It was a very long time since I had a school excursion so on Saturday, my French School organised a day trip out to regional Victoria, the old gold town of Bendigo to see the French Impressionism Art Exhibition of Life in Paris during 1880-1925.

And shock horror, we were all going to go out there on a ….train.

Now to Australians, regional train travel is not “a thing”. We prefer to fly (it’s cheaper and shorter) or use our car as to go to places anywhere out of these regional towns is usually not serviced by public transport.

A car is the main way we all travel into the regions in the state. So it came as a big surprise when we had to research and book for tickets to get out there.

So much so that even our public transport train system staff had no idea how the regional systems worked either. I found out that to get out into the regions, it’s the cost of a normal fare as if you’re travelling in town. For example for the trip to get out there (2 hours by train), it cost me $7.20 with just a swipe of my MYKI card. That’s it. This was because our state government wanted more people to use the transport systems so made it easier and cheap to travel.

I had to get out to Southern Cross Station to catch the regional train as that’s the hub. Saturday morning on my local train station platform was deserted. Trains come every 20-30 minutes so I missed one and had a slight panic attack that I’d miss the regional train but thankfully I made it in plenty of time. Besides, the station isn’t as enormous as some European cities and all the platforms – metro and regional – are close to each other.

You just have to deal with some excruciatingly slow walking people who were utterly clueless and lost as I was figuring out what platform to go to for the regional trains).

I spotted my train to Bendigo. It was quite exciting to travel in it for the first time ever. Inside we found some seats (unassigned) and sat down as a group to chat and look at the countryside outside the windows. We passed towns like Kyneton, Woodend, Macedon, Castlemaine, Malsmury, Alphinstone – all towns I had been to via the highway in my car. It was intriguing to see it from a train carriage in relative – but simple – comfort. I wondered why I hadn’t travelled by train before!

When we arrived at Bendigo, it was a short walk into the heart of town. This town is of great historical significance in our state as it was the first place gold was found. Most of the buildings are still around so walking the town, there are times you think you’re back in 1880.

On the way to the exhibition, we see this sign. Bonjour Bendigo! (It was also nice to see lots of French influence around cafes and restaurants as all shopkeepers were getting into the theme).

The exhibition was on at the Bendigo Art Gallery. The Musée Carnavalet in Paris had loaned this exhibition to Bendigo until July, and it was a great chance to experience what life was like in Paris at the same time Bendigo was booming with gold.

The Belle Epoch in both cities if you can say that.

There were various gallery spaces allocated to Parisian Parks, Shops, Theatre and Life. A mix of artworks, fashions, black and white film, sculptures, accessories and more.

I went around and looked at the artworks which I found fascinating. My most favourite ones though were the black and white films which were restored and it was moving to watch people go about their daily business on busy streets also stopping to look at the camera intrigued.

For a brief moment, their eyes met mine. Looking through a screen over hundreds of years in my past, theirs in their future. The moment our eyes met, signified to me how life evolves and passes. They had their moment. I have mine now. In future, I won’t be here too.

There were lots of these posters advertising the various theatres and shadow puppet shows happening every evening in Paris streets. You had to wonder about the variety of entertainment everywhere. It seemed everyone was outside and enjoying company of others.

The artworks depicted lively bustling scenes of work and trade during the day and lights, fun and amusement of the evenings.

The fashions were fabulous and intricately designed.

Ladies had to dress up in different dresses during the day and evening. The silk shoes they wore looked so dainty and small. How could these not have broken apart walking the pavements on the streets back then?

This sculpture was from one of the most famous shops that sold snails to the locals. I liked how the curators created the posters behind the exhibits to put context as to how it would have looked like back then.

And what about the quiet life along the Seine for those times people weren’t working or carousing? I loved these serene paintings below.

People doing what people do now. Enjoying a walk along the river with their dogs, pondering, chatting, fishing…. Nothing has changed.

The exhibition also had large photos of Parisian monuments of the time.

Overall it was a fabulous exhibition and a great experience to see what life was like during the Belle Epoch.

After the visit, a quick group photo on the steps of the art gallery before heading around the corner to Ms Batterhams Lounge restaurant for a Bonjour Lunch with my fellow classmates.

The day was delightful and adventuresome. I loved the experience of travelling as part of a group, speaking French and learning more about others. Travelling by train made me realise I should venture out a bit more when I can as it’s so cheap and convenient.

Although train travel is not sophisticated as it is in Europe, at least it’s cheap. The train carriages are looking dated and basic but they’re clean and tidy. Here’s what the Reserved Carriage looks like – you book seats in this carriage but the carriages behind are similar anyway and non reserved for the same price, maybe cheaper.

I’m now thinking of taking a trip out to Woodend one day to visit the township for the day, maybe even do a video for the YouTube channel on bookstores there. Let’s see.