Jamaica Farewell

On the Sunday before Term 3 started, I took the girls to the Immigration Museum. They were holding a special Carnivale celebration, with lots of kid-friendly activities and shows. I'd been wanting to check it out for a while (we'd purchased an annual Museum membership that included the Immigration Museum) and this seemed like a good time to do it.

Creepy roving statues

Making Brazilian headpieces

Alanna's masterpiece

Aliya and Liana checking out typical boat accommodations

Map showing migration boat routes to Australia

Venetian masks

The highlight was the two shows. One was a Punch and Judy puppet show. It was a PC-version though, and they even announced at the beginning for any concerned parents that there would be no violence. Still, the girls enjoyed the show and especially the magic tricks at the beginning. The second show was a Jamaican music and story-telling show, featuring Queen Jigzie and RuC.L aka Reuben. Apparently he's a Jahstralian (Jamaican/Australian). It was informative, entertaining, and engaging. Here are two short clips:

After their show, they led the audience in a Carnivale parade through the museum and to the outer courtyard. 

More music, and a dancing contest. Alanna was one of the winners, and won a nice bag of goodies including passes to both the Melbourne Museum and the Immigration Museum. We can use them to take Gram when she comes in September!