ROSEBUD
AWARD WINNING
NEWS DESK
KITE FESTIVAL ROSEBUD FORESHORE JETTY ROAD SUN 13TH MARCH 2016
SUNDAY 11am-5pm As Victoria’s largest kite flying event, this free family festival attracts an internationally acclaimed line up of professional kite makers and wind artists. Guest kite makers from interstate Australia and New Zealand will be gracing the skies with their giant maxi kites, colourful land-based wind art and unique delta kite creations. Novice kite flyers, family kite makers and spectators are invited to join in on the fun and celebrate ‘the art of the kite’. The kite flying displays are matched by an exciting program of family entertainment: kids activities, kite making workshops, carnival rides, circus workshops, roving performers, live music on stage, heaps of food stalls and more! The impressively large Maxi Kites are floating 3D creations that can be seen from miles away and measure up to twenty meters or more in length. Requiring skillful handling and a clever aerodynamic design, it is no simple feat to keep these giants of the kite world flying high. In past festivals we have seen these kites include schools of fish, dogs, cats, whales, stingrays and octopi. The overall effect can be beautiful: an ephemeral scene of creatures floating deep in the sky and dancing in the air above Port Phillip Bay. So put the date in your diary and visit Rosebud foreshore during the Labour Day weekend in March. Meet the professional Kite Makers informally on Saturday March 12th from 10am - 1pm as they preview their 2016 creations, while the festival’s main event is on Sunday 13th March from 11am-5pm.
In line for protests? Community groups are gathering to voice opposition to any sky rail plan for sections of the Frankston line. Picture: Gary Sissons
Sky rail concerns gather steam Continued from Page 1 Another community group, the Carrum and Patterson Lakes Forum group, will hand over a petition against sky rail to Ms Kilkenny this month. The online petition at change.org has more than 450 signatures to date. Group spokesman Cameron Howe said the community group speaks to councillors and politicians about local issues as they arise and sky rail has become a concern. “From what I can tell the Level Crossing Removal Authority’s process hasn’t been too transparent so far,” Mr Howe said. “There is great concern within the community that the authority perhaps doesn’t have the most suitable process. “Residents are genuinely fearful that their interests aren’t going to be taken into consideration.” Liberal opposition leader Matthew Guy has seized the opportunity to raise the pressure on Labor over the possibility of elevated rail along the Frankston line, visiting Edithvale train station
last month to say sky rail “would be devastating” for the bayside suburbs, amid concerns about increased noise from elevated trains and the amenity of suburbs, especially for residents near the rail line (‘Sky rail ‘must be dropped’’, The News 24/2/16). Kingston councillors debated whether to oppose elevated rail at the year’s first public council meeting last month but opted to write to Premier Daniel Andrews and Transport Minister Jacinta Allan to ask that community feedback be taken into consideration. Mayor Cr Tamsin Bearsley attended the No Sky Rail Frankston Line meeting on Sunday at Edithvale and said council will lobby the state government to ensure proper consultation is carried out. The Level Crossing Removal Authority is hosting a series of interactive community sessions in March about plans to separate road from rail at eleven level crossings along the Frankston line. See levelcrossings.vic.gov.au/crossings/ frankston-line or call 1800 762 667 for details.
Chinese artists great on paper
For more information www.rosebudkitefestival.com.au or Event Coordinator: Alison Doherty 0403 889 559
Kite Flying Kite Workshops Familly Activities Kids Carnival Roving Entertainment Music Stage Featuring Headmasters Apprentices Memphis Nights (Elvis tribute band) Those Kids and Fox Deroche
FREE ENTRY
ASPENDALE Primary School pupils gained an insight into paper art from Chinese master Jie Zhang, his wife Ying Wang, and Chinese artist Ning Cui, when they visited Melbourne as part of Chinese New Year celebrations last month. The artists were invited by principal Phil Anthony to demonstrate their special talents. Pupils in Class 6B were shown the art of paper cutting by Ning Cui, who has won many awards in Chinese and international art competitions. Her paper artworks are collected by admirers from around the world. They include detailed portraits of famous people, as well as more traditional Chinese-style art. The pupils were taught how to fold and then cut paper to create Chinese characters which symbolise good luck and are often displayed on special occasions. “This exercise was fitting considering it was the first day of the Chinese New Year, organiser Ms Wu said. “The pupils had a great time learning from a master of paper cutting and were all pleased with their results, many taking them home to show their families.” Afterwards, gifts were exchanged, with the
Chinese artists receiving school brochures as mementoes of Australia. “More and more emigrant families are coming to Australia,” Ning Cui said. “Choosing a good school and educating their children is a top priority. Understanding how to keep their own national culture alive while assimilating into Australian cultural life is important for their future.” Ning Cui – who has a child at school in China – said she was confident both countries will blend educationally. “In China, students are challenged by heavy homework every day and can become unhappy. They lose their enthusiasm at that age, but here in Australia, I see happy smiles everywhere. They are eager to study in Australian schools. “I am so happy to see the Mandarin course introduced into an Australian primary school. That means Australia is a real multicultural country.” Australian-Chinese Cultural Association of Trade Exchange president Heyi Chen said: “As an Australia-Chinese association, we want to ‘build a bridge’ to promote the cultural exchanges between the two countries and introduce more Chinese traditional culture to Australia.”
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BRONZE SPONSORS: Proudly presented by Rosebud Chamber of Commerce www.rosebudkitefestival.com.au More info: 0403 889 559
Paper art: Aspendale Primary School pupils proudly show of their creations to Chinese master Jie Zhang.
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Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News 2 March 2016