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The Assyrian Church Youth Group Visit Canberra
Sunday 10th June 2007
Close to 40 members of the Assyrian Church of the East Youth Group got onto a coach and headed down to Australia’s Capital Territory, Canberra.
As always, our trip began with a prayer to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ thanking him for the opportunity to gather together and to be with us on our trip. After a few minutes of settling in and getting comfortable, the singing and laughter began with the telling of jokes and stories all the way to our first stop, the home of Australia's Parliament and the meeting place of the nation, Parliament House.
 
At Parliament house we were lucky to have a guided tour explaining how Parliament house came to be and what everything represented. We were shown both houses, The Senate (red house) and the House of Representatives (the Green house) also the Great Hall opened by Queen Elizabeth II. Two of the many interesting points we found out were that Canberra was chosen as the capital territory because it was between NSW and Victoria and the word Canberra actually means Meeting Place in the Aboriginal language.
 
Our next stop was the National Museum of Australia.The National Museum of Australia explores the land, nation and people of Australia. The Museum celebrates Australian social history revealing the stories of ordinary and extraordinary Australians. There were many exhibitions such as The Eternity Exhibition, Horizons, Nation and the First Australians. There was also a rotating ride which gave an insight as to what to expect from the museum before going in. Many youth members enjoyed learning other aspects of Australia, which they had not known previously.
 
The Australian War Memorial was our next stop. The Australian War Memorial commemorates the sacrifice of Australians who have suffered and died in war. We began the War Memorial tour by visiting ANZAC Hall. The exhibit features an amazing integration of objects, light and sound to recreate a night operation that took place over Berlin in December 1943. We then went into the First World War 1914 - 1918 Gallery. This exhibition consisted of two main areas the Gallipoli Gallery (and the creation of the ANZAC legend) and the Western Front. Some youth members were amazed with what they learned of Australia’s involvement in the First World War. The tour of the War Memorial ended with a walk around the Commemorative area, passing the Roll of Honour, a visit to the tomb of The Unknown Soldier and the closing ceremony. As the sun set over Canberra, the eternal flame was burning above the pool of reflection, as we, along with members of the public, remembered the fallen soldiers with the playing of the Last Post. At the conclusion of the closing ceremony, we headed back to our coach and towards our last stop for the day… the highest point in Canberra, the Telstra Tower on Black Mountain.
We made our way up the tower, onto the freezing balcony and took in the amazing views of Canberra at night. Because it was the Queen’s Birthday, there were little pockets of fireworks being displayed all over the city. It was a beautiful way to end a long, educational and fun filled day. Actually that wasn’t what ended our day… the three hour bus ride back full of singing, laughing, telling jokes and stories was a fantastic way of ending a wonderful day out. No matter where we go, I think it is the bus ride that we always look forward to. |
