Carlo Gems Blog: October 2015

Canberra Reflections 2015

During the entire Canberra excursion I most enjoyed the trip to the C.S.I.R.O/N.A.S.A. I liked it mostly because of how the guide compared Earth to the rest of the infinite expanding universe. It made me think far into the unknown future and what would become of this tiny blue planet of ours. I also enjoyed how the guide showed and reminded us of the things we have achieved in space exploration.

Wilton

The best thing about Canberra was the Australian War Memorial. I was greatly moved by many stories about the people who fought and died for their country. I was fascinated about the weaponry that was that was used back in WWII. Many weapons that I had merely dreamed of seeing were there such as a German Lugermorph, Soviet PPSH and a USA Colt. The unknown soldiers sacrificing their lives to serve the great nation of Australia were the most courageous of all of those who had served. The Grave of the Unknown Soldier was the highlight of my time at the Australian War Memorial

Brian G

My favourite thing about Canberra was Questacon because you could interact socially and with most of the activities. The technology was far more advanced than daily life technology we use. I learnt that you only needed three mirrors in a triangular formation to create a picture where staring at one mirror seemed to be staring at five. The Excite Chamber was jam packed with people and was were the fun started. There was the free fall which was frightening as the height was ridiculous. There was also which was played by four people and was also really competitive. There was also a room where there was a robot controlled by this pad and you could control its action and movements.

James

The best thing about Canberra I thought, was Questacon. It was filled with amazing inventions and fun. There were many historical and ancient things such as stones, rocks and the first living bacteria. There were many chambers for us to explore, each chamber had their own activities and games. It was also a great start for our electricity project. There were fantastic games and activities to play in Excite, such as four player air-hockey, free fall and much more. The gift shop was also an amazing place, it had many cool things you could buy, like instant snow, sand that is always dry no matter how much u wet it or you could buy beautiful stones. Questacon was a great place for fun and learning.

Rocco

Unimaginably spectacular landscapes, heavenly views, buzzing city life, energetic lights within Questacon. Out of these few wonderful attractions in Canberra, I honestly think the Deep Communication Space Complex was the most enjoyable. It was fascinating to learn about the billions of things that exist within the observable universe that us humans can see. The excitement you feel tingles your skin when you learn about the endless depths of space. This is an experience you must experience for yourself. It is like losing yourself in the infinite void the universe is when you see and learn about the galaxies and nebulae that fill the vast and dark spaces of our universe. It is also fun to learn about the objects and humans that we send to explore the humongous night sky that we all are curious about. This is what I loved about Canberra.

Seren 5/6J

My favourite thing about our Canberra excursion was travelling to the Royal Australian Mint. We learnt how they made money and how they designed coins. There was a big robot there called Titan. His job was to pick up the big drums of money that weighed about a tonne and then pour them into the money counter. At the Mint they had so many special coins that you could buy at the gift and some just for show. At the gift shop there was a machine where you put three dollars into it and then you received an ANZAC coin. That's what I bought.

Shantara

I loved all things about Canberra, but my favourite part was going on top of Mount Ainslie. The view was so beautiful and you could see the Parliamentary Triangle and the whole city of Canberra. Questacon was great fun as well, especially the Free Fall where you got dropped from a height. I felt a little scared at first to slide down the massive slide but it was really fun. I also went into the Earthquake Room where I had to build a building made. Of blocks to withstand an earthquake but it didn't withstand the earthquake. I loved to go to Canberra and hope to go there again.

Joyce

I thought the best thing in Canberra was Questacon. At Questacon there were a lot of fun activities to do. I tried a lot of exciting things like free fall the free fall was holding on to a metal bar and falling down a long way. I also tried many different things like illusions or many other exciting things. My other favourite thing was the ball race. It was two balls and you rolled them to see who would win. We all had a wonderful time. I wish to go there again.

Lucas

The best thing about Canberra for me was the Australian Institute of Sport. In the Institute of Sport there was a lot of fun active games such as rock climbing, bike riding, basket ball, bobsledding, running, skate boarding and rugby. All my friends from different classes were with me. After free time on the games we got a tour of the whole place! They had a giant swimming pool, a huge gym and so much more. That's why the Australian Institute of Sport was my favourite thing in Canberra. I wouldn't mind going back there.

Dallas

My favourite thing about Canberra was Questacon. It was my favourite because there were many fun science experiments, slides and games. The slide was called 'The Drop'. What you have to do was hold on to the bar and slide down. It was about one bus tall. When you let go, gravity pulls you down then you just slide. The other thing I saw there was lightning in a cage. It was really cool.

Another place I really liked was the Royal Australian Mint. It is a place where Australian coins are made. I bought a souvenir that was a 2015 ANZAC one dollar coin. Something else cool was the stairs. They were filled with 5 cent coins. Our tour guide Steven, was so funny he could be a comedian. We saw robots picking up a big tub of coins. Steven told us the history of making Australian coins. They make about 2 million coins a day.

Amber

The Royal Australian Mint

I've learnt many things about Canberra with my class I've been to the Australian War Memorial, Questacon, AIS and more, but the highlight for me was when we attended the Royal Australian Mint. It was fun and interesting to see how Australia's money was made. I loved the different designs of how Australia's coins were to be made in the olden days. It was so amazing how much money Australia made each day which was over two million dollars.

