Six lucky Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School Year 5 students recently had the opportunity to attend an international conference in Jakarta, Indonesia.
As a full regional member of the Round Square Association, each year, Year 5 students are invited to apply to attend the annual conference hosted in the Australasian region.
Head of Primary Rob Whirledge said the trip had been humbling, exhilarating and an eye-opening opportunity for the students.
"The trip enabled them to build relationships with students from different countries, share perspectives, debate topical issues, forge friendships, support local communities, and develop international understanding," he said.
During the conference, hosted by British School Jakarta, students made music, performed local dances, cooked a signature Indonesian dish, created batik and constructed shadow puppets.
Student Emily Duff said she was excited by the variety of the activities such as planting rice in paddy fields, cooking Nasi Goreng, speaking Indonesian, holding baby orangutans and feeding baby elephants.
"We were surprised that the baby orangutans in the animal hospital were wearing nappies," she said.
"We got to see Sumatran Tigers close up and heard how loud their roar was."
The students also gained a new understanding of how governance structures and support differ between countries.
Elsie Rose said she loved the trek up to the mountains to collect coffee beans before husking, roasting and grinding them.
Hamish Clark recalled dropping off food parcels to the homes of the elderly and listening to their stories.
"They lived in tiny, damp and dilapidated homes with no income or pension - they rely on their children to send them money," he said.
