On 30 June, thirty Rockhampton Girls Grammar Girls embarked on a journey across the ditch to New Zealand to compete in the Rotorua Music Festival. This festival is held every year and sees more than 400 Australian students, and 400 New Zealand students travel to the small city of Rotorua to compete for a Gold, Silver or Bronze placing in their chosen genre. Music clinics and workshops from world renowned musicians were offered as part of the music festival. This allowed students from different schools and countries to meet as well as to work together to create musical masterpieces.
Months of rehearsals took place for the Bella Voce, Molti Voce, Small Wind Band and the Flute Choir to be ready to compete for this Music Festival. Nerves were running high on adjudication day, however the students performed beautifully. So much so that Rockhampton Girls Grammar was awarded a gold place for Bella Voce, a silver for Small Wind Band and Molti Voce and bronze for the Flute Choir.
The tour was not only an educational one; it was jam packed with fun and adventure. The students visited Waitomo Caves where they got to see small glow worms and Hobbiton, a film set for Lord of The Rings. We all got hopelessly lost in the world’s longest hedge maze and rolled down a hill in a giant plastic ball. We visited a geothermal park where the Earth’s crust is a mere 2.5km thick… The girls are now well versed in all the different breeds of sheep thanks to the AgroDome Sheep Show! Ava Kean showed us how to milk a cow, Tillie Hungerford got a toy sheep as a prize, and Sophie Pelizzari got to feed baby goats. Students were treated to a traditional dinner, the hungi, at Tamaki Maori Village. The village showcased the Maori culture and traditions of the past and present.
A highlight of the tour was watching some of the girls face their fears at the Velocity Valley adventure park. Many students worked up the courage to try the Swoop… a giant swing with a 40 metre drop! Screams could be heard from across the park. Other activities included the Free Fall Extreme (being lifted by the world’s largest outdoor fan) and the Agrojet – 0 to 100kmph in 4.2 seconds in a jet boat.
The tour finished with a luge ride down Skyline Restaurant Mountain, followed by a beautiful dinner and presentations.
It is safe to say the girls made memories and new friends that will last a life time! Congratulations to each and every student on a successful tour.
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