Our tour guide was pretty funny too. He made us laugh and enjoy our time at the Royal Australian Mint I would love to go back there sometime.

Portia Bal

In Canberra I loved going to the Australian War Memorial. I loved the Australian War Memorial because of the history. All the guns and weapons of defence were spectacular. All the guns were old and realistic. At the Australian War Memorial they listed the soldiers’ names who fought in the war. Unfortunately not all the soldiers’ names were listed so I was very disappointed because they fought for us, for Australia.

Caitlin

Visiting Canberra for a second time was truly a blast. From the dazzling lights of Questacon to the breath-taking view of Mt. Ainslie. However visiting the Australian War Memorial had to have been my favourite attraction. Being able to try on the uniforms soldiers used to wear and hiding in the trenches in the hands-on exhibits was fun and showed us how the soldiers and even other people lived during the wars. The museum there was absolutely astounding. There were many beautiful paintings on display that had some connection to war. I almost teared up by reading many of the soldiers' letters sent home to their families and friends, many saying that they deserved to die or how the other soldiers were dropping dead like flies. The visit ended at the Hall of Remembrance. Seeing all the names and poppies placed next to them was so moving. Due to us running out of time we were only in the hall for about five minutes. Giving a final glance at the War Memorial we all left to visit Questacon before leaving. I was glad I could learn what a true hero is.

Charlotte G

I believe that the most interesting and most fascinating thing was the Royal Australian Mint even thought Questacon where you could interact socially. The Royal Australian Mint is where they make all the coins for Australian. Walking up the stairs 5/6J saw money on the side of the stairs. They were all five cents. After we saw robots helping as well as the humans. Their names were Robby and Titan. Titan was the biggest robot. All the big were meant for something e.g. Like the yellow tins meant all the two dollars go in there. We all saw the different kinds of coins in the past like shillings on pennies. Our tour guide Steven was really funny. I had the most enjoyable time at the Royal Australian Mint.

Achilles

The best thing about Canberra was Questacon because there were activities like The Drop, where you walk up a flight of stairs and hold onto a bar above a vertical drop. I also really enjoyed the steam machine. I even saw people verging a air hockey robot. The robot was really cool and really good and I heard that only one person scored one point against it. There were so many cool activities there and they were all extremely fun. I had such a fun time I. Decided to buy a souvenir coin. I hope I will never forget that day. Later that afternoon we had bizarre and mouth watering garlic bread and once we polished that off we headed back to Sydney.

Karl

Visiting Canberra for a second time was amazing. I found that there were lots of changes to some of the attractions, e.g. There were big changes to the Australian War Memorial. We also visited other places that I've never been to before in Canberra, like the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex and the Royal Australian Mint. Although Questacon was awesome, the look-out at Mt Ainsley was beautiful and the Australian war memorial was very sad and solemn, you cannot go past the Royal Australian Mint. It was my favourite out of all the other attractions because it was really interesting to see how our coins were made. Our tour guide Steven made the tour more enjoyable with his amazing sense of humour. We even saw the largest robot Titan do its job.

There were many more amazing attractions, but these were just a few to mention.

Mandy

My favourite thing about Canberra was Questacon. There were all sorts of activities, but my favourite was the drop. With the drop you had to wear overalls and hang onto a metal bar, then let go and slide down the slide.

I've learnt about a lot of science that they have there. We learnt about how lightning works and how earthquakes happen and much more. There was a cage that had lightning. Lightning is caused by a negative and positive charge. There was also an earthquake room, where you had to build a tower that was made to survive an earthquake.
Chelsea

The best place that we visited in Canberra, for me, was the famous Questacon. We had the best time there exploring the amazing and mind-boggling rooms which were filled to the brim with fun and interesting science experiments. During our time there, I learnt how to make a battery out of lemons, had heaps of fun with the various experiments and games, and slid down a massive slide about the height of a lamppost, from a hanging bar. These are the things that make Questacon so engaging and intriguing. I hope to visit Questacon again and try out the experiments that I haven't already completed. Next time I go, hopefully I'll have more fun and learn more about the amazing wonders of the world that we live in.

Mitchel

Have you ever wondered where your money in your pocket comes from well it comes from The Royal Australian Mint. The Mint is where our all our money is made. At the Mint we lent about the history and stages of money. Did you know the 10 cent piece used to have a flower printing on it. In the Mint our fantastically funny tour guide Steven showed us around the Mint. He showed us how money was made, how that came up with the printing design, how they got coloured and much more. As we were coming to the end of our tour we watched this amazing robot the heaviest and strongest robot, Titan life a whole barrel of gold coins from Thailand. The barrel was full of unprinted 1 dollar coins. Titan lifted the barrel of coins into the printing machine. At the end of Titan's job he bowled at us and we all clapped him. At the end of our tour we were led down the stairs made of 5 cent pieces down to the gift shop everyone mostly bought a ANZAC coin but I bought two gold bracelets. The Royal Australian Mint was the most appealing and interesting Canberra attraction to me.