I left Albury-Wadonga to get back to Sydney. I had assumed that Albury-Wadonga was only a couple of hours drive from Sydney, so when we left at 8pm, I thought I’d be tucked up in bed by 10pm. Anyway I arrived at about 4am in Sydney, my faith a little shaken in my knowledge of distances. The highlight of the trip was stopping in Yass for some petrol, and seeing the illuminated genius of KFC (alas at 1am, not even the Colonel was open).

After a crazy plane trip, via Adelaide, I arrived in beautiful Darwin (because Adelaide is OBVIOUSLY on the way between Sydney and Darwin). Where as it was trying hard to snow in Albury-Wadonga, it was now in the mid-30s in Darwin. yay!

First port of call in Darwin was the NT Careers Expo, run by the good folk at the NT Office of Youth Affairs. The definite highlight of the expo was the NT Nanny agency, who ensured me that should I want to, I could be Nannying overseas by the end of the year. Ace!

One interesting thing that I did learn from the Career’s expo is that every year in the NT, less than 100 Indigenous young people graduate from year 12 (and this figure has only recently risen over 50).

I hear it all the time that we all learn in different ways, and completing year 12 to some cultures (whether it be Anglo’s, Vietnamese, Lebanese, Aboriginal Australians etc) is not as important as it is to others. Sure, I understand that, and maybe this low number is reflective of that. I just think how difficult it must be, when our entire education and employment system in Australia is based on educational achievement.

Everywhere I have gone, young people have told me what they aspire to be – and every time they talk to me about jobs they want to do - Teachers, Nurses, Fireman, whatever. This includes young Indigenous Australians in the NT. Even if year 12 achievement is not important to Indigenous Australian cultures, it must be so hard for these young people – who tell me constantly of the dream jobs they aspire to have – to realise that year 12 completion is a pretty large part of obtaining these opportunities. It’s sort of like they are caught between two worlds.