From this audio tour I've learnt that the Aboriginal heritage of La Perouse is very interesting and important to the history of Australia. I have never been to La Perouse and I hope I will be able to very soon. It looks (and sounds like - shout out Paul) like a beautiful place with a beautiful community. This audio tour is full of detailed information that I was unaware of the importance of whales - like the whale totem being a common one along the coast - particularly in La Perouse - and most whale engravings in once place. I hope to visit La Perouse soon!

MI2 was a low point for the franchise.

The sounds of the waves also brought back a connection from my own home that was close to the beaches and how my family in a way is connected to them, and outlines my own connection to the land in a way and how it helps to shape my understanding of its heritage.

In listening to Uncle Matt speak through this audio walk, he has also provided a lot of rich history to continue to fill in the story of this place for me and the deep layered history Sydney contains, particularly as someone who has only moved here just this year. I found it fascinating and connected with hearing about how the locals thought the ships were ghost spirits and asked what they perceived to be the dead about why they were in this place. This is eerie to me, the idea of seeing a bunch of deceased spirits travelling in ships suddenly approach, but also such a display of a strong connection to Country and spirits, and such a trust in that to have come up and speak to spirits with a sense of curiosity and gentility.

The way Matt describes the area and the surrounding water, giving a bit of an idea of who their surrounding clans were and what their lifestyle would’ve been like with the terrain available to them is beautiful to get a mental picture of. And comforting to hear that there are still many descendants of La Perouse still living in the area, with the government failing to remove them from living on Country. It seems like unfortunately a rare occurrence to keep those ties to Country in the area less disturbed than what the white Australian government intended.

I don’t remember being able to see the whale engravings when we first visited La Perouse as a design cohort at the start of term. It is wonderful to hear about how they’ve culturally been a totem and special connectedness to stories and people from many different clans and groups. I would love to return to the area to try and see these whale engravings, and many more times simply to connect to Country myself and feel that spiritual connection to the history, people, and place.

Thank you uncle Matt for the audio walk, and for the entire teaching staff that has run Wiŋara this year, in everything it has taught me

The podcast is presented in a way that feels soothing very immersive, from the ripple of the waves in the background and quality of Uncle Matt's voice, making it comfortable to listen to and enjoying to absorb the information.

The amount of history located in this one place was surprising and I'm grateful to have gotten the opportunity to learn it from Uncle Matt, in an oral form- the way Aboriginal history is passed down.

I hope we can make it another time!

But I did enjoy uncle Matt’s podcast and found it both peaceful and relaxing ☺️

was a great listen, having never been to La Perouse myself, I was very keen to go but this audio put my right there. I l really wish to go to the museum some day and yeah MI2 was for sure a low point for the franchise.

From the very beginning, the way Uncle Matt welcomed us into the conversation felt warm and genuine, creating an immediate sense of openness and belonging. His willingness to share his culture, personal stories, and knowledge of the area provided not only valuable background information but also a deeper cultural understanding. It allowed me to see La Perouse not just as a physical place, but as a space rich with history, memory, and meaning.

I didn't realise how manny mobs there were when the boats arrived. I've heard this story over in WA, but to hear it from Uncle Matt, it was both sad but a beautiful retelling and so great that Le Perouse has the community hub run by first nations people and their on going connection to this land. thanks for making the audio Uncle loved it!

I found it incredible to hear about how many local Indigenous communities there were in the area including dance groups, medical centres, language groups, and rangers. But this came with a bitter after taste to know that the community was built widely on the government displacing a lot of Indigenous people into the area from surrounding areas to “get them out of the way”.

It was so interesting and amazing to hear Uncle Matt describing the La Perouse people fighting for their land during the invasion. The feeling I get is really mixed. It one of inspiration, but then also guilt to know that people I’m a descendant of treated First Nations people in these ways.

I’m happy to know that this community is still thriving off local plants and bush tucker and I would have loved to have experienced visiting this historical sight. It was beautiful to listen to Uncle Matt speak about this sacred area with the gorgeous soundscapes behind it.

Hope we get to go sometime next term. It would be a true honour to see the ancient whale engraving...and maybe be lucky enogh to see one in person.

Thanks heaps, Uncle.

I would love to visit La Perouse together soon and see the whale engravings and coastal nature, it sounds beautiful.