Essays and the Immigration Museum
Trip Start
Feb 11, 2007
1
13
40
Trip End
??? ??, 2008
Melbourne, Australia
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Life is good. I spent most of my time this past week working on essays, but I did have the chance to give another Rotary presentation, hang out with some friends here and there, and visit the Victorian Immigration Museum.
Classes are starting to wind down. This coming week is the last full week of lectures. After that, we have a two week examination period. The due dates for my essays all fall within this time frame, and I feel pretty good about everything. I have most of the research completed; it is just a matter of putting everything in words. I will be busy, that's for sure, but I hope to be able to put up a few more posts in the meantime.
I had the opportunity to speak with the Rotary Club of Carlton this week, and it was another great pleasure. I had had the chance to meet several of the Rotarians previously at other functions and at the district conference, so it was nice to catch up and meet everyone else. I was asked me to speak about myself, Rotary in the US, and my impressions of Australia. I was happy to oblige. They even gave me a plum pudding to take home!
I have also set up a few more presentations with area clubs throughout the next few weeks. In addition, I have been invited to a dinner with Bill Boyd, President of Rotary International. It is quite an honor, I must say. I will be sure to let you all know how everything goes.
I didn't get to see any live music this week, but was able to hone my culinary prowess at a dinner party and get out to a couple hip bars with a few friends. We all needed a brief respite from our respective intellectual endeavors. One thing that I like about Melbourne is the fact that some of the coolest pubs and cafés are hidden from the masses. You either have to hear about them from a friend or just stumble across them in a random back ally. As exploring back alleys is not reccomended, I like the word of mouth method. I will tell you, any place that plays jazz and blues on vinyl is alright with me. Unfortunately, I forgot to take my camera, but I always write down the addresses in my journal.
One of my professors told me about the Immigration Museum the other week. She helps design exhibits now and again and informed there is an exhibit currently running I might find interesting. I took her advice and went.
The museum is located in the old Customs House, right off the Yarra River, near the CBD (city center). Built in the 1870's, the Customs house is widely regarded as one of Australia's finest 19th century buildings, with the architecture influenced by the Italian Renaissance and reflective of Melbourne's increased wealth and status. It is from here that customs officers supervised trade into and out of the port.
The museum was opened in the late 1990's and houses a number of permanent exhibitions exploring immigration to Victoria and Australia over the past 200 years, based on the common experiences of leaving home, immigrant stories and timeline, journeys of a lifetime and getting in. There are also a number of temporary exhibitions.
It really is quite an excellent museum. I spent about half a day there, but could have easily spent more.
Well, that's it for this week. Keep checking back. It is to be hoped I will have one or two papers finished and some more stories for you.
Mike
