July 1966 School Magazine

July, 1966

Brisbane Girls' Grammar School Magazine

July, 1966

Brisbane Girls' Grammar School Magazine

WESTWARD BOUND

and we are sure we succeeded. We were greatly impressed by the size and air of importance of this great city, not to mention the captivating beauty of the harbour which appeared brilliantly blue under the cloudless sky. "The Spirit of Progress" was to carry us on the next phase of our journey - from Sydney to Melbourne. Learning by the mistakes of the previous night, we managed to enj,oy a little more sleep before waking to find ourselves nearing Victoria, a state which I had never before had the pleasure of visiting. My memory of our entry into Victoria is a pleasant one. It was dawn, and the sky was heralding the coming of day with a banner of softest hue. The Murray River, hugged by ancient weeping- willows, wended its way through the valley out of which we were climbing, and the whole atmosphere was one of freshness, peace and beauty. As we drew nearer Melbourne, the scenery began to change somewhat. So far, we had been used to viewing lush green growth, but now the vegetation tended to be of a hardier type, and the straw-coloured grassland predominated until within a few miles of Melbourne itself. Not long after crossing the Yarra River, which, I shall have to admit, is not the largest or most spectacular of rivers, we trundled into Spencer Street Interstate railway station in Mel- bourne. The outer suburbs of Melbourne through which we had passed revealed their extreme age, some even having cobbled streets along which tiny houses huddled with barely a few feet between them. A contrasting picture met our eyes in the .city of Melbourne itself. We were immediately impressed -by the at- mosphere of dignity and pride which arises from this city. For me, Melbourne, with its beautifully designed buildings, magnificent public parks and gardens, and its pretty Yarra River wending its way through the city ( often being crossed by quaint bridges), holds a charm the effect of which is difficult to express. Another night's travelling brought us near to Adelaide. The countryside by this time gave evidence of being very dry, as indeed

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New Year 1966 will long live in my memory as one of the most exciting times of my life . For twelve months I had saved and planned, and at last the day had come when I was to leave as one of the two hundred Queensland delegates to attend a National Christian Youth Convention in Perth. To many, six and a half days in ancient second class "sitters" sounded like a horror trip to the end of the world, but to the group of Queenslanders assembled at the South Brisbane railway station, any thoughts of discomfort were instantly dispelled by eager anticipation of all that was to come . Within minutes of our memorable departure, an atmosphere of friendliness and co-operation descended upon us, and we settled down as one huge family , determined to make the most of every second of our three week excursion. A few hours saw us well over the Queensland border, and as the last lights of day fell on the peaceful waters of the beautiful Clarence River , thoughts of the night ahead inspired us to begin to prepare our small compartment for what we thought was going to be a night's sleep. However, I am afraid we were labouring under a misapprehension. We were to learn that night the vast difference between trying to sleep while sitting . with seven others in the tiny compartment of a steadily joggiiig train; and curling up in a soft bed, turning off the bedside lamp , and with a sigh of relief settling down for a night's blissful slumber . I am sure few of us could recall a night so long. I remember waking from fitful sleep for what seemed like the fiftieth time, and the lines of Kenneth Slessor's poem "The Night-Ride" pound- ing in my mind to the rhythm of the engine's moaning, as the train shook and plunged into the darkness. If we lacked sleep, we certainly did not lack excitement, and it was a very enthusiastic group of young people which descended upon S-y dney the following morning. We were determined to see as much during that day in Sydney as was humanly possible, so

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