After a good nights sleep, we woke up and ate breakfast at the buffet bar at the hotel. Everyone, despite the heat, was feeling really good and excited to come to Warruwi. We quickly packed up our hotel rooms and caught the bus back to Darwin airport. This time, instead of entering the main terminal, we entered a smaller lounge area for private airplane companies.
We boarded 3 small jets, 2 holding around 10 people and another holding only 6 people. Taking off and flying was very different to what we are used to, but this was all worth it once we were in the air. We were flying closer to ground, making it much easier for us to see smaller details of the beautiful land forms of Northern Australia. As we were flying over some of the mangroves and swamps on the islands, we saw some crocodiles. After about an hour, we could see South Goulburn Island approaching! This is when some of us started to truly understand how small and isolated the community is. There weren’t many houses in sight and most of the land was covered in trees and red dust. As we landed on the airstrip that was about as long as the island was wide, we could feel the anticipation and excitement building up inside us as we got closer to the Warruwi community. As we all got off the planes, we were hit by a warm sea breeze, something most us have missed from cold Melbourne. We were quite surprised by the Warruwi airport, which comprised of a shack with a picnic bench and an outhouse.
Even driving the 5 minutes from the airport to the Warruwi school was amazing. Most of the roads were red dirt. We passed the island’s generator, which supplies all electricity to the people and homes of Warruwi. We arrived at the school, welcomed by many of the teachers and students at the school. We received a quick briefing from Ebony, one of the teachers followed by a much appreciated lunch of ham, lettuce and cheese sandwiches.
After a quick break, we were separated into 2 different groups. One group went to play on the basketball courts. There, with some of the Warruwi kids, we played some rounds of knockout followed by a competitive round of golden child. The other group played a few games of Ship Ahoy, which produced lots laughter and friendship.
Later, after having a play on the basketball courts, we were given a tour by four of the Warruwi students; Gloriana, Hannah, Sarah and Kiera. They first took us on walk behind the school to the beach. The water was very clear. On the beach, there were lots of turtle shells littered around from when the locals hunt. The spines on the insides of the shell were strange. Our tour took us through the main of town, where we saw the police station and medical centre. From there, we ventured a little off course to the recreation centre and gym. There was a very large footy oval to the side. On the building was a map of South Goulburn Island, where we could see where the school, bottle rock and other beaches. This really gave us a glimpse into rural life in Australia, something very different from our suburban lives.
And tonight, after dinner we will be putting on our dancing shoes and going to the Youth Group Traditional Ceremony! 💃🕺
Love,
Elise and Benny on behalf of the Australia Group 🇦🇺🐢
