We got to school on Sunday and boarded the bus at about nine o'clock, but because Wellington is like eight hours drive away, and we had stops in Tamaranui, Taihape and Bulls, it was around five or six when we arrived at Top Ten Holiday Parks. They had a Jumping Pillow, which was like a ginormous inflatable pillow. We played a kind of elimination game, where you try to push people off. It was fun, but you got really, really sandy. The rooms were very small, but the beds were really bouncy and comfortable.
On Monday, after being woken up at ten to seven when it was still dark, we had to make our lunches and we departed for Zealandia, which was a wildlife reserve thingy on a mountain with pest-proof walls in. (In other words, my brother would not be able to get in.) We got to stroke some Tuatara and we explored a lot of the mountain and learnt about lots of wildlife, especially endangered birds and insects. Then we only had an hour to explore Te Papa Museum, which was by far not long enough. I got lost quite a lot, because I have a tendency to run over to whatever looks interesting, separating myself from my group, or else I run off in a complete different direction, and when I look for them I go the wrong way, or I stay in one place for ages reading something and my group wanders off without me. What can I say? It was really interesting. Especially the Air NZ exhibitions. They had one where you put on a kind of goggles-mask-thing where you could see a simulated illusion where you were on a plane, then on a beach, and in a forest, and in some other places. and you could look around, it was kind of like there was a whole invisible room around you that you could only see through the goggles. Then we went to the National Library, where we learnt about the World Wars. It was informative and interesting, but I stand by what I said before; it was a depressing subject to learn about. Especially when I read one of the letters an eight-year-old had written to one of the Army Generals. He had joint writing, but it was really messy and hardly decipherable. He wanted to be in the Army to fight alongside his father. There was a reply, saying they were glad to see such enthusiasm to fight for their country, but they couldn't accept him because he was too young. Then we went to a water park, H2O Xtreme, which had three hydro slides and a wave pool.
On Tuesday, we went to Carter Observatory, where we spent a long time learning about the planets in our Solar System and which ones would be habitable. We then had time to explore, but not nearly enough. Then we went into a cinema with a domed ceiling and watched some really cool movies, the first about a competition to send a robot to the moon, the second about the constellations you could see at night. We then had lunch at the Botanical Gardens and too the cable car down to Lambton Quay, and walked to Parliament from there. When we got there, we had a chance to listen to Barbara Kruiger, the MP for our area. We then watched the meeting in the House, with all the MPs yelling at each other. Unfortunately the Prime Minister was not present. Next, we went to Capital E studios, where we made a film with news, weather and interviews for the citizens of Far Away Land, a fictional place based on fairy tales. I was the director, which was fun except when everyone was yelling through the headsets. If you want to see the video we made, you can find it at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lY3kvWHlYgY
On Wednesday, the first place we went was the Wellington Zoo. It was a pretty generic zoo, all the animals you would expect. Except there was a penguin with only one flipper, so it kept swimming in circles. And there was a vet there operating on another penguin that we could watch. Then we went snorkeling.
For many people, (me excluded) snorkeling at Island Bay was the highlight of our camp in Wellington. We were split into two groups, and our group spent the first half digging around on the beach or playing Naughts and Crosses in the sand. (I remain reigning champion of that game. I know some people would disagree. Their opinions will mean nothing when I rule the world!) Anyway, we spent maybe half an hour trying to get into the wet suits. Then the flippers, masks and snorkels, and those stupid hoods. We had to stay close to our buddies and adults, but it was really hard, because I could barely keep myself from swimming further and further away to explore. There were huge pink paua shells, snake starfish (I thought it was an octopus the first time I saw one) huge gray fish, smaller other coloured ones, and lots of other things that I can't remember. After that, we went to a marine life exhibit. There were plenty of interesting things there, like a half born shark and lots of other fish and stuff, and an octopus which they fed, but I couldn't stay away from this long shallow tray thing filled with water and shells and rocks, and kina and starfish and hermit crabs and snake starfish and wandering anemones and mini sea cucumbers, which you could pick up and touch and hold! (The wandering anemones were so soft you couldn't feel them in the water, and when you picked them up they felt like wind on your hand, except slimy and wet.) At one point I had seven starfish on my hand at once. And the snake starfish were my favourite, if you put them upside down they turned themselves over.
On Thursday, we went to the Holocaust Center. It was depressing, with an aura of death and tragedy and guilt, but I really enjoyed it. There was someone who came and talked about their own memories of being a Jew in Germany during the Holocaust, how they had to wear stars on their coats and were kicked out of school and weren't allowed to play in playgrounds. They then showed us how one school had decided to collect buttons, and each one represented a child that was killed in the Holocaust. They had collected 1, 500, 000 buttons, one and a half million. We were allowed to look through them, and I noticed how nearly every button was slightly different. I think the buttons were connected to the personality of the children. There was one that loved little kids, one that adored butterflies, one that was used to living in grandeur. One that loved drawing, one that was depressed, one that looked to the stars. There were triplets, all girls. There were happy ones and sad ones, and plain ones, and those with so many small details it stopped you seeing the bigger picture. After the buttons, we read some of the books, and watched a movie about a fictional boy that was a Jew in the Holocaust. His voice was happy when he was describing how life had been, and you could feel the growing sadness in his voice as he described how his rights were gradually stripped away from him. Then he was sent away to a concentration camp with his parents and sister, where they separated the boys and the girls. In the end, he and his father lived through it, but his sister and mother were gassed to death. It was really sad, but I do understand why they teach us this now.
