One of the supposed highlights of being one of the 8 school leaders was the planned leadership camp at Mungo, a town 1000 kilometers away to the west of Sydney, known for its National Park and nature reserve. The school had been doing this every year, and it was a great opportunity to learn and meet leaders from other schools. Unfortunately, COVID happened so the trip was cancelled this year.
The good news was that restrictions were eased in the past 2 months, so the school was able to organise something to replace the camp, albeit at a smaller-scale. They called it Gol Gol and Mungo Leadershp Tour. Instead of a plane ride and 5 nights stay in Mungo, they are traveling by mini-bus to Mungo with stops at Hay and Gol Gol.
Ethan was of course very excited for the trip and couldn't sleep the eve of their departure.
They left Carlingford West PS on Sunday, the 22nd of November and traveled 10 hours to Hay to rest for the day. They then had activities in that area on that day, then traveled to Gol Gol to vist the school there and their accomodation near the Murray River. They visited Environment Groups and Nature Reserves, say and touch animals, learned about the area, and made new friends. On Wednesday, the 25th they along with the Gol Gol year 6 students headed to Mungo to meet the kids there. They watched the stars that night and slept in tents. On Thursday, they made their way back to Hay and rested for the night, before taking the 10hour trip back to Sydny on Friday morning.
The kids were asked by the school to write about their experiences. Ethan wrote a lovely piece which I want to share here:
The yellow-orange sand dunes of the Mungo Lake are a sight to behold. The wavy patterns on the ground formed from the long gone lake have been untouched for millenia, and the remains of animals scattered around the lake show the story of the ecosystem that used to thrive at Mungo Lake.
If it’s not obvious, Mungo was my favourite part of the leadership camp.
When the leaders arrived at Gol Gol, we met their three amazing leaders. We did activities with them and they taught us about their school. Did you know that Gol Gol Public School has only 180 students? There are only 22 Year 6’s. After conversing and interacting with the students, we hopped on a bus and travelled to Mungo.
While looking out the window of the bus, I took in the scenery of the countryside. It is breathtaking - how different the terrain and flora are compared to Carlingford. Once we reached the camping site, we put up our tents, fed some emus, and then went on the sunset tour to Lake Mungo.
Lake Mungo is truly an amazing place. Our tour guide taught us about how the Aboriginal people used the area to do rituals, how they used the area for food, water and materials, and about the animals that used to live there. At the end of our tour, we sat on a high sand dune and watched the sunset in complete silence for 5 minutes. The atmosphere was solemn and peaceful. Watching the sunset in silence allowed me to think about how the trip had been amazing. The sunset put my mind at rest - and I wish I could see that sunset here in Sydney.
Travelling back to the camping site we started to see little shiny dots in the sky. The stars were starting to show. When we got to the camping site we laid down on the ground and just stared at the stars. It was magnificent. There were stars everywhere - and planets to accompany them, too. The moon was shining bright and the stars were too. The experience was mesmerizing. The country really does give you a great view of the stars.
And as I travelled back on that bus, back to Gol Gol, I realised how much I’d miss Mungo, and the camp itself - and I still do. I felt happy that I had the opportunity to really experience it. I can’t properly describe the joy, the curiosity, the bundle of emotions I felt during that trip.
What I can really say is that it was a trip that I will never forget.
Ethan Au
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