It has been a short but long week for our 18 S2 to S5 students during the first week of July, 2025. Too short to learn all about Australian culture and to have quality time with their host families, but long enough to miss their parents! After all, it’s been their first time leaving home, staying in distant country.
Led by our English panels, the adventure started with the late-night flight to Brisbane. A tightly packed itinerary was already waiting for them once they landed. The scrumptious grilled burger meal, eye-opening visit to the Brisbane Museum , and the Queensland University campus tour all kept them busy before they finally met their host families excitingly after the 9-hour flight and excursions. Not a single trace of fatigue for our enthusiastic team!
What a true revelation of SJA wisdom to witness how our students develop into independent, confident and genuine team players within such a short period of time! Taught by native teachers, students from different classes had lessons in Griffith University every other day, participating in interactive class activities to learn the true meaning of teamwork and collaborative learning. Besides learning about Aboriginal history, having their packed lunch carefully prepared by their host families daily trained them how to be grateful and appreciative. Valuable life lessons indeed!
Being able to stay close to nature has been a privilege for our students. It has been a wonderful experience to visit the Tropical Fruit World to savour freshly picked local fruits, and to feed kangaroos and koalas, as well as watching bird shows in the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. The hike in the Tamborine Mountain Sky Walk and the Gallery Walk has also been a once in a lifetime experience, as it was followed by a mesmerizing visit to the Glow Worm Cave. Ending a day of excursion in the Surfers Paradise Gold Coast Beach had been welcomed by all, since shopping and beach promenade did go well together.
As usual, time flies. The happy week concluded with Aussie Touch Footy, a friendly soccer match in the park, followed by an outdoor barbeque in the lawn. After a week of fun and other learning experiences in Australia, it's finally time to bid farewell. Though missing their parents at home, our lovely students parted tearfully with their host families after a cosy and hospitable stay with them.
With God's blessing, the study tour came to an end with the warm welcome of our parents in the HK International Airport. Parents were proud to see their children returning home safely as wise and conscientious beings who were prepared to have further global explorations, to spread Chinese culture with pride and high self-esteem soon. Neverending worldwide journey indeed. Hip, hip, hurray!