following morning, we ate breakfast and got ready as usual, and then the whole year split into male and female groups. The boys returned to the forum to conduct men’s business, with people spread all over. Activities consisted of throwing spears, making and painting spear throwers, making fire, making spears, playing the didgeridoo, dancing and speaking to Yolngu people. This went on for the whole day, with breaks in between for meals and snacks. The girls experienced spiritual healing and learnt more about how to weave. That night, we went and lay out on the large opening where the smoking ceremony had been conducted at the time of our arrival, and looked up at the clear sky, completely untouched by light pollution. We were taught about space, but in a way that combined both the ancient Yolngu stories and the wonders of modern science. We were also given the opportunity to look through the telescope multiple times and look at wonders such as binary stars and nebulas. 

Our second last morning in Arnhem land began like every other, however we quickly departed breakfast to get into 4×4 cars where we sat in groups of 3-8 (depending on the size of the vehicle) and embarked on an hour of four wheel driving over a dirt road to get to Macassan beach, where Indonesian traders first reached the Yolngu people and traded valuable resources such as steel and rubber with them for over 1000 years. That afternoon, we drove out to the small town of Yirrkala to see the art gallery, where we learnt about various pieces of art and were given the opportunity to look around and learn about the different types of artworks. That night was the giving back ceremony, where each group went up to the stage and contributed to the performance, demonstrating their new knowledge and their appreciation for the Yolngu people who had made the week possible. After we danced, ate dinner and got into bed in preparation for the early start. 

On the final morning in Arnhem land, we got up at 4:30, packed our tents and bags away, and met at 5:00 for breakfast. At 5:45, we were all on buses to the airport, where after checking in, we had an hour or so before flying back out to Cairns. After a fast flight back to Cairns, we found ourselves with a 4-hour layover, with Group B departing on their flight to Sydney in the late afternoon. Just 30 minutes later, Group A found out that their connecting flight from Brisbane would be cancelled due to unexpected delays in Sydney. Nevertheless, they flew to Brisbane and had a last-minute stay in the 4.5 star Westin. Group B arrived in Sydney at around 9:00 PM and Group A arrived around midday the following day. 

This camp was a once in a lifetime experience, changing many people’s perspective on their life and influencing how they might change the way that they live back home in Sydney. The experience was truly eye opening and I know that every Year 9 who was given this amazing opportunity is extremely grateful and enjoyed every part of it. 

Reflection – Millie Winton

My time at Arnhem Land was something that I will never forget, and never want to forget.  This camp was different to any camp I had ever been to before and I am so truly grateful for the experience I had. I used to have a sense of anxiety around camp, I would always think about what could go wrong, the what ifs, yet during my time away I learnt that if you focus your entire life on the ‘what ifs’ you will never experience the ‘what is’. If you slow down your pace and take in the things around you, you can learn and appreciate so much more. This doesn’t only apply to camp, school, or anything else academic, but it can also apply to your life in general. At the start of this camp one of the members of the Yolngu community, Randy, told us that throughout this time we would be filling our cups of knowledge, then bringing that home and pouring the cups into the minds of people around us. Whilst this camp not only taught me and everybody else in my year so much, I think the most important part of it was how it taught us to teach others. Through all the fun times like sitting around the fire and hearing everybody’s stories, looking up at the stars with my friends, or even trading flavours of hydrolytes, I truly had the time of my life in Arnhem Land. A couple of people I want to shout out for their help in our time up there are Ferdinand, for always doing the dishes after every meal. Elenor, Sonia, Sophie, and Remy for being by my side and helping me every step of the way. Ms Vale and Ms Walker, we all know it wasn’t an easy job taking care of 150 kids over state borders but you both did such an incredible job. Mr Millham, you made us all think constantly when we were up there, obviously we were up there to learn about the culture, but we were actually there for so much more and you helped all of us realise that, I’m sure I speak for everyone in Dumalingu when I say you helped us grow as people. One final thing I learnt was the importance of listening, you don’t need to talk all the time, and so to keep this reflection short I want to leave everyone with one message, think deeper, everything isn’t as simple as the surface level you can see.

Reflection – Krishna Gupta

I have been honoured to visit Arnhem Land in the past week, and I am writing to express my gratitude. I thoroughly enjoyed discovering the Yolŋu law system and kinship and making friends with several of the Yolŋu citizens. I have gained a deeper understanding and heartfelt respect for these people. The connections among their community, and the kindness they displayed whilst providing this experience for us Year 9 students is simply unforgettable. The spear making, trips to the beach, cultural dancing and final ceremony were special moments for many throughout the week. Organising for over 150 students must have been an arduous task, and I appreciate the teachers who allowed this to occur so smoothly. This adventure will be a memory I hold forever. Thank you to everyone who was involved.

