Monday, 29 March, 2021
High hopes for high tide in Suez; France’s famous bread stick; Australia’s fastest man; and the best cubby house ever!
LINKS
Suez ship stranded – photos and video: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-56547383
Funny Suez traffic report: https://twitter.com/JonHansenTV/status/1375538035551522821
Baguette goes for heritage listing: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56540232
Rohan’s Olympic sprint: https://twitter.com/Estrella_Sports/status/1375728820586643458
Up-inspired cubby house: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-28/father-builds-son-cubbyhouse-disney-house-pixar-up/100033818
Squiz Kids Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/squizkids/?hl=en
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Squiz Kids is proudly supported by the Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism and Ideas.
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
THE LOWDOWN
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Have you ever been in one of those traffic jams that seems like it will never end? Maybe you’ve gotten caught in a Xmas or Easter holiday traffic snarl – or a long queue of cars as you do the school drop off. That’s what’s happening – but on an epic scale – in the Suez Canal as one of the world’s biggest container ships continues to block traffic along one of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
It’s been almost a week since the ship called the Ever Given drifted off course in the Suez and became stuck.
On Saturday, no fewer than 14 tug boats were involved in the effort to shove the ship off the side of the canal where it has been wedged since Tuesday. And it moved a teensy bit.
There are about 300 ships backed up on either side of the stranded ship, creating a massive marine traffic jam. The Suez Canal in Egypt, is a man made shipping lane – connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. It’s a direct route from Asia to Europe – meaning ships don’t have to go all the way around Africa. Which is what a lot of ships are doing now instead of getting caught in the backlog. A journey that takes 10 extra days.
Authorities will try to move the Ever Given again this morning – on the next high tide – and have fingers and toes crossed. Meanwhile – lots of people have been having lots of fun with the traffic jam: with one Twitter user creating a very funny pretend traffic report, like the ones you hear on the radio every morning. There’s a link to it – and photos of the stranded ship – in today’s episode notes.
SPIN THE GLOBE
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Each day we give the world globe a spin and find a news story from wherever it stops … and today we’ve landed in France … where a push is on to have the humble baguette heritage listed with the United Nations.
What in the world of breadstuffs am I talking about?
I’m talking about the baguette, people. Only the most wondrous bread stick in the world. Crunchy on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside. And an important part of the daily diet of millions of French men, women and children.
France this weekend submitted the baguette to be included on an international cultural heritage register.
The cultural heritage of a country is made up of all the things the people there do or eat or drink or say or sing or dance – or the traditions they celebrate – that make them unique or special.
And because the French have been baking baguettes for centuries, and an estimated 10 billion – that’s billion with a b – are eaten by the French every year – it’s been decided by French authorities that it’s time to try to protect this important tradition by seeking cultural heritage status.
Just talking about baguettes makes me hungry … try it with lashing of salted butter … mmm
SPORTS TIME
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So you reckon you can run fast? Do you smash out a good time in the cross country? Or maybe beat all the other kids in the playground at lunch time. Chances are you’re not quite as fast as Sydneysider, Rohan Browning, who this weekend turned in a blistering performance at a Queensland race meet to run 100 metres in 10.05 seconds.
It means 23 year-old Rohan automatically qualifies for the Tokyo Olympics – where a race time of 10.08 is required to make the cut.
So he got there by three one-hundredths of a second. That’s faster than the blink of an eye ..
The sprint gave Rohan the third fastest-time in the history of the Australian men’s 100 metre sprint — and it should mean Rohan is the first Aussie to run in the Olympic 100 metres for 15 years.
Go you good thing!
There’s a link in today’s episode notes to Rohan’s Olympic-qualifying run.
SQUIZ KIDS SALUTES
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As a dad, you just want to do stuff that makes your kids happy. Mostly. I put the tent up in the backyard yesterday, as a test run for our Easter camping trip .. but that’s nothing compared to the epic effort a Canberra dad has gone to to make his kids happy.
Scott Fincher’s three kids are huge fans of the animated movie, Up. So much so that when it came time to build them a cubby in the backyard, Scott built an exact replica of the house from the movie. And it’s epic.
It took him months to build – and cost a small fortune – but the result, as you will see from the photos in the link in today’s episode notes, is most certainly worth every hour and every cent.
He’s even gone and put a big bunch of helium balloons out of the chimney. And because he works in IT – he’s added the coolest touch of all. Full Wi-Fi connectivity in the mini-house for when the kids want to have a sleepover in there and stream movies. Scott Fincher – we salute you.
THE S’QUIZ
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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …
- In which country is the Suez Canal where a contained ship is currently causing a massive traffic jam?
- Which country has applied to have its bread stick stuck on a cultural heritage register?
- How fast did Aussie Rohan Browning run 100 metres at the weekend to qualify for the Olympics?
SHOUT OUTS
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It’s March 29 … here’s one for all you studying Federation in school this term … on this day in 1901, our first federal election was run and a bloke called Edmund Barton was elected as our very first Prime Minister. That was 120 years ago today…
It’s also a special day for these Squiz Kids celebrating a birthday today …Matt from Gosford East, Kingston from Exeter, Yunqi from Cherrybrook, Dellaney from Lawnton, Olivia from Bicton, Sophia from Wentworth Falls, Saskia from Wanniassa, Sophie and Oliver from Sydney, Jeffrey from Dobroyd Point, Verona from Willoughby, and Fergus who is listening all the way from Singapore.
And some belated birthday shoutouts to … Joel from Clovelly and Isaac from Bathurst.
Happy birthday one and all.
Today’s classroom shoutouts… Ms Preedy’s 5/6P class from Moss Vale Public School, class 5RG and Ms Green at Albany Hills State School, class 5/6W at Exeter public school, 5M and 5W at St Christopher’s in Holsworthy, and a special shoutout to class 5C from Werrington County Public School with their teacher Miss Catto, who celebrated a birthday yesterday.
The S’Quiz Answers:
- Egypt
- France
- 10.05 seconds