Italian

Year 8

Nearing the end of last term during Year 8 Italian, as a treat Prof Porto allowed us to make one of Italy’s most famous desserts….cannoli! We started by getting inspired by watching 93 year old Clara on video showing us how she makes her famous Sicilian cannoli which has been popular for over 70 years!

Then it was our turn! We collected our ingredients and got to work! Sifting, mixing and stuffing we all got at least four perfect Sicilian cannoli’s!! This task gave great understanding of the true Italian culture and it was super delicious!

Thanks so much Prof Porto for granting us this amazing, funfilled and tasty experience!

Tahlia Roberts and Riley Dow 
Year 8

Year 9

During the first week of Term 4, our Year 9 Italian class participated in an excursion to South Yarra. Students had a ‘giro pizza’, testing a variety of pizzas all with regional Italian ingredients. Following that they attended the Palace Cinema Como to view ‘Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams’ as part of the Italian Film Festival.  

Sarah Porto
Italian Teacher

Japanese

Year 10 and 11 Excursion

The Year 10 and 11 trip to the city began with a stop at the NGV. We saw an exhibition of Japanese artwork that was an interesting window into Japanese history and culture. A standout was certainly a series of woven reed sculptures that were simple, elegant and mindboggling, when one started to think about how they were created. Another paper screen was unlike anything I had seen before, depicting a feudal Japanese town. It was detailed and balanced using negative space to highlight the bustle of a lifestyle alien to my own.

Then we stopped for the food, which turned out to be the highlight of the day. In Melbourne Central we sampled various Japanese cuisines indulging in favourites and experiences we hadn’t tried before. Many of us experimented with some sushi that featured mysterious purple rice and salted egg that turned out to be delicious. However, at the end of the day we were all talking about these Japanese pastries from a store called ‘Pafu’ (パフ). Filled with strawberry jam, airy cream and pastry that melts in your mouth, even for someone who isn’t really a pastry person, I’ll be back at ‘Pafu’ (パフ) as soon as I can!

Finally, we stopped by a VR place where we were able to travel to different places in Japan (and outside of Japan if you were feeling cheeky) through an immersive Google Maps experience. We got to take a look at illusive destinations like the summit of Mount Fuji whilst trying to work out a surprisingly confusing navigation system. Whilst the rotation of the earth was a tad sickening there was laughter all round. Learning about Japan and having fun, I was endlessly glad to get out of the classroom and explore. 

Hayley Meure
Year 11