Sr Carlos & Sr Julio: the Jamieson Connection

Sr Carlos – Venilale Community Development Officer

Carlos visited Jamieson on Thursday 22 July. First he had a visit to Mansfield Secondary College where he met principal Peter Baddeley followed by a school tour. The highlight came in a Food Technology class with a taste test of marinated kangaroo then some macadamia nuts. Off to Jamieson for a stroll around town keeping an eye on the heritage signs (obtained the heritage walk brochure from the store) and examining the community noticeboards. Lunch at the Fosters with rice on the menu of course. Up to Jamieson Primary School where Carlos distinguished himself by playing guitar and singing Timorese songs. The kids had been well primed by Genevieve Bolwell and so had a thousand questions.

Sr Julio – Venilale sub-district administrator

Sr Julio started his day on Thursday 29 July with a look at the Mansfield Botanic Park where tree planting was meant to be in progress but wasn’t. He also visited Mansfield Secondary College where he was interviewed by Peter Baddeley. We did a similar walk around Jamieson and enjoyed a similar lunch. At Jamieson P.S. he and the students watched Heather Matthew’s 2009 Venilale film which he hadn’t seen before. The high point of the day was a visit to the A1 gold mine, with peeks at Skipworth Reserve, Kevington and Gaffneys Creek on the way. We underwent an induction process then got all kitted up. These days you just walk into the mine down a slope. Sr Julio was intrigued. There is some gold in Venilale Sub-District but I bet they don’t mine it like this. The tour theme continued with a look at the creative processes at Jamieson Brewery followed by tastings of mountain ale and some fudge. The day concluded with dinner at The Deck. We ran out of time to look through Jamieson museum and CFA and didn’t make it to the Eildon Lookout but still had plenty of great experiences.

Sr Carlos & Sr Julio in Melbourne – Sunday 1 August

An early 6.30 a.m. start brought us to the Victoria Market just after 9. After travelling through rain all the way the weather stayed fine while we were out and about. Carlos was keen to get last minute shopping done. Even Sr Julio bought a small suitcase. Before long Kirra arrived and we had a lovely 3 language conversation for 1½ hours before she had to catch the train back to Castlemaine. Kirra has just shifted to Melbourne but is still tidying up in Castlemaine. Indian lunch at the Market then transferred to the Melbourne Museum. Carlos & Julio were fascinated by the dinosaurs and Australian animals displays and because Carlos could read the information he was very interested in the indigenous exhibition. Returned them to their accommodation by 3.30 p.m. for some relaxation time, packing and so on. An early hotel pickup at 6.00 a.m. Monday for an 8.45 flight.

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