On a happier note, our next destination was Wellington Museum of City and Sea, where we learnt about the Wahine Disaster. Okay, scratch that. Not much happier. But apparently, a few decades ago, you could get a Big Mac from McDonald's for forty cence. And a burger, drink and fries for ninety.
After that, we went to Capital E studios, where my group made three Android apps using MIT App Maker. We each had an Android phone to test it on. The first one was simple, it was just a kitten that when you touched it it meowed (very annoying, too). The second one was a drawing app, you could draw in different colors and shake the phone to clear. The third was a magic 8 ball, when you tapped a picture of one, or shook the phone, it made a 'cha-ching' sound, and said out loud a random response like 'yes', 'no', or 'maybe' and such. The answer also came up, written, on the bottom of the screen.
On Friday, we were up at quarter to six to get on the bus. That was the end of our camp, so thank you to all the parents who came and helped, and Mrs Crowe and Gail for taking us. We had a great time.
On Wednesday, the first place we went was the Wellington Zoo. It was a pretty generic zoo, all the animals you would expect. Except there was a penguin with only one flipper, so it kept swimming in circles. And there was a vet there operating on another penguin that we could watch. Then we went snorkeling.
For many people, (me excluded) snorkeling at Island Bay was the highlight of our camp in Wellington. We were split into two groups, and our group spent the first half digging around on the beach or playing Naughts and Crosses in the sand. (I remain reigning champion of that game. I know some people would disagree. Their opinions will mean nothing when I rule the world!) Anyway, we spent maybe half an hour trying to get into the wet suits. Then the flippers, masks and snorkels, and those stupid hoods. We had to stay close to our buddies and adults, but it was really hard, because I could barely keep myself from swimming further and further away to explore. There were huge pink paua shells, snake starfish (I thought it was an octopus the first time I saw one) huge gray fish, smaller other coloured ones, and lots of other things that I can't remember. After that, we went to a marine life exhibit. There were plenty of interesting things there, like a half born shark and lots of other fish and stuff, and an octopus which they fed, but I couldn't stay away from this long shallow tray thing filled with water and shells and rocks, and kina and starfish and hermit crabs and snake starfish and wandering anemones and mini sea cucumbers, which you could pick up and touch and hold! (The wandering anemones were so soft you couldn't feel them in the water, and when you picked them up they felt like wind on your hand, except slimy and wet.) At one point I had seven starfish on my hand at once. And the snake starfish were my favourite, if you put them upside down they turned themselves over.
On Thursday, we went to the Holocaust Center. It was depressing, with an aura of death and tragedy and guilt, but I really enjoyed it. There was someone who came and talked about their own memories of being a Jew in Germany during the Holocaust, how they had to wear stars on their coats and were kicked out of school and weren't allowed to play in playgrounds. They then showed us how one school had decided to collect buttons, and each one represented a child that was killed in the Holocaust. They had collected 1, 500, 000 buttons, one and a half million. We were allowed to look through them, and I noticed how nearly every button was slightly different. I think the buttons were connected to the personality of the children. There was one that loved little kids, one that adored butterflies, one that was used to living in grandeur. One that loved drawing, one that was depressed, one that looked to the stars. There were triplets, all girls. There were happy ones and sad ones, and plain ones, and those with so many small details it stopped you seeing the bigger picture. After the buttons, we read some of the books, and watched a movie about a fictional boy that was a Jew in the Holocaust. His voice was happy when he was describing how life had been, and you could feel the growing sadness in his voice as he described how his rights were gradually stripped away from him. Then he was sent away to a concentration camp with his parents and sister, where they separated the boys and the girls. In the end, he and his father lived through it, but his sister and mother were gassed to death. It was really sad, but I do understand why they teach us this now.
On a happier note, our next destination was Wellington Museum of City and Sea, where we learnt about the Wahine Disaster. Okay, scratch that. Not much happier. But apparently, a few decades ago, you could get a Big Mac from McDonald's for forty cence. And a burger, drink and fries for ninety.
After that, we went to Capital E studios, where my group made three Android apps using MIT App Maker. We each had an Android phone to test it on. The first one was simple, it was just a kitten that when you touched it it meowed (very annoying, too). The second one was a drawing app, you could draw in different colors and shake the phone to clear. The third was a magic 8 ball, when you tapped a picture of one, or shook the phone, it made a 'cha-ching' sound, and said out loud a random response like 'yes', 'no', or 'maybe' and such. The answer also came up, written, on the bottom of the screen.
On Friday, we were up at quarter to six to get on the bus. That was the end of our camp, so thank you to all the parents who came and helped, and Mrs Crowe and Gail for taking us. We had a great time.
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