Earlier this term, our students and staff embarked on a Red Earth Indigenous Immersion Experience at Cape York. Team Salesian were guided by Indigenous Traditional Owners and Elders, to learn about the land, culture and history of Cape York directly from its custodians.
Below, our students reflect on the impact of this experience on their understanding of indigenous culture.
Please note, photos were taken prior to current COVID-19 restrictions.
“The raw connections myself and my friends were able to develop with the Indigenous community was really something special.”– Marvin Elliott
“My highlights of the immersion would be celebrating NAIDOC week with the community of Hope Vale. We got to see the many talents and dances of the local people. They were really open even though we were the first group ever to join them for the day of celebration. We engaged in many activities such as dancing, a spear throwing competition, preparing a sausage sizzle for the community, playing rugby with the local kids and talking to the elders about the past of the land and their people.” – Nam Nguyen
“For me personally, the highlight of my trip was getting involved in the corroboree at Binthee Warra. I enjoyed this experience as everybody got involved and everybody enjoyed themselves. The challenges faced during the trip were trying to change our lifestyles from a very comfortable and easy life to a more difficult life, as everything that you had in your house was not there, you couldn’t just go to the pantry and get something to eat. From the immersion I learnt a bit about myself but I would say that I learnt a decent amount about indigenous culture as I learned how they lived, how the family system works and different stories of the indigenous people.” – Brendan Russo
“Exploring the Indigenous land was especially fun, because of all the fascinating stories and secrets that came from almost everywhere. Everyone’s stories had so much meaning and we were able to take part in a crucial celebration: NAIDOC Week. This was immense fun and gave us deeper insight to the remarkable history that is more important than ever in Greater North Queensland. This was absolutely fantastic and a once in a lifetime opportunity.” – Will Hemsley
