Culture on a Wet Day

Well we have a real fix of culture today. The weather here in Melbourne today has been really typical winter weather.

I booked tickets ages ago to a performance by one of our favourite kid's performers Jay Laga'aia who was performing with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra as part of their education week. We have seen Jay a few times either on his own or touring with Play School and he is such a marvelous entertainer. I thought it would be good to expose B to a full orchestra in an environment where the performance would be tailored to children and their short attention spans. And I must say it did not disappoint. Not only was Jay wonderful but the MSO conductor and the orchestra were really good too. They had the different sections of the orchestra in different colours so you could easily identify each section and they explained all the different instruments really well. A great introduction to classical music.

MSO and Jay

Jay and his Funky Monkey!

As we would be going into the city I thought we may as well make a day of it. We caught the train into the city which is cheap and offers lots of entertainment. Yesterday, I was racking my brain for another activity that we could do in the morning. We usually head to the playground at Birrarung Marr but as it was very cold and wet that was not an option. I then remembered that a friend mentioned the Kids Space at the National Gallery of Victoria.

I was last there about 2 years ago and was a little disappointed but today was a different story. They have really made a wonderful and free space for kids to enjoy. As they currently have a special exhibition of Napoleon's Masterpieces they have tied this theme into the Kids Space as well. There was also a section of floor that lit up with different stars and constellations when you walked over it. It did not photograph well so I can't show you - sorry. We spent over an hour in there and then discovered they were also doing kids crafts today. B did his bit really quickly but of course his crafty mum had to make sure it looked good - hehe! This is a recommended place to take the kids if you are in Melbourne.

Studying the maps with the magnifying glass

This was a magnetic wall with heads, bodies and legs that you could put together to make a person. Somehow the body got forgotten on this one!

Our crafty rosette with the Kids Space activity sheet

This was a wonderful wet Saturday with a bit of exposure to art and classical music. A win all round!!