Building International friendships through Round Square

During the holidays, Lily Smith, School Captain 2027, and I had the privilege of hosting and touring students from South Africa (Bridge House School) and Kenya (Brookhouse School). After meeting our Bridge House peers at Sydney airport, we had an evening showing them around Sydney. Although the weather wasn’t on our side, it was a great experience for them to see iconic spots like The Sydney Opera House.

The next day, we helped the IDEALS Society to lead tours around the MLC School campus and Burwood, focusing on the multiculturalism and innovation of the local area. As it was amid the mid-Autumn (Spring) Festival there was a lot of East Asian culture to share with our friends from Africa. We all thoroughly enjoyed our scavenger hunt around town, where we got to display the amazing community that our School is a part of. We introduced them to Australian delicacies (like Yochi) and shared nuanced details about local Sydney-Australian. Finally, we got to share some of Australia’s beloved snacks. Their reactions to Vegemite were definitely one for the books!

Unfortunately, after an amazing day, Lily and I had to say goodbye to our new friends as they departed for Barker College to commence the Round Square conference.

We had a great time with all our visitors, and we thank Ms Jauncey, Director of Experiential Learning, Mr Wijanto, Round Square Coordinator and Mr Rudd, Adventure and Immersions Coordinator, for making this experience possible. 

– Darcy Costello (Year 10)