In Post 5, published back in July 2023, I wrote about the lagoon which is situated across the road from our house, the beautiful Dowse Lagoon, and about the history of Tom Dowse, after whom it was named. Today, we’ll visit another lagoon in Sandgate, the Einbunpin Lagoon, which is located right in the centre of the village.
These two lagoons and a third one, aptly named Third Lagoon (but also known as Bungwall Lagoon), are all part of the coastal wetlands here. I understand that they are not connected to the sea or to each other, but each is beautiful in its own right and full of wildlife. More than 200 species of local and migratory birds frequent the area. and, in the lagoons live many turtles, eel and other fish.
Once a year there is a festival held here in Sandgate, which is centred around the Einbunpin Lagoon. It’s attended by thousands of locals as well as by people from further afield. So, last year, on 30 July, which thankfully was a sunny Sunday morning, I walked over to have a look at the festivities, which first took place over 30 years ago and which are still very popular.
The Towncrier of Brisbane opened the proceedings and Seniors Superstar, Pete Vance, sang the Einbunpin Festival song, which he wrote a few years ago. Next, we were entertained by the SPC Drum Corps, who were very impressive, followed by an Egyptian Souldance and many more items. Altogether, this made for a very pleasant and happy sunny Sunday morning.
As I wandered around, I noticed that there were lots of small stalls, serving a wide variety of Asian, Middle Eastern, American and European food. It was great to see and it confirmed to me again that our society is changing, with people loving the interesting choices available to them. Although it wasn’t long since I’d had breakfast, when I walked past the Lions Club stall I couldn’t resist the opportunity of buying a sausage sandwiched in a slice of bread along with onions! Delicious at any time, as far as I’m concerned.
Many of the stalls were set up by community organisations, such as the Men’s Shed and the Sandgate Museum. The Men’s Shed, in particular, surprised me with the many products they had for sale. I was impressed with what they’d been able to get ready for this event. Also, it was good to see the Community Refugee Sponsorship stall, which had information available for anyone who was interested. I bought some candles from them, knowing that my daughter loves them.
The political parties had set up stalls as well. Generally, I avoid talking about politics in my blog posts but the local politicians do deserve some recognition for actively supporting this festival. The Brisbane City Council and the Queensland Government were represented by their local members, both of whom addressed the crowd while I was there. They also mingled with the crowd and I was thinking afterwards how tired they must have been at the end of the day.
Readers who are not familiar with Sandgate’s history may be intrigued, as I was, about the origin of the name “Einbunpin”. “Ein” is the German word for “a” or “1” which puzzled me. Why is a German word attached to the aboriginal word “Bunpin”, which is said to be the name for a reed with an edible root, which was used by the Turrbal and Gabi people who lived here.
Some of the answers to the questions I had as I wandered around are provided in a booklet that is available from the Sandgate Museum, with the title “Einbunpin, A BunPin. A bit of Sandgate history and mystery”. It was written by Dr. Deborah A. Cronau, who obviously loves Sandgate.
In her booklet, Dr Cronau refers to a German missionary, Christopher Eipper – “he named a lagoon in 1840 … and he couldn’t believe what he did see!” This aroused my interest even further and I read a little more about this German missionary, who had sailed to Moreton Bay on the government schooner “Isabella”, in March 1838. He travelled extensively in the Moreton Bay area and studied the local languages.
There is no doubt that there is a great deal more to learn about this lagoon. Pattie Tancred wrote about it in the July “Sandgate Guide” and the Sandgate Museum also has information about it, if you are interested.
Our daughter, Nikki, and two of our grandchildren attended the festival in the afternoon. They came to visit us afterwards and reported that there was plenty for children to see and enjoy, as evidenced by their happy faces which were painted in rainbow colours.
Of my morning “walking friends”, the only one I met was Carol, with her companion Emma, a beautiful Golden Retriever who is called “Princess”, after the late Queen’s pony. I discovered this bit of information about Emma in an article in the August Sandgate Guide.
In closing, I do have to admit that I was exhausted by the time I returned home. At my advanced age, I found that moving about very slowly, and standing around in the crowd, made me feel much more tired than when I do my walk to the pier in the morning.
All the more reason for me to keep walking!
O.P.
P.S. Next week we travel south to Port Kembla and meet a Spitfire pilot and other interesting people.
Pingback: 48. Laurie's Walk - Walk and Talk at 87