Exploring Edinburgh
Hi Boys and Girls
One day in Edinburgh, we went to visit the zoo. I saw lots of my relatives there, but only lionesses. There were no male lions to say hello to.
There was a demonstration of some of the birds. Mrs Buhagiar was able to put on a long leather glove and an owl flew over and landed on her arm. It was really cool to see it up so close. It had big eyes and long strong talons. Just like the ones KB were reading about last term.
Another funny thing was the Penguin Parade. At a set time each day, the keeper opens the gate to the penguin enclosure and some of the penguins come out and wander around the paths with the people. The keeper told us to hold our bags up high, as sometimes they get curious and poke their heads in to see what they can find. They had a really funny waddle as they roamed around, and did ot seem at all frightened by the people.
Scottish surprises
Hi Boys and Girls
Well, after a VERY long trip on 3 different planes, I finally arrived in Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, on Saturday 6th October. Luckily Mrs Buhagiar’s daughter met us and took us back to her flat. I was so tired I had to have a little “catnap”.
The next day we drove for 3 hours to the west coast of Scotland to a town called Oban where we caught a ferry that takes cars as well as people, to a lovely little island called Mull.
The roads on Mull are only 1 lane wide with “passing places” marked out by black and white striped poles. The idea is that when you see another car coming the other way, you pull into the nearest “passing place” to let it pass. It was funny sometimes when both cars stopped to let the other pass. There were lots of smiles and waves to say “Thankyou”
While on Mull, we stayed in a lovely farmhouse. Hens and chickes roamed around the yard, and we had to be careful not to run over them as we drove in and out. There was also a lovely black dog called Pepsi who helped the farmer round up the sheep and cows (or “heelan’ coos as the locals called them) Highland cows are very different to Australian cows. They have longer hair and horns.
The villages on Mull are very small. Only about 50 or 60 people live in each one. That is about the same as 2 classes at St Michael’s school. There is only 1 bigger town called Tobermory built on a harbour with brightly painted houses along the waterfront.
We also caught a smaller ferry to another island called Iona. This was the place where St Columba first brought Christianity to Scotland. He built a big Abbey which is still there today. It is over 700 years old.
Unfortunately Mrs Buhagiar’s daughter had to go back to work after 3 days, so we headed back to Edinburgh.
Ensemble Troika
Hi Everybody,This is my latest blog about something that happened to me on the 18th of May. It involved an electric piano, a cello and a clarinet. If you haven’t guessed what it was it… it was the Musica Viva concert!!!
The group that performed for us was Ensemble Toika. This was my first Musica Viva concert so I was very excited. I learnt lots of new stuff, like plucking the strings is called ‘pizzicato’ and an ‘ostinato’ is a musical pattern that repeats.
I had loads of fun watching the St Michael’s primary children performing the dance to Golden Wedding (I’m not a very good dancer, as I have two left feet), and singing along to ‘Come and let us join in the dance’.
Well I better head off now. I have to go to my clarinet lesson.
P.S A big thank you to Danielle for helping me write this post.
Cya
Diocesan Cross-Country Day
On Tuesday 1st May, I went with some boys and girls of St Michaels to a Diocesan Cross Country race day. There were lots of students from all different schools in the Parramatta Diocese.
I had lots of fun cheering for my St Michael’s friends and they did really well. We got a “First” ribbon in the 8/9 year girls race and Carla came first in the 11 year old age group. 5 students did so well they now will go to represent our school at the Inter-Diocesan races.
Between races we had lots of fun - but still behaved well- and took lots of photos. It was a very tiring day, but I was so proud of all my St Michael’s friends who tried so hard, and looked after me so well.
A special Thankyou to my friend Breanna who helped me write this post.
I’m in France!
Hi everyone,
You may remember from my last post that I said I was going to Europe with Mr. Laffan. Well, I’m here!
It was a very long flight across to the other side of the world, but we eventually made it.
The capital city of France is Paris. It has many different places to see. One of these is the Louvre Museum, a very famous art gallery. I’ve included its location on my Google Map. Here is a picture of me at the Louvre. It is easily recognised by its square pyramid made of glass. I wonder how many parallelograms you can see in the picture?
Here are some other pictures of me around France. We’re lucky we made it to some of these places! Mr. and Mrs. Laffan keep driving on the wrong side of the road! They tell me that in France, you drive on the right-hand side of the road, not on the left like Australia. Anyway, just to be sure, we stopped at this church and I prayed to our guardian angel St. Michael to look after us on our journey.
Unfortunately, St. Michael couldn’t help with giving Mr. and Mrs. Laffan directions. They keep having to read the road maps together, and we get a few suprises when they try to ask for directions - they’re still learning how to speak French.
Still, the driving has meant that we could stop by some lovely places and see more of the old buildings and structures around France.
Maybe you can find out some facts about France and put them up here in a comment?
I’m Going on a Holiday!
I haven’t been at St. Michael’s long, but things are definitely getting exciting!
In Term 2, I get to travel to Europe! Our principal, Mr. Laffan, is going to Europe, and he has invited me to come along! I can’t wait to travel on a plane, even if it will be a very long flight.
So now I’m using the two weeks of school holidays to get my bags packed. I’ve also started my own Google Map where I can mark all the places that I’ve visited. Take a look at my Google Map.
Walking Across the Harbour Bridge
On Sunday 18th March, I walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to celebrate its 75th birthday. There were lots of other people walking too and we were all given a free bright yellow hat to celebrate. We were allowed to walk in the middle of the roadway where cars normally drive.
It was a long way for a little lion like me to walk, but luckily I got a ride for part of the way in a backpack.
While I was walking, I looked up to see all the metal arches. It is amazing to think of all the men who worked without modern machinery to finish our bridge in 1932. It is a wonderful Sydney icon.
Intro
Hi Boys and Girls
I am Michael Angel-O.
Mr Laffan and your Teachers have chosen me to be your School Mascot. I am really excited when I think about doing lots of fun things with you throughout the year. I hope you will invite me to go with you on excursions, sporting events and other outings, as well as welcoming me to your classrooms for some lessons - I love learning.
I will report on my outings and take lots of photos to share with you.
More later
Michael Angel-O