Reflection – Lara Prineas

Coming to this camp I didn’t know what to expect apart from what we were told, but once I arrived and later left, I knew that it was so much more than what was expected and every lesson I will never forget.

The most memorable lesson I had was learning from Marcus to “Fill your cup with knowledge and empty out that cup, sharing your knowledge with others”. 

At first, I didn’t take in what he said but after a car ride with him to Macassons Beach, he easily pointed out each tree or flower and explained the use of it to Yolngu people. This small part of the large learning experience conveyed to me the strong connection between the people and the land, and that we can never stop learning and sharing our knowledge. 

Reflection – Hannah Scott

Out of my 7 camps with Redlands, I can safely say that the recent trip to Arnhem Land was my personal favourite. I felt so welcomed from the minute I arrived. The First Nations People were all willing to share their knowledge and were so incredibly patient, especially during our ‘basket weaving’ activity which was a challenge to say the least. My favourite activity was definitely jewellery making. We made the jewellery with tiny seashells that were collected from the beach, cleaned and pierced individually with small holes. We explored the idea that when you need a new item or product, you don’t have to run to the store and buy something unsustainable – you can use nature’s resources and beauty, such as the natural seashells to make gorgeous jewellery. We also played bingo and instead of using plastic tokens, we utilised the natural shells, rocks, leaves, twigs etc. Overall, spending time with these amazing First Nations People allowed me to delve deeper into their thinking and ideologies, allowing me to reflect on what my morals are and what changes I can make to my personal thinking. A few words that are still stuck with me are “no one can ever change you, like the way you change yourself”.

Reflection – Daniel Koppers

Personally, the theme of Year 9 Camp for me was connection to land and people. My favourite activity was spear throwing using a ‘gatha’ and ‘galpu’ (spear and spear thrower). With help and guidance from a few of the Yolngu men (and quite a bit of practice) I was throwing accurately up to 15 metres. Not only was this activity fun but I also built a connection with these people. One of the local kids named Djari taught me how to play the ‘yidaki’ (didgeridoo) along with the hard skill of circular breathing. Through the multiple teachings throughout the week, I started to understand the ‘Rom’ (Yolngu lore system) and connection to the land. This was also due to how beautiful nature is up in Northeast Arnhem land. Later, however, as we were reflecting on our week, our group mentor pointed out his own frustration he had growing up as a child about the effects of colonialism on his people. This had an impact on me because even though I only had a small taste of this connection to the people and land I felt like I had lost something when we had to leave at the end of camp. This made me realise that I could only imagine what other First Nations people felt when everything they had was taken by ‘balanda’ (white men). I am truly grateful for the opportunity to have gone to this camp and have gotten so many physical and other skills out of it.

Reflection – Alexia van der Merwe

I really enjoyed and loved how warm and friendly the community was towards complete strangers. It’s embedded into their culture and their love for the land and all of its people really inspired me and made me think about how absent it is in western culture. I think most of all I loved spending time with the children of the families including Azalia, Djarry and Harry and playing footie with them on the Bungle ground.

A Huge THANK YOU to the fabulous Staff Team who travelled with Yr 9!

Homeland Tour to Arnhem Land on 15-22 April 2023

Following on from a wonderfully successful Year 9 Camp, in partnership with Culture College, we will be offering a Homeland Tour to Arnhem Land on 15-22 April 2023. 

In this cultural immersion, students will and revisit build on the ideas they were introduced to on Year 9 Camp, consolidating knowledge and understanding. After a brief stay at the Gulkula site, students will travel to one of the Yolngu Homeland areas. This offers the opportunity for a much more personal, extensive and detailed exploration of Yolngu culture than was possible on the Year 9 Camp.

It would suit students who are ready and willing to consider more deeply the knowledge they gained and how to effect change for the future.

We intend to hold a Parent Information Session on Thursday 10 November at 6pm via Zoom and further details will be on Pulse early next week. The cost of the tour is $4,775.

Booking Forms will be available on Pulse after the Information Session and places can be secured upon return of the Booking Form and payment of a deposit directly to Culture College. Places are likely to be limited.

Ms Lisa Vale
Yr 9 Advisor
9968 9837
lvale@redlands.nsw.edu.au